WhatsApp is testing scheduled messages with a limited number of Android beta users. The feature allows people to prepare messages for delivery at a selected date and time, including when the sender’s device is offline.

According to WABetaInfo, scheduled messages are available in both individual and group chats during the current beta rollout. The feature supports text, links, photos, and videos, although each scheduled message can contain only one photo or video.

How WhatsApp scheduled messages work

Users who have access to the feature can schedule a message by tapping and holding the send button in a chat. WhatsApp then displays an interface for selecting when the message should be delivered.

The scheduling window starts at 10 minutes from the current time and extends to as far as two weeks. This gives users a way to prepare reminders, announcements, or other messages in advance without needing to return to the chat at the exact delivery time.

WhatsApp will send the message at the chosen time even if the sender’s phone is offline. Scheduled messages also retain WhatsApp’s end-to-end encryption, according to the feature details shared during the beta rollout.

Managing scheduled messages

After a message is scheduled, it appears in a dedicated section within the chat information screen. The sender can open that section to view scheduled messages and manage them before delivery.

Messages can be deleted before they are sent. The recipient is not notified that a message was scheduled, and will not know if the sender removes it before the scheduled delivery time.

What happens in group chats

WhatsApp applies a specific rule to scheduled messages in groups. The message is sent to the people who were members of the group when the sender created the schedule.

That means anyone who joins the group after the message has been scheduled but before it is delivered will not receive that message. The rule keeps the recipient list tied to the group’s membership at the time the sender set up the delivery.

When the feature may reach everyone

The scheduled messaging option remains limited to a portion of WhatsApp’s Android beta audience. The current testing phase does not establish when the feature will be released broadly, and WhatsApp has not provided a public rollout date in the available information.

A wider release would add a long-requested automation option to WhatsApp, particularly for users who need to send messages at a specific time but may not be available to do so manually. For now, access depends on whether the feature has been enabled for a user’s beta version.