For most of its history, using WhatsApp has meant handing over your phone number to anyone you chat with. That trade-off is finally starting to loosen. WhatsApp is working on a new privacy setting that lets users decide who can see their number in chats and calls, building on the username system the platform introduced in June.
The feature has been spotted in development inside WhatsApp beta version 2.26.45.1 for Android. It follows the familiar structure of WhatsApp’s existing privacy controls, offering four visibility choices: Everyone, My contacts, My contacts except, and Nobody. Anyone who already uses the app’s controls for profile photos or last seen will recognise the layout immediately.
There are two important limits. The setting will only apply to people who have set up a username, which makes sense given that the username is what replaces the number as your public identifier. And it can’t erase what people already know. If someone has your phone number saved, they will still see it in conversations and calls regardless of what you choose.
The default is where the setting gets interesting. WhatsApp currently hides your number automatically from anyone who reaches you through your username, and the new control will start at Nobody, so people who want to stay private won’t need to change anything. The real purpose seems aimed at the opposite group. Small business owners, freelancers and anyone who wants contacts to have their number for calls or SMS will now be able to reveal it deliberately, either to everyone or to a selected circle.
It is worth noting that usernames themselves are still not fully live. Users can currently reserve a handle, but the broader rollout is ongoing, and this new visibility control is not yet available even to beta testers. There is no timeline for a public release.
WhatsApp is also arriving late to a conversation its rivals settled years ago. Telegram has long allowed users to hide their numbers behind usernames, and Signal added usernames in 2024 for the same reason. For a platform with WhatsApp’s enormous reach, though, the shift matters more. Phone numbers have been an easy route for spam, scams and unwanted contact, particularly in large groups and community chats where members are often strangers.
The question is how quickly WhatsApp can get usernames widely adopted. Granular privacy controls only help if people actually stop sharing their numbers in the first place.