If you are unable to see statuses on WhatsApp, there are a few potential reasons why this may be happening. The most common causes are that you have muted the person, the person has muted you, their privacy settings are restricting who can view their status, your read receipts are turned off, or there is an issue with your internet connection.
You have muted the contact
One of the most common reasons you may not be able to see someone’s status is because you have muted their chat. When you mute a chat, you will no longer receive notifications for any messages or updates from that contact, including their status updates.
To check if you have muted a contact:
- Open the chat with the contact whose status you cannot see.
- Tap on their name at the top of the chat screen.
- Look for the “Muted” option. If it is toggled on, you have muted this chat.
To unmute the chat, simply tap on “Muted” again so the toggle goes off. You should then start seeing their status updates again.
The contact has muted you
If you cannot see someone’s status, it may be because they have muted your chat, which prevents you from seeing any of their updates. There is unfortunately no way to tell if someone has muted you on WhatsApp.
If you think someone may have muted you, try reaching out to them directly and politely ask if they can check their settings. They can then confirm if you are muted or not.
Their privacy settings are restricting status visibility
WhatsApp allows users to control who can view their status updates – either everyone, their contacts, or a custom list of contacts. If someone has their settings restricted to a custom list that doesn’t include you, you will not be able to see their status.
The only options in this case are to either ask the person to update their privacy settings, or to simply accept that their status is not meant for you to see.
Your read receipts are turned off
In your WhatsApp settings, you have the option to turn read receipts on or off. Read receipts show when you have viewed a message. If you have read receipts turned off, it also prevents you from seeing other people’s status updates.
To enable read receipts and view statuses:
- Open WhatsApp Settings
- Go to Account > Privacy
- Turn on Read Receipts
Once enabled, you should now be able to view status updates from your contacts again.
Network or internet issues
If you are having connection problems due to poor signal, weak WiFi, or an internet outage, this can prevent WhatsApp statuses from loading. Check that your internet is working properly across other apps as well.
Try the following troubleshooting steps:
- Turn airplane mode on and off to reset your network connection.
- Force close and restart the WhatsApp app.
- Check your WiFi router or mobile data connection.
- Try viewing statuses over a different internet connection.
If statuses start loading after one of these steps, you can confirm it was a temporary network issue.
Update to the latest version of WhatsApp
Make sure you are running the latest version of the WhatsApp app, as outdated versions may not show statuses properly. Open your device’s app store to check for any WhatsApp updates and install if available.
Clear your app cache
Over time, cached data can build up and cause performance issues in apps like WhatsApp. Try clearing the cache to see if it fixes problems loading statuses:
- Android – Go to Settings > Apps > WhatsApp > Storage > Clear Cache
- iPhone – Go to Settings > General > iPhone Storage > WhatsApp > Offload App
After clearing the cache, restart WhatsApp and check if statuses are now visible.
Restart your phone
As a last resort, try restarting your phone completely. This will clear out any memory issues and ensures all apps start fresh. After restarting, open WhatsApp and see if statuses load.
Status visibility troubleshooting in WhatsApp
If you are still unable to see a particular contact’s status after trying the above steps, here are some troubleshooting steps you can take within WhatsApp:
- Open your chat with the contact and check if you can see their profile photo. If not, they may have blocked you.
- Try sending them a message. If it shows one checkmark and never delivers, you are likely blocked.
- Check your contacts list and see if their last seen time shows up. If not, they may have blocked you.
- Call the contact. If the call does not go through, it’s a sign you may be blocked.
If you confirm you are blocked, there is unfortunately no way to see that person’s status updates. They would need to unblock you first.
As a last easy check – log out of your WhatsApp account completely, force stop the app, restart your phone, then log back in. This will reset all cached data and settings that may be causing issues.
How to troubleshoot WhatsApp status not working
On Android
If you are an Android user and your WhatsApp status is not working, try these steps:
- Force close and clear cache of the WhatsApp app in your phone’s settings.
- Check that you have the latest version of WhatsApp installed.
- Toggle your phone’s Airplane mode on and off to reset connections.
- Go to WhatsApp > Settings > Storage and tap “Clear Data.” This will log you out and delete temporary files.
- Restart your phone and try setting a status again.
On iPhone
For iPhones, follow these troubleshooting tips:
- Force quit WhatsApp by swiping it up and away from the app switcher.
- Go to iPhone Settings > General > iPhone Storage and offload the WhatsApp app.
- Reinstall WhatsApp from the App Store and login again.
- Toggle Airplane mode on and off to reconnect.
- Update your iPhone software to the latest iOS version.
- Restart your iPhone and try sharing status again.
If your WhatsApp status is visible to you but not others
If your WhatsApp status appears to work fine on your end but others cannot see it, the likely culprit is your privacy settings:
- Go to WhatsApp Settings > Account > Privacy
- Tap on Status and make sure visibility is set to “My Contacts” or “Everyone”
You may also want to check your internet connection and try toggling WiFi/cellular data to see if that refreshes things.
Contact WhatsApp support if issues persist
If none of these troubleshooting tips work and you are still unable to see statuses or post your own, you may need to contact WhatsApp directly for further help.
You can get in touch with WhatsApp support by going to Settings > Help > Contact Us in the WhatsApp app. Explain your issue and they will look into the problem.
Statuses not loading can be frustrating, but in most cases it is an issue that can be resolved through troubleshooting. Follow the steps outlined here to get your WhatsApp status working again.