Published · by ChatWatch
Turn off last seen, step by step
- 01Open WhatsApp and go to Settings. On Android tap the three dots at the top right first.
- 02Tap Privacy, then Last seen and online.
- 03Under Who can see my last seen choose Nobody. Choose My contacts to hide it only from strangers.
- 04To disappear completely, set Who can see when I'm online to Same as last seen on the same screen.
Hide last seen from one person only
Choose My contacts except… and tick the people to exclude. They stop seeing your last seen, and your online status too if it is set to Same as last seen, while everyone else sees you as before. WhatsApp does not tell them they were excluded: they see an empty line, which is also what they would see if you had hidden it from everyone.
What turning it off hides, and what it does not
- Hidden: the last seen time under your name.
- Not hidden by this setting alone: the live online label. That is the second option, Who can see when I'm online.
- Not hidden: blue ticks. Read receipts are a separate switch under Privacy.
- Not hidden: typing… while you write in someone's chat, and your profile photo, About and status updates, which have their own settings.
What you lose
WhatsApp's rule is reciprocal. If you do not share your last seen, you cannot see anyone else's, and the same applies to online. There is no way to keep seeing theirs while hiding yours inside the official app. Modified apps that promise it, such as GB WhatsApp, are not made by WhatsApp and regularly get accounts banned.
Does turning it off stop trackers?
Yes, for any account you hide it from. Tools such as ChatWatch link to the tracker's own WhatsApp account and record what WhatsApp shows that account. If your last seen and online status are hidden from it, WhatsApp sends it nothing, and nothing can be recorded. This is enforced by WhatsApp's servers, so it holds whatever the tool claims.
The reverse also applies: if a contact you track in ChatWatch turns theirs off for you, their history simply stops.
Turning off last seen: questions
If I turn off last seen, can people still see me online?
- Yes, unless you also set Who can see when I'm online to Same as last seen. They are two settings on the same screen.
Will my contacts know I turned off last seen?
- They get no notification. They just stop seeing a time under your name, which looks the same as being offline with no stamp.
Can I turn off last seen and still see other people's?
- No. WhatsApp hides other people's last seen and online from anyone who hides their own.
Does turning off last seen also turn off blue ticks?
- No. Blue ticks are controlled by Read receipts, a separate switch under Settings, Privacy.