WhatsApp Streamlines Business Chats
WhatsApp trials 'Offers & Updates' folder to automatically sort messages from major businesses.
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Key Points
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The feature is designed to move messages from large businesses — such as banks, airlines, retailers, and delivery services — into an 'Offers & Updates' folder after a predefined period.
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Users cannot customize the timing; there is an on/off toggle, with the duration fixed by Meta and the maximum tested delay up to 24 hours.
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The feature currently applies only to messages from large businesses; small businesses and personal chats stay in the main inbox, with potential expansion to smaller businesses in the future.
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WhatsApp is piloting the feature with selected partners via the WhatsApp Business Platform; there is no announced rollout date, and wider adoption will depend on pilot results.
WhatsApp is testing a new folder called 'Offers & Updates' that automatically moves promotional messages from large businesses out of your main chat list, according to Android Headlines and Economic Times. Banks, airlines, retailers, and delivery services would be redirected to this folder after a set delay — with the maximum tested delay sitting at 24 hours.
The goal is simple: less clutter, easier conversations. WhatsApp is testing the feature with select partners through its WhatsApp Business Platform, though no public rollout date has been announced, WebProNews reported.
How the New Folder Actually Works
When the feature is active, messages from large businesses do not disappear — they move. After a fixed window of time, up to 24 hours, those messages land in the 'Offers & Updates' folder instead of your main inbox. Discount codes, flight alerts, and delivery updates would all be routed there, according to TBreak.
Users get an on/off toggle in settings, but that is all the control they get. Meta sets the timing. You cannot choose whether messages move after 1 hour or 12 hours — the delay is fixed by WhatsApp, Android Headlines noted.
Only Large Businesses Affected — For Now
The feature targets messages from large businesses only. Think national banks, major airlines, and big retailers. Small businesses and personal chats stay exactly where they are — in the main inbox — Economic Times reported.
WhatsApp may extend the folder to smaller businesses in the future, but that has not been confirmed. For now, the pilot is narrow and limited to partners already using the WhatsApp Business Platform, according to Real Hacker News.
WhatsApp's Push to Make Business Messaging Less Annoying
WhatsApp has grown into a major business messaging tool. Meta has reported rising revenue from paid business messaging and subscriptions across its apps. But that growth comes with a side effect: users are drowning in promotional pings from companies they once messaged for a one-time delivery update.
The 'Offers & Updates' folder is WhatsApp's answer to that problem. Meta says the goal is to keep promotional content organized while still making important business messages easy to find, WebProNews reported. It mirrors similar inbox-sorting tools seen in Gmail and Apple Mail.
No Launch Date Yet as Pilot Results Will Decide Rollout
WhatsApp has not said when — or if — the feature will roll out to all users. The current test involves a small group of business partners on the WhatsApp Business Platform. Wider adoption depends entirely on how the pilot performs, TBreak reported.
For regular users, nothing changes yet. But if the pilot succeeds, the 'Offers & Updates' folder could become a standard part of WhatsApp for billions of users who currently receive business messages mixed in with texts from friends and family.
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