WhatsApp Finally Lets New Members View Group Chat History

Last updated: 2026/02/20 at 4:06 PM

News Room Published 20 February 2026

WhatsApp is rolling out a long-awaited feature that gives new group members access to messages shared before they joined the chat.

Group Message History allows group admins and members to share 25 to 100 of the latest messages with new members. The idea is to give new members a quick heads-up without requiring other participants to provide explanations or screenshots of previous conversations.

When adding new members, admins and members will now see a “Send messages” option. They can choose to share the last 25, 50, 75, or 100 messages with the new person. Admins can turn the feature off at any time. WhatsApp set the 100-message limit because “new members only need to read the most relevant, recent context, and the whole group can easily see the messages that have been shared.”

(Credit: WhatsApp)

When someone in the group provides access to older messages, all members will get a notification with the sender’s details, message timestamps, and an option to view them. Group messages remain end-to-end encrypted, WhatsApp says.

WhatsApp’s end-to-end encryption faced scrutiny recently. A lawsuit claimed that the app’s encryption is a hoax, since Meta employees can request and gain access to user messages for work purposes. Meta, however, has denied those claims.

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Group Message History, meanwhile, will roll out in stages, so keeping the app updated might help. The app’s last update for group chats allowed participants to add member tags, a short caption below their name describing who they are.