Overview
- WhatsApp opened worldwide username reservations at the end of June, letting any user reserve a unique handle now that will become active when the feature is switched on for their account later this year.
- Usernames will replace displayed phone numbers for people who do not already have your number saved, but a phone number is still required to create a WhatsApp account.
- To limit abuse, WhatsApp will not offer a public directory or autocomplete, requires exact username matches to start a chat, and offers an optional four-digit Username Key that must be known to allow a first message.
- Names must follow character rules (lowercase a–z, digits, dots, underscores, 3–35 characters) and WhatsApp will block company, celebrity or public-figure names; businesses and creators can claim existing Facebook/Instagram names by linking a Meta account.
- The change narrows a functional gap with Signal and Telegram by protecting numbers from new contacts, but apps that skip phone-number sign-up entirely still offer stronger anonymity; the update affects WhatsApp’s roughly three billion users and could reduce unwanted number sharing and some forms of spam.