There are a few potential reasons why your Samsung phone may not be notifying you when you receive WhatsApp messages. The most common causes include having notifications disabled for WhatsApp, having Do Not Disturb mode enabled, having battery optimization turned on for WhatsApp, software issues from an update, or notification issues between WhatsApp and your Samsung device model.
Check If WhatsApp Notifications Are Enabled
The first thing to check is whether you have notifications enabled for WhatsApp. Open the WhatsApp app, go to Settings > Notifications and make sure that “Notifications” is toggled on. You can also customize the notification sound, vibration, preview settings and LED light here.
If notifications are disabled, enable them and see if that fixes the issue of not getting notified for new WhatsApp messages on your Samsung phone.
Disable Battery Optimization
Many Samsung phones have battery optimization enabled by default for apps like WhatsApp. This can prevent WhatsApp from running in the background properly and delay notifications.
To disable battery optimization for WhatsApp on Samsung:
- Go to Settings > Apps.
- Tap the 3-dot menu button in the top right corner.
- Select “Special access”.
- Select “Optimize battery usage”.
- Find “WhatsApp” in the list and make sure it is turned off.
With battery optimization disabled, WhatsApp should be able to run properly in the background and send notifications on time.
Check If Do Not Disturb Mode is Enabled
If you have Do Not Disturb mode enabled on your Samsung phone, you will not get any notifications from WhatsApp or other apps. To check:
- Go to Settings > Notifications.
- Make sure Do Not Disturb mode is turned off.
You can also customize Do Not Disturb to allow exceptions for important contacts or repeat callers if you want to still receive some notifications while having Do Not Disturb enabled.
Update WhatsApp
If WhatsApp is not notifying properly after trying other troubleshooting steps, an app update may be required. Open the Google Play Store, search for WhatsApp and check if there are any pending updates. Install the latest WhatsApp version and test if notifications are working again.
Restart Your Phone
A simple restart can often resolve app notification issues on Samsung phones. Restart your phone and open WhatsApp to see if notifications come through normally after the reboot. This resets background apps and services and can clear up software glitches preventing notifications.
Clear WhatsApp Cache and Data
As a troubleshooting step, you can try clearing the app cache and app data for WhatsApp:
- Go to Settings > Apps.
- Tap WhatsApp.
- Tap Storage.
- Tap Clear Cache and Clear Data.
This wipes temporary files and resets WhatsApp to default settings. You may need to re-enter your phone number and re-verify the app after clearing data. Test if notifications work properly after doing this.
Check for Samsung or WhatsApp Updates
If you’ve tried other troubleshooting steps without success, the issue may be a compatibility bug between WhatsApp and your specific Samsung model. Check if either WhatsApp or your Samsung phone has any pending updates:
- For Samsung phone updates, go to Settings > System updates.
- For WhatsApp updates, go to Google Play Store > My Apps & Games > WhatsApp.
Install any new updates available for your device software or WhatsApp. Updates often include notification bug fixes.
Disable Battery Optimization for WhatsApp
Battery optimization can interfere with WhatsApp’s background processing, preventing timely notifications on Samsung devices. You should disable battery optimization for WhatsApp:
- Go to Settings > Apps.
- Tap Menu > Special access.
- Tap Optimize battery usage.
- Find WhatsApp in the list and turn off the setting.
This allows WhatsApp to run properly in the background and send notifications without Samsung trying to restrict it to save battery.
Check If WhatsApp Has Notification Access
On Android, apps need to have notification access permission to display alerts and notifications. Check if WhatsApp has access enabled:
- Go to Settings > Apps > WhatsApp > Notifications.
- Make sure “Allow notifications” is enabled.
- Tap Advanced and check if “Use notification access” is enabled.
If notification access was disabled, turn it back on for WhatsApp and see if that fixes the missing notifications.
Conclusion
In summary, common fixes for WhatsApp notification issues on Samsung phones include:
- Enabling notifications for WhatsApp in app settings
- Disabling battery optimizations
- Disabling Do Not Disturb mode
- Updating WhatsApp and your Samsung device software
- Restarting your device
- Clearing WhatsApp cache/data
- Checking notification access for WhatsApp
If none of these troubleshooting tips work, you may need to contact Samsung or WhatsApp support for further help diagnosing the issue.