WhatsApp for iPhone May Soon Show Who's Online With a New Green Dot Indicator

WhatsApp is reportedly working on a small but significant change for its iPhone app that could make it much easier to see when friends and family are active. According to a new report, the messaging platform is testing a green dot indicator that will show how many people are currently online, without requiring users to open individual chats.

A Green Dot Will Highlight Active Contacts

As spotted in the latest WhatsApp beta for iPhone by WABetaInfo, the app is working on a green online indicator that appears at the top of the Chats tab. Instead of displaying the online status of individual users, the indicator will show the number of contacts who are currently online. Tapping it is expected to make it easier for users to discover active contacts and start conversations without checking chats one by one.

The feature does not reveal exactly who is online by default, helping preserve a degree of privacy while still giving users an overview of activity.

Privacy Settings Will Still Apply

The new indicator is expected to respect WhatsApp's existing privacy settings. This means users who have chosen to hide their Last Seen & Online status won't be counted in the online tally, and people who cannot see your online status won't be able to see yours either.

In other words, the feature isn't introducing a new way to expose users' activity but is building on WhatsApp's existing online visibility controls.

Another Small Convenience Feature

The green dot is one of several quality-of-life improvements WhatsApp has been testing in recent months. The company has been steadily adding features aimed at making the app easier to navigate, including AI-powered tools, chat filters, document scanning, and support for usernames, although the latter remains under regulatory scrutiny in India.

When Will It Roll Out?

The feature is still being tested in the iOS beta version of WhatsApp, and Meta has not announced when it will be released to all users. As with many beta features, there's also a possibility that it could be modified or dropped before a stable rollout. For now, iPhone users will have to wait until Meta confirms its wider availability.