When you save someone’s contact, or someone has your contact, you can message each other on WhatsApp.
When using WhatsApp, you may want to check someone’s activity to know if or when they were last online.
It could be you want to decide whether to message them or not. Or perhaps you are stalking someone.
The main question people ask is whether the last seen displayed by WhatsApp is accurate.
The WhatsApp last seen shows the last time someone was online. WhatsApp gives an accurate duration of when someone was last active on WhatsApp. Sometimes, it will provide the precise date and time when that person last used WhatsApp. However, this information is only available if you’ve not hidden your WhatsApp last seen or the target person has not hidden theirs.
First, we will understand what the last seen on WhatsApp means and why you may not see someone’s last seen. Moreover, we will discuss whether the last seen is accurate and how you can hide your last seen.
What Does “Last Seen” Mean on WhatsApp?
WhatsApp offers two main features to help you track someone’s online activity.
The online status signals that your friend is currently active on WhatsApp and can see and reply to your messages.
The last seen appears when the online status disappears. With last seen, it shows the last time someone was last online on WhatsApp.
If someone were recently online, such as one minute ago, the last seen would indicate they were last active a minute ago. If someone has been offline for a long time, WhatsApp will display the last seen date and time they were active.
If you open someone’s WhatsApp profile but can’t see their profile, below are the possible explanations for that:
- The person has hidden their last seen under their privacy settings.
- You’ve hidden your last seen from others.
- The person has blocked you on WhatsApp.
- You’ve not saved that person’s contact.
- The person has not saved your contact.
When in a conversation window on WhatsApp and that person begins to type the message, you will see a typing indicator to show they are actively chatting and will send you a message soon.
How Accurate is WhatsApp Last Seen?
The last seen displayed on WhatsApp is accurate. Provided someone has not hidden their last seen on WhatsApp, you should conveniently manage to see their last seen.
This information is accurate and will give the date and time or the elapsed time if the person was recently active.
Moreover, if the person comes back online, the last seen will immediately change from last seen to online. The reverse is also true.
WhatsApp added this feature to enhance communication. Someone is likely to text you when they see you online, unlike when they have no idea whether you are online.
How To Hide Your Last Seen on WhatsApp
The last seen is a valuable and accurate WhatsApp feature. However, if you feel the feature violates your privacy, you can hide your last seen and online status.
When you do, others can’t see your last seen and online statuses when viewing you on WhatsApp.
Similarly, you can’t see other WhatsApp users’ last seen and online statuses.
If you are okay with that, the steps below will guide you:
- Open the WhatsApp application on your phone.
- Tap the three dots at the top for Android and click “Settings” or just the “Settings” button for iPhone.
- Tap on “Privacy.”
- Tap on the “Last seen and online” option at the top.
- Select who should see your online and last seen statuses on WhatsApp. The changes you make will reflect after you restart your WhatsApp.
- If you want to hide it from everyone, use the option for “Nobody.” Otherwise, you can set it to “My contacts” or specific contacts.
Conclusion
The last seen displayed on WhatsApp accurately shows the date and time when someone was last active on WhatsApp.
We’ve seen how to hide your WhatsApp activity if you don’t want to see your last seen.
You now understand everything about the WhatsApp last seen feature.
