How to Change Your WhatsApp Number: A Complete Guide
Changing your phone number can be a hassle, but thankfully, WhatsApp makes the process relatively smooth. Whether you’ve switched carriers, upgraded to a new phone, or simply want to use a different number for your WhatsApp account, this comprehensive guide will walk you through each step. We’ll cover everything from the initial preparation to troubleshooting common issues, ensuring a seamless transition.
Why Change Your WhatsApp Number?
There are several reasons why you might need to change your WhatsApp number:
- New Phone Number: You’ve switched to a new mobile service provider and have a new number.
- Personal vs. Business: You want to separate personal and professional communication by having a different WhatsApp number for each.
- Moving to a New Country: You’ve relocated to a new country and need to use a local number.
- Security Concerns: You may suspect unauthorized access to your WhatsApp account and want to change your number as a precautionary measure.
- Privacy: You may want a new number to limit who has your old contact details.
Before You Begin: Preparation is Key
Before initiating the WhatsApp number change process, there are some crucial steps to take to ensure a smooth and trouble-free transition:
Verify Your Old Phone Number
First, make sure that your existing WhatsApp account is actively verified with your old phone number. You should be able to send and receive messages. If you can’t, you might need to address this issue first (e.g., re-verifying your number if it’s been a while) before you proceed with the change.
Ensure You Have Access to Your New Phone Number
Make sure that the new phone number you intend to use for WhatsApp is active and able to receive SMS text messages or phone calls. WhatsApp will use this to verify the new number. It’s highly recommended that you have the SIM card for this number in your phone or in a phone readily available when doing the change process. This also means that you should not change this new number again during this verification process as you will be locked out of your account for some time if you do so.
Back Up Your WhatsApp Chats (Highly Recommended)
This is extremely important! Before changing your number, create a backup of your WhatsApp chats to Google Drive (on Android) or iCloud (on iPhone). This backup will allow you to restore all your chat history, media files, and other data to your new WhatsApp account. Here’s how to back up your chats:
- Android: Open WhatsApp, tap the three vertical dots in the top right corner, then go to Settings > Chats > Chat backup. Tap the Back Up button to start a backup or review when the last backup was made. You can choose between local, google drive, or both as the location for the backups.
- iPhone: Open WhatsApp, tap Settings at the bottom right corner, then go to Chats > Chat Backup. Tap the Back Up Now button to start a backup or review when the last backup was made. Make sure you are logged into your Apple ID and iCloud settings are set up for Whatsapp backups.
You should also make sure you are connected to a reliable Wi-Fi network for a faster and more stable backup process. Also, consider that large backups with several videos will take time to upload.
Inform Your Contacts (Optional but Recommended)
While WhatsApp will usually notify your contacts of your number change, it’s polite to give them a heads-up beforehand, especially if you have very important contacts. This avoids any confusion if they notice a new profile associated with you.
Update Your WhatsApp to the Latest Version
Make sure you have the latest version of WhatsApp installed. This ensures compatibility and may prevent potential issues during the number change process. Go to Google Play Store (Android) or App Store (iPhone) to update.
Step-by-Step Guide: How to Change Your WhatsApp Number
Now that you’ve prepared everything, let’s get into the actual steps of changing your WhatsApp number:
On Android:
Open WhatsApp
Launch the WhatsApp application on your Android device.
Access Settings
Tap on the three vertical dots located in the top-right corner of the screen. Then, select the Settings option from the dropdown menu.
Navigate to Account
In the Settings menu, tap on the Account option.
Choose Change Number
Within the Account settings, select the Change Number option.
Read the Warning and Tap Next
WhatsApp will present a warning informing you that this process will migrate all your account information, profile, groups, and settings to the new number. This is normal. Tap Next to proceed.
Enter Your Old and New Numbers
On the next screen, enter your current (old) phone number in the first field. Then, enter your new phone number in the second field. Ensure that both numbers are entered correctly, including the correct country code. Double-check them before proceeding, an incorrect number can cause you problems later.
Tap Next
After confirming the numbers are correct, tap the Next button.
Optional: Notify Your Contacts
You’ll be presented with an option to notify your contacts about your number change. You can choose to notify All Contacts, Contacts I have chats with, or Custom which allows you to select specific contacts to notify. You can also opt to not notify anyone. Choose the option you prefer, then tap Done.
Verification Process
WhatsApp will then send an SMS code to your new phone number. Enter the verification code into the WhatsApp app. This code may sometimes take a while to receive, make sure you have your phone where the new number is located and that it is able to receive SMS messages and phone calls. The process may automatically detect the SMS code as well, in that case, you will be taken to the next step automatically.
Number Change Complete
Once the code is verified, your WhatsApp number will be changed. You should be able to access your profile with the new phone number with all your old chats if you correctly did the backup earlier and if the device has the same Google account (Android) or Apple account (iOS).
On iPhone:
Open WhatsApp
Launch the WhatsApp application on your iPhone.
Access Settings
Tap on the Settings option located in the bottom-right corner of the screen.
Navigate to Account
In the Settings menu, tap on the Account option.
Choose Change Number
Within the Account settings, select the Change Number option.
Read the Warning and Tap Next
WhatsApp will present a warning informing you that this process will migrate all your account information, profile, groups, and settings to the new number. This is normal. Tap Next to proceed.
Enter Your Old and New Numbers
On the next screen, enter your current (old) phone number in the first field. Then, enter your new phone number in the second field. Ensure that both numbers are entered correctly, including the correct country code. Double-check them before proceeding, an incorrect number can cause you problems later.
Tap Next
After confirming the numbers are correct, tap the Next button.
Optional: Notify Your Contacts
You’ll be presented with an option to notify your contacts about your number change. You can choose to notify All Contacts, Contacts I have chats with, or Custom which allows you to select specific contacts to notify. You can also opt to not notify anyone. Choose the option you prefer, then tap Done.
Verification Process
WhatsApp will then send an SMS code to your new phone number. Enter the verification code into the WhatsApp app. This code may sometimes take a while to receive, make sure you have your phone where the new number is located and that it is able to receive SMS messages and phone calls. The process may automatically detect the SMS code as well, in that case, you will be taken to the next step automatically.
Number Change Complete
Once the code is verified, your WhatsApp number will be changed. You should be able to access your profile with the new phone number with all your old chats if you correctly did the backup earlier and if the device has the same Google account (Android) or Apple account (iOS).
Troubleshooting Common Issues
While changing your WhatsApp number is usually straightforward, you might encounter some issues. Here are some common problems and how to solve them:
Verification Code Not Received
If you do not receive the verification code via SMS within a few minutes, try the following:
- Check your network connection: Ensure your phone has a stable internet or cellular connection.
- Verify the phone number: Double-check that you have entered the new phone number correctly, including the country code.
- Request the code again: If you still have not received the code, tap “Resend SMS” or request the code via voice call.
- Restart your phone: Sometimes, a simple restart can resolve the issue.
- Contact your mobile carrier: There may be issues with your carrier that are preventing messages from being sent to your phone.
Backup Not Restored
If you are having issues restoring your backup, ensure that you have the correct settings to restore the backup in Google Drive (Android) or iCloud (iPhone). Also ensure the account that made the backup is the one being used to restore the backup in the new WhatsApp account. If the backup is very large, consider using a stable WI-FI connection to download it. If it still doesn’t work, try doing the backup process again before you attempt to change the number again.
Number Change Not Accepted
If WhatsApp refuses to accept your new number, double-check to ensure that the number is not already in use or linked to another account. Make sure you have provided the correct country code and that the number is a valid number within your country. Also make sure the number is able to receive SMS and phone calls.
Issues with Contact Notification
If your contacts are not getting notified after you chose the option to do so, double-check if you selected the correct contact groups for notification. If the issue persists, just simply notify your contacts yourself. WhatsApp notification is not always 100% reliable as well.
Old Number Still Active
If you still have your old number active, WhatsApp will not deactivate it automatically. It will only migrate your data to the new number. Ensure the old number is no longer in use to prevent other people from using it and being able to impersonate your WhatsApp account.
Key Things to Remember
- Always back up your chats before changing your number.
- Ensure that your new phone number is active and can receive SMS messages.
- Double-check the old and new phone numbers before confirming the change.
- Inform your contacts about your number change if necessary.
- If you encounter issues, check the troubleshooting section or WhatsApp’s help center.
- The number changing process is seamless, if followed correctly.
- Your profile, groups, and all chat data will be migrated to the new number.
- Always use an active number that belongs to you to prevent problems.
Conclusion
Changing your WhatsApp number is a relatively straightforward process, provided you follow the steps carefully. By preparing properly and being mindful of the common pitfalls, you can smoothly transition to your new number without losing any important data or causing any confusion among your contacts. If you follow this guide, you should be able to successfully change your WhatsApp number on either Android or iOS with no major issues.
If you are still facing issues, you may consult the WhatsApp help center or contact WhatsApp support directly. Always make sure you are using the latest version of WhatsApp for a stable experience.