How to scan the WhatsApp Web QR code

Scan the code on Android

1. Open web.whatsapp.com on the computer and leave the QR code on screen.

2. Open WhatsApp on the phone and tap the three dots at the top right.

3. Tap Linked devices, then Link a device.

4. If the phone asks, confirm with your fingerprint, face or the PIN you use to unlock the phone.

5. Hold the phone so the code fills the square on screen. It links in a second or two and the computer starts loading your chats.

Scan the code on iPhone

1. Open web.whatsapp.com on the computer and leave the QR code on screen.

2. Open WhatsApp on the iPhone and go to Settings, or tap your profile picture.

3. Tap Linked devices, then Link device.

4. Confirm with Face ID, Touch ID or your passcode.

5. Point the camera at the code. It links in a second or two and the computer starts loading your chats.

When the code will not scan

• The code expired. It refreshes by itself for a while and then stops. Click the reload button on the code and try again.
• Glare or distance. Raise the screen brightness, clean the phone lens, and hold the phone 15 to 25 cm from the screen so the whole code sits inside the frame.
• The page is zoomed. Reset the browser zoom to 100% (Ctrl + 0, or Cmd + 0 on a Mac) so the code is not cut off.
• Dark-mode extensions. Extensions that invert page colours turn the code white-on-black, which many scanners reject. Pause them for web.whatsapp.com.
• WhatsApp cannot use the camera. In the phone's settings, allow camera access for WhatsApp.
• The phone has no connection. The phone must be online at the moment of linking. Switch between Wi-Fi and mobile data and try again.
• You already have four linked devices. WhatsApp will ask you to remove one first, under Linked devices.
• WhatsApp is out of date. Update the app from Google Play or the App Store; old versions lose the ability to link.

No working camera? Link with a code instead

On web.whatsapp.com click Link with phone number, enter your WhatsApp number, and the page shows an eight-character code. On the phone go to Linked devices, Link a device, then Link with phone number instead, and type it in. This works on WhatsApp Web and in the Windows app. Step by step: log in with a phone number.

Which QR codes are safe to scan

Scanning a linking code is the same as handing over a key to your chats, so treat the scanner like a front door:

• Scan only codes shown on web.whatsapp.com or inside an official WhatsApp app (Windows, Mac, tablet, a second phone), on a device you chose to link. WhatsApp's own advice is to link nowhere else, and linking to unofficial apps or sites can get an account banned.
• Never scan a code from an email, a chat message, a "vote for me" or prize page, or a site that says it will verify your account. That is how linked-device hijacking works.
• Read the phone's screen. When WhatsApp does not recognise the device, or the request looks suspicious, it asks you to confirm and shows where the request comes from. If that is not you, tap Don't link.
• Check Linked devices now and then. Anything you do not recognise can be logged out in one tap.