Message scheduling.. a new WhatsApp feature for iPhones

After years of waiting, Meta-owned messaging app WhatsApp has begun testing one of its most requested features with a select group of users on the iPhone beta version.

Although Meta typically does not disclose active user numbers by platform, Mark Zuckerberg stated in April of last year that WhatsApp’s monthly active users had surpassed 3 billion worldwide.

Ironically, despite being used by more than a third of the world’s population, the app still lacks certain features that competing platforms have offered for years, most notably the ability to schedule messages.

Earlier this year, WABetaInfo reported that code signatures in the WhatsApp beta revealed the company was working on a message scheduling feature, although it was not available for testing at the time.

Now, according to the same site, the feature has begun rolling out to a select group of iOS beta users, less than two weeks after it first appeared in the Android beta version of WhatsApp.

According to WABetaInfo, users can schedule a message from within the chat interface. After typing the message in the text field, they must long-press the send button, which opens a “Schedule Message” screen with options to select the date and time.

Once the desired time is set, users can tap the green button at the bottom of the screen to confirm; the button displays the exact delivery time before the process is completed.

Scheduled messages also appear in a dedicated section within the chat info or group info options for group chats.

In group chats, scheduled messages are delivered only to members who were present in the group at the time the message was scheduled. Anyone who joins the group later will not receive the message, even if they join before the actual scheduled send time.

The iPhone message scheduling feature supports sending various types of content, including photos, videos, and links. However, there is currently a limitation: users cannot schedule multiple photos or videos at once; each media item must be scheduled individually.

Will it arrive soon? As is often the case with beta features, WhatsApp’s message scheduling is currently limited to a select group of testers, with no manual activation method available.

There has been no information regarding the official public release date, but since testing is underway on both iOS and Android, it is likely that availability will be expanded soon.