These Are the Most Important WhatsApp Settings I Make Sure to Change

Having switched phones multiple times, I’ve learned that tweaking a few key WhatsApp settings right away can make a huge difference in how I use the app. Here are the essential settings I always make sure to change first.

Turning Off Automatic Downloads

One of the most frustrating moments is when someone sends you a bunch of pictures and videos on WhatsApp and they all start downloading while you’re on cellular data. So to avoid these situations, here’s how you can stop photos, videos, audio, and documents from downloading automatically on an iPhone:

Switch to the Settings tab.
Go to Storage and data.
Now, tap Photos, Audio, Video, or Documents, under the Media auto-download header. You’ll see three different options—Never, Wi-Fi, and Wi-Fi and Cellular. To enable auto-download on cellular data, select Wi-Fi and Cellular. If you prefer to download media only when connected to Wi-Fi, choose Wi-Fi. If you want to have complete control over which media files are downloaded to your device, choose Never.

On an Android, here’s what you need to do:

Tap the three-dot menu in the top-right corner of your device’s screen.
Select Settings from the dropdown menu, and then tap Storage and data.
To control what content is saved when using mobile data, tap When using mobile data under the Media auto-download section. Select only the media types you’d like to download over mobile data (photos, audio, videos, documents). Tap OK when you’re done.
Repeat the same steps for When connected on Wi-Fi and When Roaming.

Even if you’re not looking to save data, preventing automatic downloads is a great way to prevent WhatsApp media sent in groups from hogging all your phone’s storage.

Stopping WhatsApp From Saving Photos to My Camera Roll

If you’re in multiple group chats, you’re probably used to seeing random images appear in your device’s camera roll. Even if you don’t open certain chats, or you’ve archived several group chats and conversations, images and videos they send will still be saved to your camera roll.

So it may also be a good idea to turn off Save to Photos so images and videos you receive aren’t automatically downloaded to your camera roll. On an iPhone, head to the Settings tab and tap Chats. Now toggle off the switch next to Save to Photos.

On an Android, tap the three-dot menu and go to Settings. Tap Chats and toggle off the switch next to Media visibility.

If you want to adjust these settings for specific contacts or group chats, open the conversation and tap the contact or group name at the top. On the Contact/Group Info page, tap Save to Photos/Media visibility and choose from the following options: Default (Off/On), Always, or Never.

Toggling on Automatic Backups

I’ve had my fair share of bad experiences losing valuable data. For instance, a recent Instagram bug deleted several of my archived Stories. When it comes to WhatsApp, a few months ago I switched devices and didn’t realize my last chat backup was from six months prior.

In my haste to transfer chats, I lost many valuable conversations. These experiences taught me two key lessons — always be prepared for the worst and regularly back up your data. Since then, I’ve turned on automatic backups.

Here’s how you can turn it on:

Go to Settings > Chats > Chat backup.
Tap Auto Backup, and then select one of the options: Daily, Weekly, or Monthly.

Since I’m in multiple group chats and often get contacted by delivery riders via WhatsApp, I’m not comfortable with strangers viewing my profile picture. To address this, I’ve limited my profile picture visibility to only my contacts.

To do the same, head to Settings > Privacy. Then tap Profile photo and choose My contacts under the Who can see my profile photo section. You can also limit your profile photo to certain contacts by choosing My contacts except.

Turning Off My Last Seen and Online Status

One of the primary reasons why I don’t open Snapchat much anymore is because of how anxious I’d get when the “[Person’s Name] is typing…” notification would appear on my device’s lock screen. WhatsApp’s Last Seen feature gives me a similar feeling, especially when I’ve texted someone and they don’t reply, even though their Last Seen has changed.

There are also times when I just don’t have the mental energy to respond to messages and I don’t want people to know I’m online. Because of this, I’ve decided to turn off my Last Seen and Online status.

To do so, head to WhatsApp’s Settings. Now, tap Last seen & online, and select Nobody under Who can see my Last Seen. One limitation is that you can only choose between allowing everyone to see when you’re online or restricting it to the same group as your Last Seen. So, you can choose between Everyone and Same as last seen under the Who can see who when I’m online.

Protecting My IP Address in Calls

If you’re big on privacy, you’ll be pleased to know that WhatsApp allows you to hide your IP address during voice and video calls. Once enabled, the feature hides your location during WhatsApp calls by relaying your call through WhatsApp servers.

You can enable this feature by heading to the Settings page on WhatsApp. Tap Privacy and keep scrolling until you see Advanced. Once you tap it, toggle on the switch next to Protect IP address in calls.

Modifying My Notification Settings

Receiving notification after notification on WhatsApp can become incredibly frustrating, especially when you’re in the middle of an important conversation with someone or when you’re trying to focus on a task. Thankfully, WhatsApp offers a lot of flexibility when it comes to notification settings.

On an iPhone, go to the Settings tab and tap Notifications. On an Android, tap the horizontal three dots and go to Settings. Then, tap Notifications. While the options are similar on both platforms, the exact names of the settings may differ.

I’ve personally toggled off Reaction notifications under both Message notifications and Group notifications to avoid being notified every time someone reacts to a message I sent.

On the same page, you can also change the Sound alert, which can help you identify who messaged you without needing to look at your device’s screen.

I can’t count how many times my friends have asked me to send them the photos we took after a night out. One of the biggest drawbacks of sending images on WhatsApp is how pixelated they can get. While WhatsApp has introduced an HD Quality option, there have been countless times when I’ve forgotten to toggle it on before sending an image.

Recently, I discovered a setting within WhatsApp that allows you to set the default Media Upload Quality. To enable this, go to the Settings page in WhatsApp, tap Storage and data, then tap Media upload quality under Media quality and select HD quality.