18:I[87134,["/_next/static/chunks/abf43a076ddbd945.js?dpl=dpl_F6KiLDDFSAiMcLzw3V2cQMgAbhkA","/_next/static/chunks/5ac73fe2b25fc6c9.js?dpl=dpl_F6KiLDDFSAiMcLzw3V2cQMgAbhkA","/_next/static/chunks/92bdbfeca3f655f7.js?dpl=dpl_F6KiLDDFSAiMcLzw3V2cQMgAbhkA","/_next/static/chunks/733be0453bf96ece.js?dpl=dpl_F6KiLDDFSAiMcLzw3V2cQMgAbhkA","/_next/static/chunks/27718c319dd13e9b.js?dpl=dpl_F6KiLDDFSAiMcLzw3V2cQMgAbhkA","/_next/static/chunks/34c922b381f458e9.js?dpl=dpl_F6KiLDDFSAiMcLzw3V2cQMgAbhkA","/_next/static/chunks/c85eefbddd563073.js?dpl=dpl_F6KiLDDFSAiMcLzw3V2cQMgAbhkA"],"default"] 19:T51e,

WhatsApp already supports disappearing messages, yet the option has clear drawbacks. It covers every message in a conversation instead of selected ones, and the timer begins at sending time even if the recipient has not seen it yet. The company is now addressing these issues.

Earlier this year, testing began on an After Reading timer that starts the countdown only once the recipient opens the message. WABetaInfo indicates that view-once messages are also under development, allowing individual texts to vanish after a single read.

Filling the view-once gap

Support for view-once photos and videos arrived in 2021, followed by voice notes in 2023. Text messages remained the missing piece until now.

The feature appears in the latest iOS beta, version 26.24.10.16, and similar work is underway for Android.

How the feature operates

Users will long-press the Send button to reveal a dropdown menu that includes the Send as view once choice. Recipients can view the message once before it disappears, while copying, forwarding, screenshots, and recordings stay blocked.

The option will function in both one-on-one and group chats but will not extend to channels. It remains unavailable even to current beta users, so wider release may take additional time.