WhatsApp has started allowing users worldwide to reserve a username, a feature the Meta-owned messaging platform says is designed to let people connect with others without disclosing their phone number.
A username on WhatsApp functions differently from handles on other social platforms. Users choose their own username, which does not need to match identifiers used elsewhere, and the company has built the feature without a public directory or suggestion system. This means a person must already know someone’s exact username in order to message them for the first time, rather than discovering it through search.
Once reservations open in a given market, users will receive a notification within the app. To check availability, users can go to Settings and then Account, where a Username tab will appear once the feature is enabled for their account. From there, users can either create a new username or carry over their existing Instagram or Facebook handle, with a username generator tool also offered for those who want assistance choosing one.
Alice Newton-Rex, WhatsApp’s vice-president of product, has said the feature is intended to give people control over who is able to see their phone number, and has emphasised that it remains entirely optional, with usernames that can be changed or removed at any time and need not match a person’s handle on any other platform.
The company has also introduced an additional privacy control called a “username key” or a four-digit code. Anyone attempting to message a user for the first time via their username will need to provide this key to reach them, giving account holders a further layer of protection beyond the username itself. The key can be changed at any time, and usernames themselves can also be updated within the app once the feature is live.
WhatsApp has drawn a direct comparison with Signal, which introduced its own username system in 2024. The shift highlights a wider trend among messaging platforms to find alternatives to phone-number-based contact, with apps such as Germ DM offering features like “burner cards” that let users connect with different groups without exchanging numbers.
With WhatsApp’s user base exceeding three billion people, the company anticipates significant overlap in desired usernames, which is part of the rationale for opening reservations well in advance of the feature’s full launch. Names belonging to public figures, government bodies and celebrities are being withheld and can only be claimed by their legitimate owners, with WhatsApp also blocking look-alike variations of those names to prevent impersonation.
Meta recently announced Kunal Shah, the founder of the Indian fintech start-up Cred, would be taking over as head of the platform.