WhatsApp group video calling allows up to 8 participants in a video call at once. This limit applies to both mobile and desktop versions of WhatsApp.
WhatsApp Group Video Call Limits
| Maximum participants in a WhatsApp group video call | 8 |
| Maximum participants in a WhatsApp group voice call | 8 |
| Maximum participants in a regular WhatsApp group chat | 256 |
As shown in the table above, WhatsApp currently allows up to 8 participants in a group video or voice call. For regular WhatsApp group chats, the limit is much higher at 256 participants.
How WhatsApp Group Video Calls Work
WhatsApp uses end-to-end encryption for all calls, including group video calls. This means the calls are secured and no third party, including WhatsApp itself, can access the call data.
To start a group video call on WhatsApp:
- Open an existing group chat or create a new one
- Tap the video or voice call icon in the top right
- Select the participants to call from the group chat
- Tap the video or voice call button
Up to 8 participants from the group can join the video call. As people join, their faces will appear in tiles on the screen. You can tap and hold on a tile to switch or mute individual participants.
Why the 8 Participant Limit?
WhatsApp has imposed a limit of 8 participants for group video calls likely due to technical constraints. Video calls require significantly more bandwidth and processing power compared to regular voice calls.
Some technical challenges with large group video calls include:
- Bandwidth requirements increase exponentially as more users join
- Video and audio quality can deteriorate with too many participants
- Difficulty synchronizing video feeds between multiple participants
- Scalability issues for real-time encoding and transmission
By capping the group video call limit at 8, WhatsApp is likely trying to maintain a balance between functionality and performance. This prevents video call quality from deteriorating too much while allowing small groups to participate.
Other video calling apps and services often have similar limitations on group sizes for technical reasons. For example, FaceTime also has a limit of 32 people in group calls.
As technology progresses, WhatsApp may be able to support more participants. But for now 8 is the maximum for group video calls.
Tips for WhatsApp Group Video Calls
Here are some tips to have better group video call experiences on WhatsApp:
- Use a stable high-speed WiFi or cellular data connection to avoid lag and glitches.
- Make sure all participants have updated to the latest version of WhatsApp.
- If possible, use phones with more powerful processors for a smoother experience.
- Reduce background noise by muting participants when not speaking.
- If quality is poor, try reducing the number of participants on the call.
- Ask participants to turn off video if their connection is poor and use audio only.
Following these tips can help maximize video and audio quality even near the 8 participant limit.
Comparison with Other Apps
Here’s a comparison of maximum group video call sizes across some popular apps and services:
| App/Service | Maximum Group Call Participants |
| 8 | |
| FaceTime | 32 |
| Skype | 50 |
| Zoom | 100 (free); up to 500 (paid) |
| Google Meet | 100 (free); 250 (paid) |
As shown, other providers typically support larger group video calls than WhatsApp. However, WhatsApp calls have the advantage of end-to-end encryption. Overall, WhatsApp tries to strike a balance between group call size and call performance.
The Future of WhatsApp Group Video Calls
In the future, WhatsApp may raise or remove the 8 participant limit as technology improves. Some potential advances that could enable this include:
- Faster 5G internet speeds
- Enhanced video compression algorithms
- Increased processing power and bandwidth on mobile devices
- Support for newer real-time video protocols
- Edge computing and cloud infrastructure optimizations
However, due to WhatsApp’s end-to-end encryption implementation, scaling group video calls significantly while maintaining call quality and security remains challenging.
For now, users that require very large group video calls may need to use alternative apps while keeping WhatsApp for smaller private group calls.
Conclusion
WhatsApp currently limits group video calls to 8 participants maximum. This limit is imposed primarily due to the technical challenges of large scale end-to-end encrypted video calls. Performance and call quality would suffer with too many participants.
By capping the group size at 8, WhatsApp aims to provide a usable and reliable group video calling experience. While larger calls may be possible in the future, 8 remains the limit today. Users can get around this by creating multiple overlapping WhatsApp groups for larger calls. But each group is still limited to 8 participants in the video call itself.