WhatsApp Introduces Multiple Accounts on Android: Here’s How to Enable the Feature

Android users can now keep two active accounts on their WhatsApp app and switch between them without logging out of one.

Written by Manas Mitul, Edited by Siddharth Suvarna | Updated: 20 October 2023 10:50 IST

WhatsApp Introduces Multiple Accounts on Android: Here’s How to Enable the Feature

Photo Credit: WhatsApp

Users can switch between work and personal accounts

Highlights

The second account must be tied to secondary phone number
Notification settings can be adjusted for each account separately
The feature is currently available to Android users

WhatsApp ties down users to a single active account on one device, even if they can choose to use the popular messaging platform on different devices. To access a secondary account tied to a different phone number, users have to log out from their primary account on the same device. That is about to change. The Meta owned instant messenger announced Thursday that it will allow users to have two active WhatsApp accounts logged in at the same time on Android devices. WhatsApp users can switch between the two accounts seamlessly, without having to log out.

In a blog post, WhatsApp said that to set up two accounts, users would need a second phone number and SIM card, or a phone that supports multi-SIM or eSIM. Users can then head to WhatsApp settings, tap on the arrow next to their name, and click “Add account.” Using their secondary phone number, they can then set up a second WhatsApp account on the app.

It's also worth noting that users can adjust privacy and notifications settings separately on each account. For example, you could mute notifications on your personal account and allow them for your work account, or vice versa. Messages sent and received on both accounts will also, of course, be end-to-end encrypted.

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The multi-account feature would let users easily switch between work and personal accounts on WhatsApp and would also eliminate the need to carry two phones to do so. On its blog, WhatsApp also cautioned users to only use the official WhatsApp app on the Google Play Store and not download imitating apps. The company has not yet confirmed the feature on iOS devices.

WhatsApp has been having a busy week, rolling out a bunch of new updates and features for users. Recently, the app was also reported to be testing a ‘view once' mode toggle for voice messages, just like the one present for sending photos and videos on the app.

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Earlier this week, the app also rolled out support for passkeys on Android. The feature lets Android users log back into their WhatsApp account securely using biometric authentication on their phones or their device PIN.

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Further reading: WhatsApp, Android, WhatsApp Multiple Accounts

Manas Mitul

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In his time as a journalist, Manas Mitul has written on a wide spectrum of beats including politics, culture and sports. He enjoys reading, walking around in museums and rewatching films. Talk to Manas about football and tennis, but maybe don’t bring up his video game backlog. More