We meet all kinds of people in our lives. Our social circles keep expanding as we move ahead in life and meet new people. While most of these people come and go, some come close enough to become a part of our social connections. At any particular time, we can categorize these people into two groups: people we get along well with and those with whom we don’t get along well.
There lies a third, extreme category as well. There are some people we don’t get along with at all. And the first thing we want to do when we see them is to avoid them. However, as you probably know, it is not always possible to avoid them in real life.
Things are more or less the same in the online world. Social media has expanded our social networks and introduced us to many people we don’t relate to. Things are more or less the same in the online world. But, what if the person you want to avoid keeps messaging you? That’s a pretty uncomfortable and irritating situation.
The situation becomes even more complicated on WhatsApp, where most of the people we talk with are people we know in real life. We can’t simply avoid them and stop replying to their messages. In such cases, blocking seems to be a reasonable solution.
But, again, the other person can easily find out if they have been blocked, and that’s not something you would want to happen.
Wouldn’t it be great to somehow avoid a person on WhatsApp without blocking them? It really would be. But is it possible? Read this blog to get the answer.
How to Hide a Contact on Whatsapp Without Blocking
We get you. You strongly want to avoid that annoying friend of yours at all costs but don’t want to block them just yet. How do you overcome this dilemma? Well, it’s simpler than you think.
By using some features already available on the app, you can easily avoid that irritating person in different ways. There are two methods that can help you hide or avoid someone on WhatsApp, and both of them are very simple.
Let’s look at the first method, which can help you hide someone on WhatsApp.
1. Archiving their Chat
This is the easiest way to hide a person on WhatsApp. The Archive feature effectively hides a conversation and puts it into a separate Archived folder at the top of all other chats.
When you archive an individual or group Chat on WhatsApp, the conversation gets hidden, and you no longer see their messages by default. You won’t get any notifications when the person sends you a new message, nor will the new message be visible on the Chats screen.
To archive a chat on WhatsApp, follow these steps:
Step 1: Open WhatsApp and go to the Chats tab if you aren’t already there.
Step 2: Tap and hold the chat of the person you want to hide. Several options will appear at the top as you do this.
Step 3: Select the Archive option, the Down Arrow located next to the three dots at the top-right corner.
That’s it. The selected chat will be archived and appear as Archived at the top of other chats on the CHATS tab. The Archived folder contains all the Chats you have archived.
To see an archived chat, you need to tap on the Archived button on the CHATS tab. Then, go to the desired archived chat to see the messages you have received.
Limitations:
Although the Archive feature can help you hide a person’s chat, it does not ensure privacy. The other person will still be able to see your online/last seen status (if you have it turned on) and, therefore, will be able to understand that you are avoiding them.
To overcome these limitations, you can take additional steps to make your actions more private and difficult to interpret. Let’s look at them below.
2. Delete Contact and Make Some More Changes
Due to the limitations mentioned above, archiving a person’s chat might not be enough. To cut off connections from the annoying person more effectively, you can take additional steps.
Step 1: Delete the person’s phone number from your phone’s Address Book. You can save the phone number somewhere safe in case you change your mind in the future.
Step 2: Now, open WhatsApp and tap the circular icon at the bottom-right corner of the CHATS tab.
Step 3: Tap on the three dots and select Refresh. Your Contact List will get updated.
Step 4: Go back to the CHATS tab and tap on the three dots at the top-right corner.
Step 5: From the menu list that appears, go to Settings→ Account→ Privacy.
Step 6: On the Privacy page, you will see many options, including Last Seen, Profile Photo, About, and Status.
The first three options are set to Everyone, while the Status option is set to My Contacts by default.
You can change the options from Everyone to My Contacts according to your requirements and preferences. Since you have deleted the person’s phone number from your Contact List, the person will no longer see your Status updates.
Additionally, if you change your Last Seen setting to My Contacts, the person won’t know when you come online. Similarly, if you change the Profile Photo setting too, they will not be able to see your Profile Photo either.
Bonus Tip:
If you want to avoid the person as much as you can without actually blocking them, try combining the two methods mentioned above. To do this, archive the person’s chat first and then delete the phone number from your Contact List. Then, you can change the Privacy settings as mentioned earlier.
Using these methods, you can hide and avoid a person on WhatsApp without making it obvious or blocking them.
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