Link WhatsApp from Android to a Mac: the Mac app and WhatsApp Web

To link WhatsApp from an Android phone to a Mac, you add the Mac as a linked device on your existing account. You can do it two ways: install WhatsApp for Mac from the Mac App Store, or open WhatsApp Web in a browser. Either one shows a QR code that you scan with WhatsApp on the phone, and your chats then appear on the Mac. It is free, it is WhatsApp's own feature, and it works the same whether the phone is a Pixel, a Samsung Galaxy, or anything else. An Android phone needs no extra app for this.

A note on sourcing. WhatsApp's Help Center pages did not return their text when we opened them, so we cannot quote its step-by-step instructions or exact menu names. What follows is confirmed from the WhatsApp pages that did open: its download page, its blog, its calling page, and its Mac App Store listing. Where we give an outline instead of exact steps, we say so.

Should I use the Mac app or WhatsApp Web?

Both are linked devices on the same account, so you can set up one now and the other later. If you use WhatsApp every day at your desk, install the app. If you only need it now and then, the web version saves an install.

How do I link my phone to the Mac?

This is the outline. The app walks you through it, and the wording on your screen is the authority.

1. On the Mac, open WhatsApp. Either install WhatsApp from the Mac App Store and launch it, or go to web.whatsapp.com in a browser. Both show a QR code.
2. On the Android phone, open WhatsApp and find the option for linked devices in its menu or settings. Choose to link a device, and approve any security prompt the phone shows.
3. Point the phone's camera at the QR code on the Mac's screen.
4. Wait while your chats load on the Mac.

There is an alternative to scanning. WhatsApp's blog post of 25 April 2023 describes "an alternative and more accessible way to link": on WhatsApp Web you "enter your phone number" to receive a one-time code, "which you can use on your phone to enable device linking, rather than having to scan a QR code". If the phone's camera is cracked or will not focus on the screen, look for that option on the WhatsApp Web page.

If your on-screen steps differ from this outline, follow the screen. On a shared computer, use WhatsApp Web and log out when you finish.

Does the phone have to stay on and nearby?

Not in the way Google Messages for web requires. WhatsApp's blog says of linked devices that each one "connects to WhatsApp independently, ensuring that your personal messages, media, and calls are end-to-end encrypted". The sentence is written about linked phones, and the post says linking a phone works "the same as when you link with WhatsApp on web browsers, tablets and desktops".

There is a limit, from the same post: "if your primary device is inactive for a long period, we automatically log you out of all companion devices." The blog does not say how long. So the Android phone remains the main device on the account. You can leave it in a bag for the afternoon, but you cannot retire it and keep using the Mac alone.

The post also puts a ceiling on the number: your phone plus "up to four additional devices". As we read it, the Mac app and a browser session would each count as one.

What works on the Mac once it is linked?

From WhatsApp's own pages:

• Messages, photos, videos, and documents. The App Store listing says you can share them "across mobile, tablet, and desktop".
• Calls. WhatsApp's calling page says you can "make calls from your iOS, Android, Mac, iPad, and Windows devices", and also "right from your web browser". These are WhatsApp calls over the internet, not calls to and from your mobile number.
• Encryption. The listing and the blog both say messages and calls are end-to-end encrypted, including on linked devices.

We could not confirm from a WhatsApp page which smaller features differ between the phone and the Mac, so we are not listing any. If something you rely on is missing on the Mac, check WhatsApp's Help Center from the app.

It will not link. What should I check?

WhatsApp's troubleshooting pages are among those we could not open, so these are general checks, not WhatsApp's list.

• Both devices need internet access. The phone and the Mac each talk to WhatsApp's servers.
• Update WhatsApp on the phone from Google Play, and update the Mac app from the App Store.
• Reload the QR code if it has been sitting on screen for a while, then scan again.
• Count your linked devices. If you already have four, remove one on the phone before adding the Mac.
• Try the other route. If the Mac app will not link, try WhatsApp Web, or the reverse. That tells you whether the problem is the phone or that one app.

For anything beyond that, the Play Store listing gives WhatsApp's own support path: WhatsApp > Settings > Help > Contact Us.

Do I still need anything else between the phone and the Mac?

For WhatsApp itself, no. A linked Mac covers WhatsApp messages and calls, and there is nothing to buy.

WhatsApp is one app, though. Linking it does nothing for ordinary SMS, for login codes texted by your bank, for phone calls to your mobile number, or for other apps' alerts. Those have their own routes: Google Messages for web for texts, free, and a companion app if you want the rest in one place. The Relay is ours. It shows the phone's notifications on the Mac, shows incoming texts and copies login codes, shows incoming calls, and syncs the clipboard, for $19.99 once. It does not replace WhatsApp's Mac app and is not a way to chat in WhatsApp. If WhatsApp on the Mac was the only thing you were missing, you are done.

Questions people ask

Can I use WhatsApp on a Mac with an Android phone?

Yes. WhatsApp's linked devices feature is not tied to the phone's make. Install WhatsApp for Mac from the Mac App Store or open WhatsApp Web, and scan the QR code with WhatsApp on the Android phone.

Is WhatsApp for Mac free?

Yes. The Mac App Store listing describes WhatsApp as a free messaging and calling app, with no subscription fees. Data charges from your internet provider may apply.

Can I link WhatsApp to a Mac without scanning a QR code?

WhatsApp's blog describes an alternative on WhatsApp Web: enter your phone number to get a one-time code, then use that code on your phone to link. It said in 2023 that it planned to bring this to more linked devices.

How many devices can I link to one WhatsApp account?

WhatsApp's blog says you can link up to four additional devices to your phone's account, across web browsers, tablets, desktops, and other phones.