WhatsApp says goodbye to phone numbers: usernames are on their way
From today, you can reserve your username. The feature – eagerly awaited by billions of users – will be up and running by the end of the year and will change the way people contact each other on the Meta app
Three billion users, one Achilles’ heel: the phone number. From today, WhatsApp is beginning to overcome this limitation with the global launch of username reservations – the feature most eagerly awaited by users of Meta’s platform since the app was first launched.
The mechanism is simple: each user will be free to choose their own username, which does not necessarily have to be the same as the one used on other apps. The stated aim is privacy. The WhatsApp username is not designed to increase a profile’s public visibility: there are no directories to search through nor any automatic suggestions; to start a conversation with someone for the first time, you will need to know their exact username. This sets WhatsApp clearly apart from Telegram or Instagram, where profiles can be browsed.
A feature that will allow users to get in touch without necessarily having to share their phone number. The feature is due to go live by the end of 2026, but from this week onwards it will be possible to reserve your own identifier.
More privacy in conversations
The stated aim is to reduce the need to share personal information such as a telephone number in all those situations where you come into contact with people you do not know well. This is the case, for example, with groups, school chat groups, events or casual contacts, where at present your number becomes immediately visible to other participants. Once the feature is available, those who choose to use it will be able to share their username instead of their phone number. In initial conversations between users, or between users and businesses, the number will not be displayed, provided the feature has been enabled. To further strengthen control over access, WhatsApp will also introduce an optional ‘username key’: a sort of additional code that the recipient must know in order to send the first message.
Book in advance to avoid duplicates
The decision to open bookings straight away is primarily a matter of scale. With over three billion active accounts worldwide, there is a high risk that many users will want the same username. Allowing early registration therefore makes it possible to spread the allocation of usernames out over time. For those who cannot find their preferred username available, WhatsApp will also provide an automatic generator of personalised suggestions.
