One chat keeps lighting up your phone all day. A family group that never sleeps, a work group that carries on after hours, a friend who sends twenty messages where one would do. You do not want to leave the chat, and you do not want to block anyone — you just want the noise to stop. Muting does exactly that, and it takes about ten seconds.
What muting does — and what it does not
Muting only touches the alerts. Everything else about the chat stays exactly as it was, which is why it is the safest first step when a chat gets loud.
| After you mute a chat | What happens |
|---|---|
| New messages | Still delivered and visible when you open the chat |
| Sound and vibration | Stopped for that chat for the chosen duration |
| Badge and pop-up | Depends on the Show notifications choice on Android — see below |
| Your membership | Unchanged — you are still in the group and can reply any time |
| The other people | Not notified, and they see no mute icon on their side |
| Read receipts | Unchanged — muting does not hide blue ticks |
On iPhone: mute from the chat list
The fastest route on iPhone works from the main chat list, without opening the conversation at all:
- Open WhatsApp and stay on the Chats tab.
- Find the chat or group you want to silence.
- Swipe left on the chat, then tap More.
- Tap Mute.
- Choose 8 hours, 1 week, or Always.
You can also mute from inside the chat: open the conversation, tap the contact or group name at the top, tap Notifications, then switch Mute on and pick a duration. Both routes lead to the same setting, so use whichever you reach first. This step-by-step WhatsApp mute guide confirms the same iPhone flow and durations.
On Android: mute from the chat list
Android's route is just as short, and it works identically for one-to-one chats and groups:
- Open WhatsApp and stay on the Chats tab.
- Press and hold the chat you want to silence.
- Tap the crossed-out speaker icon at the top of the screen.
- Choose 8 hours, 1 week, or Always.
Inside a chat, the same setting lives under the contact or group name at the top: tap the name, tap Notifications, then choose Mute notifications and a duration. The group-muting steps in this guide to muting WhatsApp groups match the Android flow above.
Which duration should you pick?
The right duration depends on why the chat is noisy, not on how loud it is right now:
| Duration | Best for |
|---|---|
| 8 hours | A workday, a night's sleep, or a single busy evening |
| 1 week | A holiday, a deadline week, or a temporary project group |
| Always | A group you want to keep but never want to hear from |
How to unmute a chat
Unmuting is the same gesture in reverse, on both platforms:
- Find the muted chat in your Chats list — look for the crossed-out speaker icon.
- On iPhone, swipe left, tap More, then tap Unmute. On Android, press and hold the chat, then tap the crossed-out speaker icon again and choose Unmute.
- Alternatively, open the chat, tap the name at the top, tap Notifications, and switch Mute off.
Notifications from that chat resume immediately. Nothing you missed while muted is lost — every message sent during the mute is waiting in the chat when you open it.
Mute, block, archive, or Do Not Disturb?
Muting is one of four quiet-down tools, and picking the wrong one causes the exact frustration people blame on muting:
| Tool | What it does | Use it when |
|---|---|---|
| Mute | Silences alerts for one chat only | One chat is too loud, the rest are fine |
| Block | Stops that person contacting you at all | You want no contact, not just no noise |
| Archive | Hides the chat from your main list | You want it out of sight, but alerts are a separate question |
| Do Not Disturb | Silences everything on your phone | You want quiet across all apps, not just WhatsApp |
Blocking is the strongest option and the hardest to undo socially, so try muting first. If the problem is your whole phone rather than one chat, our guide to scheduling Do Not Disturb on iPhone and Android covers the phone-wide version. And if you want to change what a chat sounds like instead of silencing it, see our guide to changing your WhatsApp notification sound.
FAQ
Will the other person know I muted them?
No. WhatsApp sends no notification when you mute a chat, and the mute icon only appears on your own phone. The other person can still send messages normally, and nothing in the chat changes on their side.
Do I still receive messages from a muted chat?
Yes. Muting only stops the alerts. Every message still arrives, and you can read and reply to them whenever you open the chat. If you open the chat and find messages you missed, that is normal — muting never deletes or blocks anything.
Does muting stop WhatsApp calls from that person?
Do not rely on muting for calls. Muting targets message notifications; an incoming voice or video call can still ring. If calls from one person are the problem, blocking that person or using your phone's Do Not Disturb mode is the stronger fix.
Can I mute a chat for just one person inside a group?
No. Muting applies to the whole chat or group at once — you cannot mute one member of a group while hearing the rest. If one member dominates a group, your options are muting the whole group or asking them to take long threads elsewhere.
What happens when a timed mute runs out?
Notifications simply resume on their own. An 8-hour mute ends 8 hours after you set it, and a 1-week mute ends after a week. There is no warning when it expires, so if the chat suddenly gets loud again, check whether your mute period has ended before muting it again.
Does muting work on WhatsApp Web too?
Yes, WhatsApp Web has its own mute control: hover over the chat, open its menu, and choose Mute notifications with the same duration choices. Mute from whichever device you are using at the time — the phone steps above are the ones to use when you are on your phone.
I muted a chat but it still buzzes — what went wrong?
First, check that you muted the right chat — the crossed-out speaker icon should sit next to its name. Then check whether you are hearing a different chat, or your phone's general notification sound rather than WhatsApp's. If the icon is there and that exact chat still alerts you, try unmuting and muting again, and make sure your WhatsApp app is up to date, since older versions handled the Show notifications checkbox differently.