WhatsApp gives users the option to exclude their profile photo from specific contacts. This allows you to customize who can see your profile photo on WhatsApp. When you exclude your profile photo from someone, they will not be able to see your current profile photo or any future changes you make to it.
How to Exclude Profile Photo in WhatsApp
Excluding your profile photo from contacts in WhatsApp is easy to do. Just follow these steps:
- Open WhatsApp and go to your profile tab
- Tap the three dots menu icon in the top right corner
- Select Privacy
- Tap Profile Photo
- You will see a list of all your WhatsApp contacts. Tap the contact(s) you want to exclude your profile photo from.
- A checkmark will appear next to the contacts you selected. Tap Done in the top right corner.
Once you exclude your profile photo from a contact, they will see a default gray avatar icon instead of your actual profile photo.
Who Can See Your Excluded Profile Photo
When you exclude your profile photo in WhatsApp, only the specific contacts you have selected will not be able to see it.
- You will still see your profile photo normally
- All your other contacts will still see your profile photo
- If someone has your phone number saved in their contacts but not as a WhatsApp contact, they will still see your profile photo on WhatsApp
- New WhatsApp contacts you add in the future will see your profile photo by default unless you exclude them as well
So in summary, the only people who will not see your current or updated profile photo are the specific WhatsApp contacts you have chosen to exclude.
Why Exclude Profile Photo in WhatsApp
Here are some common reasons you may want to exclude your profile photo on WhatsApp for certain contacts:
- Privacy – There may be some contacts you don’t feel comfortable having your photo visible to, like coworkers or distant acquaintances.
- Avoid unwanted interaction – Similar to privacy, you may want to avoid chat requests from some contacts by excluding your photo.
- Appear offline – Having no profile photo can give the impression you’re not active on WhatsApp and make you appear offline.
- Prevent screenshots – Without a visible profile photo, contacts can’t take a screenshot of your current image.
- Control your identity – You may want to show different profile photos to different people and exclude it from those you don’t want seeing a particular image.
- Personal preference – You simply may not want certain contacts seeing your profile photo for your own reasons.
The ability to exclude your profile picture gives you more control over your identity and privacy on WhatsApp if you have contacts where you want to limit the info they can see about you.
What Happens When You Un-Exclude a Contact
If you later decide to stop excluding your profile photo from a certain contact, it’s easy to un-exclude them and restore the photo visibility.
Here’s what happens when you un-exclude a contact:
- They will immediately see your current profile photo again
- They will be able to view any future profile photo changes again
- They will get access as if they were never excluded in the first place
- You do not have to change your profile photo or restore an old one for them to see it again
Un-excluding brings things back to the default setting where all your contacts can see your profile picture changes again unless you manually exclude them.
Changing Your Excluded Profile Photo
What happens if you change your profile photo after excluding it from certain contacts?
- The contacts you excluded will not see the new photo and will still see the default grey avatar.
- All other contacts will see the new photo as normal.
- Even if you re-add a previously visible photo, the excluded contacts will not see any profile photo changes.
- To show a new profile photo to excluded contacts again, you will have to un-exclude them first.
In summary, excluded contacts are unable to see any profile picture changes until you manually un-exclude them again.
Excluding Your Photo from WhatsApp Groups
In addition to individual contacts, WhatsApp also allows excluding your profile photo from specific groups:
- Open the WhatsApp group and tap the group name at the top
- Go to Group settings > Privacy
- Tap Profile photo > My photo
- Toggle off Show my photo to exclude it from the group
When excluded from a group this way:
- Group members will see a default grey avatar icon instead of your profile photo
- You will still see your own profile photo in the group normally
- Your profile photo will remain excluded even if it changes in the future
This gives you granular control to exclude your profile picture from specific group chats for privacy or other reasons.
Troubleshooting Excluded Profile Photos
Here are some common troubleshooting issues and solutions for excluded profile photos in WhatsApp:
Excluded contact can still see your photo
- Make sure you correctly selected the contact to exclude. Double check your settings.
- Confirm the contact has you added in their WhatsApp contacts. If not, they will still see your profile photo.
- Have them close and reopen WhatsApp to refresh your profile photo visibility.
- Try un-excluding and excluding them again to reset the settings.
You can’t see your own profile photo
- This is expected behavior. You will always see your profile photo even when excluded from others.
- Go to your profile and confirm your photo is set correctly.
- Check if you accidentally excluded yourself from your own contact profile.
Some contacts suddenly can’t see your photo
- Verify you didn’t unintentionally exclude them from your profile photo.
- If you made no changes, have them close and reopen WhatsApp to refresh.
- Ask if you disappeared from their contacts which would also hide your photo.
- Try temporarily un-excluding them and excluding again to reset it.
Following these troubleshooting tips should help resolve any issues around contacts not seeing your excluded profile photo in WhatsApp.
Conclusion
Excluding your profile picture in WhatsApp gives you an extra level of privacy and control over your information. By customizing exactly which contacts can’t view your current or updated profile photo, you can manage your identity and online interactions on a more granular basis. Keep in mind excluded contacts will continue seeing a generic icon instead of your actual photo until you manually un-exclude them again. The ability to exclude certain groups as well provides even more configuration options. With the privacy and flexibility it provides, excluding your profile photo can be a useful WhatsApp feature for many users.
| OS | App Version | Steps to Exclude Photo |
|---|---|---|
| iOS | Latest |
|
| Android | 2.22.4.74 |
|
This summarizes the key steps to exclude your profile photo on WhatsApp for iOS and Android. The process is very similar across platforms.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I exclude my last seen status from contacts?
Yes, WhatsApp has a separate setting to exclude your last seen status from specific contacts. It works similarly to excluding your profile photo.
Is there a limit to how many contacts I can exclude?
No, you can exclude as many individual contacts and groups as you want from seeing your profile photo. There is no limit.
Can I exclude my entire profile from someone?
Unfortunately, WhatsApp does not allow you to exclude your entire profile. The only option is to specifically exclude your profile photo or last seen status.
Can I exclude a contact without them knowing?
Yes, when you exclude your profile photo from someone they are not notified or informed in any way. It occurs silently in the background.
What happens if an excluded contact gets a new phone?
Even if an excluded contact reinstalls WhatsApp and activates it on a new device, they will continue to see the default avatar icon for your profile. Your settings persist.
Is there a way to temporarily exclude a contact?
There is no built-in option for temporary exclusions. You would have to manually un-exclude them again when desired, but this achieves the same effect.