How to tag everyone in a WhatsApp group (@all)

To tag everyone in a WhatsApp group, type @all in the message field, tap the @all suggestion, then write and send your message. Every member is notified, even those who muted the group, unless they have muted @all mentions for that group. In groups of 32 members or fewer anyone can use @all; in larger groups, only admins can.

WhatsApp announced @all on 4 August 2026, and as of 8 October 2026 its help centre still describes it as a feature being built and tested that may not have reached you yet. This guide covers the steps on Android, iPhone and WhatsApp Web, the 32-member rule, how members mute it, why it may be missing, how it differs from member tags, and a short @all policy you can paste into your group's rules.

How to use @all in a WhatsApp group

On Android or iPhone:

1. 1Open the group chat and type @all in the message field.
2. 2Tap @all in the suggestion that appears. Don't skip this: WhatsApp's steps have you select the suggestion, not just type the word.
3. 3Type the rest of your message and tap Send.

On WhatsApp Web:

1. 1Open the group and type @all in the message field.
2. 2Click @all in the suggestion.
3. 3Type the rest of the message and click Send.

Members get a notification and see @ beside the unread chat in their chats list, so the message is easy to find later. To mention one person instead, type @ and pick their name from the list. Each reader sees that name as it is saved in their own contacts, so it can look different on every phone.

Who can use @all in a WhatsApp group?

WhatsApp sets one rule, and it depends on the group's size. In groups with 32 members or fewer, every member can use @all. In groups with more than 32, only admins can. A group can hold up to 1,024 members, so in a large group one @all can interrupt a thousand people at once, including members who have muted the group.

Because the rule follows size, a group that grows past 32 members switches to admin-only @all, and members lose it. WhatsApp's help centre lists no separate permission for @all among the group permissions, so in a large group the only way to give someone @all is to make them an admin, with everything else that role allows. Every admin control, explained covers what that hands over.

How do you mute @all in a WhatsApp group?

WhatsApp built @all to break through: it alerts members even in groups they have muted. Each member can opt out, one group at a time, on Android or iPhone:

1. 1Open the group and tap the group name at the top.
2. 2Tap Notifications.
3. 3Tap Mute @all mentions.

The same screen holds the other controls. Mute silences the group for 8 hours, 1 week or always, though mentions and replies still reach you. Notify for chooses between All, an alert for every message, and Highlights, which limits alerts to mentions, replies, messages from your contacts and other relevant messages. Phone settings sit above all of it: if WhatsApp's notifications are off on the device, nothing gets through.

For admins, that opt-out is the reason to be sparing. Every @all that didn't need to be one nudges a few more members to mute it, and the next real emergency reaches fewer people.

Why is @all not showing in WhatsApp?

• It hasn't reached your account yet. WhatsApp's help centre calls @all a feature it is still building and testing. Keep WhatsApp updated from Google Play or the App Store and check again later.
• The group has more than 32 members and you aren't an admin. Only admins can use @all there.
• Only admins can send messages in the group, so members can't post at all.
• You typed @all but didn't select the suggestion. Type it again and tap @all when it appears.
• You're on the Windows or Mac app. As of October 2026, the help centre's @all steps cover Android, iPhone and WhatsApp Web, so try one of those.

If the @all went out but people say they heard nothing, they may have muted @all for the group, or switched off WhatsApp notifications in their phone's settings, which override WhatsApp's own. WhatsApp also notes that someone who has muted their one-to-one chat with you may not be alerted by your mentions.

Is a member tag the same as tagging someone?

No. Member tags, which WhatsApp added earlier in 2026, describe a person rather than call them: each member can set a label of up to 30 characters, such as Coach or Treasurer, that shows under their name on their messages and in the group's member list. A tag belongs to one group, and it can't hold links, check marks or special characters. To get people's attention, use @ and a name, or @all.

To set your own member tag, on Android or iPhone:

1. 1Open the group and tap its name.
2. 2Scroll to the member list and tap Add member tag.
3. 3Type the tag and tap Save. To change or remove it later, tap your own name in the list, then Edit member tag.

The old way: tagging members one by one

Before @all, the only way to tag everyone was to type @ and pick each member from the list, one name at a time. It still works, and it is still the right tool when a message concerns five people rather than the whole group. As a way to reach everyone, it falls short:

• It is slow. A 200-member group means 200 picks, and missing someone is easy.
• It buries the message. The names come before your point, and each reader sees them as saved in their own contacts.
• It has to be redone for every message. Nothing remembers who you tagged last time.
• Browser extensions that promise to tag everyone on WhatsApp Web work by reading the page, which gives them every chat open in that tab. With @all built in, there is no reason to grant that access.

Individual mentions also get through to members who muted the group, so tagging forty people by hand to get around admin-only @all lands on them just as @all would, without the admins agreeing to it.

When is @all justified, and how often?

WhatsApp's own examples are school or office closures, event deadlines and last-minute changes of plan. A useful test: would a member be worse off for missing this in the next few hours? If not, post normally.

WhatsApp's help centre sets no limit on how often @all can be used, so frequency is a matter for your rules. A workable house rule for an active group is one or two a week at most, and never twice for the same news.

@all School is closed tomorrow (Thursday) because of the storm warning. Classes run online at the usual times. Links will be posted here by 8:00.

An @all policy for your group rules

Members decide whether to mute @all based on how it is used, so tell them. In groups over 32 the policy is a promise from the admins; in smaller groups it is a rule for everyone. A few lines are enough:

How we use @all
• Only for closures, safety notices, deadline changes and same-day changes of plan.
• At most two a week. Everything else is a normal post.
• The first line says what to do and by when.
• Need everyone's attention? Message an admin and we'll decide.
• A question for a few people? Mention them by name instead.

Put it in the group description, which every member can read in Group info. If only admins can edit group settings, an admin has to add it. Group rules examples has the rest of a rulebook.

Across many groups, timing beats @all

Admins who reach for @all every week often have a timing problem rather than an attention problem: routine posts land when nobody is reading. WavesFlo shows each group's busiest hours in your timezone, with delivery and read rates for every group on its own, so routine posts can go out when members are already active and @all stays for news that justifies it. See group insights.