WhatsApp calls can now include people who don’t have WhatsApp

You no longer need WhatsApp to join a WhatsApp call. The messaging app now lets its users send a call link to anyone, who can join from a computer’s web browser with nothing more than a name.

WhatsApp announced guest calling on its blog on 14 October, describing the calls as free, end-to-end encrypted and without time limits. The post announces the feature as live and doesn’t list any country limits. On our reading, it makes WhatsApp a simpler alternative to Zoom, Google Meet or Microsoft Teams for quick calls with people outside your contacts, such as a client, a tutor or a relative who has never installed the app.

How it works

Only someone with a WhatsApp account can create a call link. According to WhatsApp’s help page on call links, you open the Calls tab, choose New call link (on a phone, tap +), pick video or voice, then copy the link or send it in a chat.

The person receiving it opens the link in a browser on their computer, types their name and waits. WhatsApp’s troubleshooting page lists Chrome, Safari, Firefox and Edge on desktop as the supported browsers. The announcement mentions no app download or phone number for guests.

Once in, guests appear as their name followed by “(Guest)”. They can use audio and video, share their screen and react, but they can’t add or remove people, start calls or send messages, and WhatsApp says they can’t see other participants’ phone numbers.

WhatsApp’s announcement says guest calls work one-on-one or in groups of up to 32 people. Its help pages give a general limit of 256 people for a call link.

The controls hosts get

The main safeguard is approval. WhatsApp’s blog says “anyone joining as a guest always needs the call host’s approval”, and the help page says this applies even if the host has turned off “Require approval to join” for the link. Guests wait in a waiting room, which holds up to 128 people, and only the person who created the link can admit or deny them.

Other limits from the help page:

• Only the link’s creator can remove participants. Someone who has been removed or blocked can’t rejoin, although a person who was denied entry can ask again from the waiting room.
• If a guest is still waiting and every WhatsApp user leaves, the call ends for everyone.
• Each link is unique and expires after 30 days if it isn’t used. WhatsApp says it can also revoke links for privacy and security reasons.

That approval step matters. A call link can be forwarded, so check the name in the waiting room before admitting anyone, especially on a call where you’ll share your screen or discuss account details.

What’s next

WhatsApp says calendar integrations are coming “later this year”: you’ll install a WhatsApp plugin, connect your account and add a call link to a Google Calendar or Outlook invite, and invitees will be able to join with or without an account. It hasn’t given a date.

Guest calling builds on earlier changes. WhatsApp introduced call links in December 2022, and in July 2026 it added web calling and the waiting room for call links.

For a small business, it’s a free option for a quick video call with a customer who doesn’t use the same meeting software. It doesn’t replace a business meeting platform’s admin controls, recording and note-taking, which we covered in our look at Google Meet’s AI note-taker.

Checklist

• Update WhatsApp. Install the latest version on the device you’ll create the guest link from.
• Create the link from the Calls tab. Choose New call link, pick voice or video, then copy it into an email or text for a guest who doesn’t use WhatsApp.
• Tell guests to use a computer. Guests join from Chrome, Safari, Firefox or Edge on desktop, and only need to type a name.
• Admit only names you expect. Check each name in the waiting room before letting a guest in, because a link can be forwarded.
• Remove anyone who shouldn’t be there. Only the link’s creator can remove participants, so the creator should stay on the call.
• Clear the waiting room before you hang up. If a guest is still waiting when every WhatsApp user leaves, the call ends for everyone.