Photo: WhatsApp/Rajesh Pandey/Cult Of Mac
WhatsApp is gearing up to add the long-requested message scheduling feature. The app will allow users to create messages in advance and send them at a chosen time, similar to how iMessage handles scheduled texts.
Links to this feature appeared in the latest WhatsApp beta on TestFlight.
Message scheduling seems to be delayed
Apple added a much-needed text scheduling feature to the Messages app in iOS 18 in 2024. While it’s a minor addition, it’s especially useful for birthday wishes, reminders, and messages across time zones.
Almost 1.5 years later, WhatsApp seems ready to bring similar features to its platform. WABetaInfo found the “Scheduled Messages” option on the group information page in the latest beta version of WhatsApp for iOS.
There aren’t many details yet on how the feature will work in practice. However, a familiar iMessage or Telegram-like approach is likely to follow. Long press the send button, select the date and time, and the application will deliver the message at the set time.
Photo: Rajesh Pandey/Cult of Mac
Before the scheduled time, you should be able to edit the content of the text or cancel sending it entirely.
While the screenshot shows the ability to schedule messages for groups, the message assumes it will work for individual conversations as well.
Bridging the big gap in WhatsApp
In the Messages app, you can schedule an SMS up to 14 days into the future. WhatsApp may also implement similar restrictions on its platform.
WhatsApp serves more than a billion users who send billions of messages every day. Given its scope, the absence of a built-in message scheduling feature seems like a big gap.
Since this feature has just appeared in the beta version of WhatsApp, it may take some time to reach the stable public release.
Rajesh has been writing about consumer technology for over a decade, with a strong focus on iPhones, Macs and the Apple ecosystem. He enjoys digging into Apple software updates, hardware changes, and discovering new Mac apps that make work faster and more enjoyable.
