Towards the end of May, 2023, WhatsApp announced its message edit feature. It allows users to edit their sent messages within a 15 minute window. It gives greater control over their chat with an ability to correct the mistakes or make changes if necessary.

It is a welcome relief to 2 billion plus users. A user can rectify mistakes or typos, can modify the tone of the message or can add context to it. It brings flexibility and convenience in everyday chats.

It is being introduced globally. It is valid for both individual and group chats.

To edit, the user has to long press on the sent message and select ‘edit’ option from the menu that appears.

The edited messages will display an ‘edited’ label next to the messages. It will alert the recipients that there have been changes in the message. However, the edit history will not be shown. This preserves the privacy and integrity of a personal chat.

So far, the option available to the users was only the deletion of the message, and send a separate corrected message. The competitors such as Telegram and Signal already provided ‘edit’ function.