Learn how to set up and use WhatsApp on your Mac or Windows PC to stay connected, send messages, make calls, and share media directly from your desktop. We’ll also explain what to do if you can’t get WhatsApp working on your computer.
WhatsApp is the world’s most popular instant messaging service, and it works on iOS, iPadOS, Android, and KaiOS.
However, if, like me, you spend most of your time in front of a computer, you can set up WhatsApp on the big screen and send or reply to messages straight from your desktop. This eliminates the need to pick up your smartphone every time WhatsApp sends you a notification.
Note that the steps here also help you set up and use WhatsApp Business on your computer.
Supported OS versions
You have two options when it comes to using WhatsApp on a computer.
1) You can use the WhatsApp desktop app on:
- macOS 11 or newer
- Windows 10.1 or newer
2) You can use WhatsApp Web in a web browser if your computer doesn’t meet the above app requirements or if you don’t want to have yet another app on your Mac or PC hogging up space.
Before you begin
Make sure you’ve activated WhatsApp on your iPhone or Android phone using your phone number.
Per WhatsApp:
“You can use WhatsApp on up to four linked devices at once without the need to keep your primary phone connected. You’ll need to log in to your primary phone every 14 days to keep linked devices connected to your WhatsApp account.”
Set up the WhatsApp desktop app on your Mac or PC
1) Download the WhatsApp desktop app:
- Mac: From the Apple App Store or directly from the official website.
- Windows: Get it from the Microsoft Store.
2) Open the WhatsApp desktop app, and you’ll see a QR code. You have to scan this QR code later (Step 6).
3) Now, open WhatsApp on your iPhone and tap You (formerly Settings) in the lower right corner. On an Android phone, tap the three dots menu button in the top right of the WhatsApp Chats screen.
4) Select Linked Devices.
5) Tap Link a Device and authenticate using Face ID, fingerprint, or device passcode. It should open WhatsApp’s built-in scanner.
6) Point your phone to the QR code on your computer, and it will automatically scan it. Now, wait for it to load your chats on the big screen.
7) Once your chats are loaded, select one from the left sidebar on your computer. You can now send messages, photos, videos, and documents, and create polls. You can also make audio and video calls using the call icon at the top.
Use WhatsApp in a web browser
In addition to using WhatsApp in its computer app, you can use it inside popular web browsers like Google Chrome, Microsoft Edge, Brave, Opera, Firefox, and Safari. The steps are similar to the app method we already explained above. But note that, unlike the WhatsApp computer app, you can’t make WhatsApp calls from a web browser.
Here’s a quick recap:
1) Visit web.whatsapp.com in a web browser on your computer, and you’ll see a QR code.
2) Go to the Linked Devices section of the WhatsApp app on your smartphone and scan the QR code you see in your computer browser.
Note: You cannot send your current or live location from either WhatsApp desktop or WhatsApp Web.
Log out of WhatsApp on your computer
Here is how to stop using WhatsApp on a computer from the desktop app, web browser, or your primary smartphone:
From the computer app or web browser
- Click the settings icon in the lower-left corner of the WhatsApp app or website.
- Choose Log out.
Note: If you didn’t check the “Stay logged in on this browser” checkbox on WhatsApp Web, simply closing that browser tab will log you out.
From your phone
- Open WhatsApp on your phone and go to the Linked Devices section.
- Tap the computer or browser name under Linked Devices.
- Tap Log Out. After this, when you try to use WhatsApp in that desktop app or web browser, it will ask you to log in again.
Unable to use WhatsApp on a computer?
Here’s what to do if you can’t use WhatsApp in your desktop app or web browser:
- Make sure your Mac or PC is connected to the internet via Wi-Fi or Ethernet. This will ensure you don’t see the ‘Computer not connected’ message.
- Refresh the web.whatsapp.com browser page.
- Quit the desktop app or the web browser and retry.
- Update the desktop app.
- Update the web browser if you’re using WhatsApp Web. Note that you can’t use WhatsApp in old browsers such as Internet Explorer.
- Clear your web browser cache, history, and web data, and retry logging in to WhatsApp Web.
- Turn off the VPN on your computer.
- If you’re connected to a library, office, or college Wi-Fi, make sure “web.whatsapp.com”, “.web.whatsapp.com”, or “.whatsapp.net” are allowed on this network. If the network administrator says WhatsApp is blocked, you may be able to use a VPN to bypass that restriction.
What to do if you’re unable to scan the WhatsApp QR code on your computer from your phone:
- Update WhatsApp on your iPhone or Android phone.
- Restart your phone.
- Make sure your phone has an active cellular or Wi-Fi connection.
- Turn off VPN or proxy connections.
- Update your phone to the latest available version of iOS or Android.
- If nothing else works, back up your WhatsApp chats, delete the app from your phone, and reinstall it. Then, try connecting to WhatsApp on your computer again.