WhatsApp is probably your go-to app for instant messaging but sometimes texting on the app becomes overwhelming, so much so that you wish to take a break from it. However, it is not easy to shy away from picking up your phone when the familiar WhatsApp notification tone buzzes. The easiest way to go discreet is to turn off the internet connection to silence WhatsApp notifications so that there’s nothing that grabs your attention. But then you’d risk missing updates from other important apps, like Gmail. In this article we’ll tell you how to completely turn off WhatsApp notifications without have to uninstall the app.
There are certain third-party applications that can restrict internet access to some apps like WhatsApp on your phone so that there are no notifications from that particular app to distract you. For example, Google Digital Wellbeing allows users to control notifications from apps and helps them restrict the use of social media applications. But some users don’t consider it to be a foolproof idea that will keep them away from using those apps. Some third-party applications may also pose a security risk and your data may get compromised.
Alternatively, you can mute WhatsApp by tinkering with your phone’s settings.
How to completely turn off WhatsApp notifications
Turn off all types of notifications in WhatsApp
The first step is to disable the notification alerts for WhatsApp. For this, you need to open WhatsApp > Settings > Notifications > and select ‘None’ in the Notification tone menu for Messages. Further, you should turn off the vibration, choose “None” under the “Light” option, and turn off “Use high priority notifications”. The same can be done for the Group settings just below the Messages section.
Disable notifications from general Android Settings
The Android system also sends notifications for apps. So in order to get completely cut-off from WhatsApp, you need to turn off the notifications by going to Settings > Apps and Notifications > Apps > Select WhatsApp > Notifications > Turn off “All WhatsApp Notifications” on your Android device.
Revoke Permissions and Disable Mobile Data Usage in Background
The third step is to further cripple the app. Go to Settings > Apps and Notifications > Apps > Select WhatsApp. Under Permissions, revoke all permissions which allow WhatsApp to access camera, microphone, and files on your smartphone. Tap Mobile Data and disable the usage of mobile data in the background.
‘Force Stop’ WhatsApp
After revoking all permissions and disabling mobile data usage in the background, go to the previous screen, and ‘Force Stop’ the app. By doing this, the app will not be functional and you will not get any notifications. However, if you need to check messages on the app, you can simply open WhatsApp on your device.
This way, you’ll be able to stay away from overwhelming texting on WhatsApp without removing the app or turning off your internet connection. Furthermore, you will remain virtually ‘invisible’ to your contacts.