WhatsApp is finally catching up on one of its most requested features. Message scheduling, a tool that rival Telegram has offered since 2019, has appeared in a new WhatsApp beta for Android, suggesting Meta is preparing to bring it to the platform’s enormous user base.
The feature was found in WhatsApp beta for Android version 2.26.8.11 by WABetaInfo, which tracks changes in the app’s test builds. Instead of being buried in a menu, scheduling is accessed by long-pressing the send button. That brings up a panel at the bottom of the screen where you pick a delivery date and time. A separate management area lets you review queued messages before they go out, which is useful if plans change or a message no longer makes sense by its send date.
The limits are fairly modest. Messages can be scheduled no sooner than 10 minutes ahead and no more than two weeks out. That covers most everyday needs, such as a birthday message, a reminder to a colleague in another time zone, or a group update timed for the morning. It is more restrictive than some rival tools, though, and anyone hoping to plan communications weeks in advance will hit that ceiling quickly.
The most notable detail is that scheduled messages reportedly send even when your phone is offline. That suggests the message is handled on WhatsApp’s servers rather than relying on the device to wake up at the right time. Scheduled messages are said to support text, links, photos and videos, and remain covered by end-to-end encryption. Exactly how WhatsApp holds an encrypted message for later delivery has not been explained, and privacy-conscious users will likely want more detail once the feature launches officially.
Group chats are also supported, which may matter as much as one-to-one messaging. WhatsApp is the default coordination tool for families, schools, community groups and many small businesses across the Middle East, Europe, Latin America and Asia. Being able to queue an announcement instead of setting a phone alarm to send it manually is a small but practical improvement.
It also brings WhatsApp closer to what users now expect from messaging. Apple added Send Later to iMessage with iOS 18, and scheduled sending has long been standard in email apps such as Gmail. For a platform with WhatsApp’s reach, the long delay has been hard to justify.
For now, the feature is available only to some Android beta testers, with a wider rollout expected in the coming weeks. There is no word yet on iOS, WhatsApp Web or the desktop apps. Those versions will determine whether scheduling becomes a real everyday tool or remains limited to Android phones.
