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WhatsApp is testing a small green dot that shows up on a contact’s profile photo the moment they are active in the app. No more squinting at a text label. You open the contact’s chat info screen, and if the dot is there, your contact is there too.
Where the green dot actually shows up
Right now, it only lives on the chat info screen, the page you get when you tap someone’s name at the top of a conversation. It is being tested on Android beta (2.26.24.5) and, as of this week, on iOS beta version 26.26.10.72 through TestFlight. It is not in the main chat list yet, and it is not inside the conversation itself.
That is the part that bugs me a little. The chat list is where I actually want this information, right before I decide whether to send a message or wait.
WABetaInfo, which first spotted the rollout, has pointed out the same gap. I would bet WhatsApp expands it there eventually, just like online status on Messenger and Instagram, but nothing is confirmed.
Does this break your privacy settings?
No, and this is the one thing WhatsApp seems to have gotten right from the start. The green dot follows whatever you already set for last seen and online status. Hide your online status, and the dot stays hidden too, for everyone, without any exceptions.
If you are one of the people who turned off online status years ago because a family member kept asking why you didn’t reply the second you were “active,” nothing changes for you.
Keep in mind, this redesigned online status indicator is designed to replace the “online” word with a “dot” shape.
Why is WhatsApp doing this now?
This fits into a bigger pattern. WhatsApp has been quietly testing username reservations, incognito Meta AI chats, and view-once text messages, all within the span of the last few months.
A dedicated Contacts hub that lists who is currently active is reportedly coming too, and apparently the green dot looks like the first visible piece of that.
It is a small change, yet it is the kind of small change that makes an app feel less like a message board and more like a place people actually are. As explained earlier, Instagram, Facebook, and other instant messaging platforms have had versions of this for years. WhatsApp is late, but being a part of Meta, at least it is finally showing up.
No public release date exists yet. If you are on the beta for Android or iOS, keep an eye on your contact info screens. For everyone else, this is one more reason to check for app updates a little more often than usual.
