How to add and remove group members

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You can add up to 1024 members to a group if you’re an admin or if admins have chosen to keep their group open for anyone on WhatsApp to join.
New group members won’t be able to see events or messages sent in the group before they joined.

Add members

  1. Open the WhatsApp group chat, then tap the group subject.
    • Alternatively, tap and hold the group in the Chats tab. Then, tap
      More Options (three vertical dots)
      > Group info.
  2. Tap Add or Invite via Link.
  3. Search for or select contacts or a phone number to add to the group.
  4. Tap
    Check Mark (checkmark)
    .
    • You’ll see Frequently contacted contacts as potential contacts to add to your group.
  5. If the group has Approve New Members turned on, and there are pending requests to join the group, an admin can review these requests.
You can also tap
More Options (three vertical dots)
, then tap Add members.

Add someone not saved as a contact

You can add people or phone numbers that aren’t saved in your contacts.
  1. Open the group chat you want to add members to.
  2. Tap + Add members.
  3. Type in the phone number of the person you want to add and select the number.
  4. Tap
    New Chat Arrow (right arrow within square)
    .
  5. Tap Add to group.

Add members through the group context card

A group context card gives people more information about the group when they’re first added. When you first create a group, you can also invite people through the context card. If you’re a group admin, you can invite people to join a group with the group context card.
  1. Open the group chat you want to add members to.
  2. Tap + Add members.
  3. Select members.
  4. Tap
    New Chat Arrow (right arrow within square)
    .

Invite contacts who don’t have WhatsApp to a group

  1. Open the group chat and tap the group name.
  2. Tap Add and select contacts.
  3. Select contact.
  4. Tap
    Checkmark (checkmark within square)
    .
    • If prompted, select Allow to be able to send and view SMS messages through WhatsApp.
  5. Enter a message.
  6. Tap Invite via SMS.

Remove members

  1. Open the WhatsApp group chat, then tap the group subject.
    • Alternatively, tap and hold the group in the Chats tab. Then, tap
      More Options (three vertical dots)
      > Group info.
  2. Tap the member you want to remove.
  3. Tap Remove {member} > OK.
Note:
  • If you’ve added too many members to groups, you might see an error message. You might need to wait 24 hours to add more members to groups and create additional groups.
  • Groups may work differently if you’re invited to a group by a business using authorized third-party providers to help them manage WhatsApp. Learn more.
How to change group admin settings