WhatsApp’s very first feature, ‘About’, is making a comeback in 2025. Except now it looks a whole lot more like Instagram’s Note feature, or we guess, Instagram Notes look a whole lot like WhatsApp’s ‘About’. We’re not entirely sure. Either way, Meta announced the return of the feature in a blog post yesterday.
Is that updog?
“Even before we brought the world private and secure messaging, we made it simple for you to quickly share what’s up in your life. Today we’re reintroducing and improving About, making it more visible, timely, and easier to use,” WhatsApp wrote.
WhatsApp makes it clear that nobody wants to hear your life story here. Stick with some cliché like “Enjoying the sunshine” or just stick a simple emoji in there to get your feelings across. A user’s ‘About’ tag clings to their profile picture for all to see, blasting recipients with their slightly-annoying catchphrase while they chat one-on-one.
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If you somehow manage to convey anything of note in the allotted space, your contacts can tap on the ‘About’ to instantly begin chatting to them — sort of like a cheeky little ice-breaker. They’re not nearly as advanced as Instagram’s Notes, which allow users to add short, looping videos or share the song attached via streaming services. Like Notes, however, ‘About’ tags will only stick around for 24 hours before self-destructing.
Or, you can manually adjust it to off itself a little sooner, or hang around after the 24 hours are up. Just visit Settings and tap ‘Set About‘ to adjust it. As with most of WhatsApp’s features, you’ve also got some amount of control over who can view the ‘About’ tag. You won’t have to wait long to get your hands on the feature, either, with Meta confirming the rollout to everyone on mobile “starting this week.”
