The WhatsApp Channel feature gives its vast user base a means to receive updates from their favorite businesses and individuals. Find and follow the people and organizations on WhatsApp Channels, like your favorite celebrities, sports teams, updates from local officials, etc., to stay informed or learn something new.
When you follow a channel, you will receive updates from them, such as written notes, links to articles, images, or videos. WhatsApp channels are an excellent way to keep up with your favorite sports team or the most recent information from your local officials without giving the admin or other followers your phone number. And in case you don’t like it, you can always unfollow Whatsapp channel and stop getting updates.
How to Find and Follow WhatsApp Channels
WhatsApp Channels are only available for Android and iOS devices and not for the desktop version of WhatsApp. Given below are the methods to find, follow, or unfollow a WhatsApp Channel:
- How to Find a WhatsApp Channel
- How to Follow a WhatsApp Channel
- How to Unfollow a Channel
When you search WhatsApp channel and finally follow, the Status or Updates section layout will change.
1] How to Find a WhatsApp Channel
Follow the steps given below to find a WhatsApp Channel:
- Open the WhatsApp app on your device and click the Updates tab at the top of the page where the Status tab used to be displayed.
- You will find the status updates of the people in your contacts. Next, scroll down, and you will find the heading Channels. You will find a horizontal list of recommended or popular channels chosen randomly by WhatsApp.
- Click the Find channels button to explore more channels. Click the Agree and continue button to enter the Channels page.
- Once you are on the Channels page, you will find several channels. The channels with the green tick mark next to them are authentic and verified by WhatsApp. You will find five tabs on top of the screen:
All: Displays all the channels on WhatsApp.
Most active: Displays the channels that post regularly.
New: Displays the channels that recently joined.
Country (India): Displays a list of all the countries. You can choose the country depending on where you are. WhatsApp also chooses the country automatically based on your registered mobile number. You also have the freedom to choose any country you want and follow the channels available in the chosen country.
- You can click the Search icon at the top-right corner of the Channels page and search for the topics that interest you, like sports, news, culture, and more.
Note: Besides using the built-in search feature to find WhatsApp channels, you may also get invite links from your organizations on their social media. Also, the Whatsapp channel green tick on some means they are verified.
Read: How to set up a WhatsApp Channel
2] How to Follow a WhatsApp Channel
Once you have found the channel or channels that interest you, you can follow the channel for regular updates. Following a WhatsApp Channel is quite simple:
- Navigate to Updates > Find Channels.
- Once you are on the Channels page, find the channel that interests you.
- Click the plus sign next to the Channel’s name to follow the channel quickly.
- If you want to see the type of content a channel shares, click the channel’s name, and the chat window will open. You can read, download, and view the written content, photos, or videos the channel shares.
- Click the Follow button at the top right corner of the screen next to the channel’s name to follow the channel.
So, once you follow the channels you like, you will start getting updates from the channels, like how you receive messages on WhatsApp. Note that channel updates are kept in a separate tab from your chats.
After you start following a channel, the Update section layout changes, and the status from contacts changes to a horizontal layout instead of a vertical layout. Even the muted section is hidden under the menu.
Based on interactions and interests, it recommends channels to follow on Whatsapp, but you can always search and find new ones.
Read: How to Hide Whatsapp Status from Specific People
3] How to Unfollow a Channel
Once you start receiving updates from channels you start following, and if you do not like the updates, here is how to unfollow channels on Whatsapp. This is how you do it:
- Open WhatsApp and click the Updates tab. Under Channels, you will find a list of channels you follow.
- Click the channel you want to unfollow. Click the vertical three-dot menu at the top right corner of the screen next to the channel’s name. Click the Unfollow button from the context menu.
- Alternatively, click the channel’s name and click the Following button. In the “Are you sure you want to unfollow XYZ” pop-up message window, click the Unfollow button.
Once you unfollow the channel, you will stop receiving the updates.
Can a WhatsApp Channel See My Phone Number and Name?
Channel viewers, including other channel subscribers, cannot see you or how you interact with the displayed content. They cannot view your name, contact information, or profile photo. Administrators who are not contacts could see your profile photo and engagement with their channel’s content. Unless they have you saved as a contact, admins cannot access your full phone number or profile name.
All of your personal information, including your name, full phone number, and profile photo, is visible to channel admins who are also contacts. Your private calls and messages are still end-to-end encrypted, as always.
Conclusion
The channel feature of WhatsApp offers a convenient way to keep up with your favorite businesses and people. Instead of using social media sites like Facebook, Instagram, or Twitter, you can follow your favorite sports team, a local business, or a government leader to get information from all of them. Additionally, the feature protects the privacy of your number, making it safer to join a WhatsApp group or community.
