Meta-owned WhatsApp is giving iPhone users the ability to use one WhatsApp account on multiple devices. Almost a month after launching "Companion Mode" which lets Android users link their WhatsApp accounts on multiple devices, the same feature is being rolled out for iOS users. According to WhatsApp updates tracker WABetaInfo, as per the official changelog for the latest WhatsApp for iOS 23.10.76 update available on the App Store, WhatsApp is finally releasing the ability to link an iPhone as a second device for everyone.
Last month, WhatsApp announced a feature that allows users to use the same account on multiple phones. This feature essentially enables users to send and receive calls and messages across all their devices while maintaining the same level of privacy and security. However, this feature was only available for WhatsApp for Android, and not for WhatsApp on iOS.
"With this feature, users can link up to four devices simultaneously, which means you can connect even more than two mobile phones to your WhatsApp account. In addition, your personal messages and calls remain end-to-end encrypted even when using WhatsApp from a linked mobile phone. When someone sends you a message, it is sent to all your devices while maintaining encryption. As we recommended in our article published when the feature was available on the Android app, we suggest you read the updated whitepaper for technical details about how encryption works when using multi-device," WABetaInfo wrote on its page.
However, some iOS users may not be able to use it immediately and may receive the ability over the coming weeks, as indicated in the official changelog.
WABetaInfo suggests "staying ahead" by regularly updating WhatsApp from the App Store and the TestFlight app to get the feature, in case users don’t get it after installing this update.
Also, some features like messaging broadcast lists and status updates will still be available only on the "primary" iOS device.