X

WhatsApp's New Desktop App for Windows: How to Download It on Your PC

Unlike the web-based WhatsApp Desktop, this new app is native to Windows.

Mary King Associate Editor
Mary is an associate editor covering technology, culture and everything in between. She recently graduated from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, where she served as an editor at The Daily Tar Heel and reported for newspapers across the state. You can usually find her decked out in UNC merch and streaming lo-fi hip-hop while she writes.
See full bio
Mary King
Interface of WhatsApp's desktop app for Windows

The new Windows-based app is available in the Microsoft Store.

 WhatsApp

The messaging app WhatsApp has released a native desktop app for Windows and is currently developing one for Mac.

The Windows app joins WhatApp's other desktop offerings: WhatsApp Web, an app for browsers, and WhatsApp Desktop, a web-based desktop app. Since the new app is native as opposed to web-based, it should be faster and more reliable, according to a post on the company's Help Center. 

How to get the WhatsApp desktop app for Windows

If you're interested in downloading the new desktop app for Windows and linking it to your phone, here's what to do. 

1. Download the app on your Windows device from the Microsoft Store.

2. Make sure WhatsApp is downloaded on your phone. Open the mobile app.

3. If you're on an iPhone, tap Settings. If you're on an Android, tap More options.

4. Tap Linked Devices on your phone.

5. A QR code will pop up on the desktop app. Point your phone camera at it. 

For more WhatsApp tips, check out these three new WhatsApp privacy features that will let you be a little sneaky. Plus, here's what WhatsApp's Linked Devices feature could teach Apple's iMessage.

Services and Software Guides

VPN
Cybersecurity
Streaming Services
Web Hosting & Websites
Other Services & Software
Services and Software Coupons