WhatsApp introduces ‘Favorites’ for quick access to contacts and groups that matter most | TechCrunch

WhatsApp has announced the release of a filter called “Favorites” to let you quickly find chats from the people and groups that matter most and directly connect with them over a call from the top of the calls tab.

The “Favorites” filter started rolling out on Tuesday and will be available to all WhatsApp users in the coming weeks. It lets you keep all the chats from your best friend or family group under one roof for quick access. The instant messaging app has also added a “Favorites” section to the calls tab to speed-dial your favorite contacts without requiring you to go through the recent call logs or find their contact from the contacts book.

To add a contact or group to your favorite list, select the “Favorites” filter from your chats screen or tap the “Add favorite” option after selecting the particular contact or group from the calls tab. You can also add a chat to your favorites by long-tapping it and selecting “Add to favorite.” Similarly, WhatsApp has provided an option to manage your favorite contacts and groups by going to Settings > Favorites > Add to Favorite. You can also reorder them based on your preference at any time.

WhatsApp was spotted testing the feature to select favorite contacts on iOS and the web in February, as reported by WABetaInfo. It also appeared on Android in April.

The latest update comes three months after WhatsApp introduced chat filters. The Meta-owned app initially released “All,” “Unread” and “Groups” as the three filters. However, adding “Favorites” makes chat filters even more useful as people relied on alternative ways to quickly call or video chat with their favorite contacts via WhatsApp in the absence of the native filter.