Turn on backup for the folder

1. Open Google Photos → tap Collections (or Library).
2. Under On this device, find WhatsappStatuses (sometimes shown as Download).
3. Open it and turn on Backup at the top.

From now on every status you save is uploaded with your other photos, under your Google account's storage plan.

Things to know first

• Backups count against your Google storage. Videos add up quickly; if you save a lot, consider backing up at Storage saver quality.
• Deleting on the phone after backup frees space; the copy in Google Photos stays. Don't use "Free up space" if you want both.
• It's a private copy. Backing up doesn't share anything with the person who posted the status — keep it that way unless they're happy for it to be shared.

Prefer a computer?

Plug the phone in over USB and copy the WhatsappStatuses folder, or move them when you change phones — see moving saved statuses to a new phone. On a computer you can also save statuses directly from WhatsApp Web with the Chrome extension, see saving a status on a PC.

Keep it tidy

A backup of 400 statuses you never look at is still 400 statuses. A quick monthly clear-out helps — how to keep saved statuses under control.

Watching needs WhatsApp's connection

A status reaches your phone through WhatsApp. If you're offline, WhatsApp can't download new statuses, so there's nothing new to save. That's WhatsApp's connection, not the saver's.

Saving works offline

Once a status is on your phone, copying it is a local file operation. Status Saver reads WhatsApp's statuses folder and copies the file to Download/MobileByteSensei/WhatsappStatuses — in airplane mode if you like. Converting a video to MP3 and compressing files also run entirely on the phone.

Why the app still has internet permission

To be straightforward about it: the free app shows ads and uses Google's crash and usage reporting, which need a connection. Your statuses and files are never uploaded — there's no server that receives them. The privacy policy lists exactly what the ad and analytics services receive.

The Chrome extension

On a computer, the Status Saver extension makes no network requests of its own. It keeps the statuses WhatsApp Web already loaded, in your browser's storage, and our viewer page reads them from there. Nothing travels to us.

Beware "online" savers

A website that offers to fetch WhatsApp statuses for you has to get into your WhatsApp account to do it. That's a much bigger risk than any app — see are status saver apps safe?

The path

All paths start at the root of internal storage (often shown as Internal shared storage or Phone).

Show hidden folders

The setting name differs by brand, but it's always in the file manager's settings:

• Samsung My Files: Settings → Show hidden system files
• Xiaomi File Manager: Settings → Show hidden files
• Files by Google: Settings → Show hidden files
• OPPO / realme / OnePlus Files: Settings → Show hidden files

"The folder is there but it's empty"

Three likely reasons:

1. You haven't watched anything recently. WhatsApp only stores a status after you view it, and deletes it about 24 hours after it was posted.
2. Android is hiding the contents. Since Android 11, a regular file manager may see the folder but not the files inside another app's Android/media directory. That's a platform rule.
3. Auto-download is off for the connection you're on, so the file never arrived. See media auto-download and statuses.

The simpler way

Status Saver asks Android for access to exactly this one folder through the system folder picker, lists what's there, and copies what you choose to Download/MobileByteSensei/WhatsappStatuses. It's the same folder — just without the hunting.

Related: where WhatsApp stores status files

Two clocks

There are really two things expiring:

1. The status in the app. Gone 24 hours after posting, or earlier if the person deletes it.
2. The file on your phone. WhatsApp stores each status you watched in a hidden folder and cleans it up on its own schedule, roughly a day later. The file can linger briefly after the status has vanished from the app — or be gone already if storage is tight.

That's why a status saver occasionally still shows something you can no longer see in WhatsApp, and why you shouldn't count on it.

When it's too late

Once the file is gone from your phone, it can't be recovered — WhatsApp doesn't keep expired statuses for you to download again. The honest version of this is in can you recover a status after 24 hours?

Save it while you can

• On Android: watch it, then save it with Status Saver — one tap, original file.
• On a computer: with the Status Saver extension on WhatsApp Web, every status you open is kept automatically. Statuses there stay for 7 days by default (or 1, 3 or 30 — your choice) and can be browsed on the viewer page.

Why did one disappear early?

The poster deleted it, changed who can see it, or blocked you. More in a status vanished before 24 hours were up.

Ask first

The simplest rule: message the person and ask. Most people say yes, and you've avoided the one awkward case where they posted it for a small audience on purpose. Status privacy settings exist for a reason; your contacts may include people they deliberately excluded.

Give credit

If they agree, say where it came from — a caption like "via Priya" or "📸 Sam". It costs nothing and it's what you'd want in reverse.

Don't repost

• photos of other people's children, homes, or private moments
• anything posted to "My contacts except…" or "Only share with…" — that was a signal
• screenshots of private chats someone shared to their status
• anything you'd mind being reposted if it were yours

How to repost cleanly

1. Save the original with Status Saver so you post the actual file, not a blurry screenshot.
2. In WhatsApp, open Updates → My status → add and choose the saved photo or video.
3. Add the credit as the caption.

If the status mentioned you directly, WhatsApp may offer a quicker reshare option inside the status itself — that keeps the credit attached automatically.

Elsewhere

Posting it on Instagram, TikTok or YouTube is a bigger step: it reaches strangers and can be re-shared indefinitely. Ask explicitly for that. The legal side is covered in is it legal to save someone's WhatsApp status?

Recommended: WhatsApp Web in Chrome

1. Open web.whatsapp.com and link it to your phone (Settings → Linked devices on the phone).
2. Install the Status Saver extension for Chrome.
3. Open the Status tab and watch statuses. Every photo and video you open is kept automatically.
4. Click Viewed statuses (bottom-right), or open the viewer page, and Save. The file goes to your Downloads folder in the Files app.

Everything stays on the Chromebook — the extension doesn't upload anything.

Why not the Android app on the Chromebook?

WhatsApp's Android app is built for phones; on a Chromebook it normally runs as a secondary, linked device at best, and the statuses folder that a status saver reads may not be populated the way it is on a phone. The browser route is simpler and more reliable.

Managed school or work Chromebooks

If your Chromebook is managed, your administrator may block extensions or WhatsApp Web entirely. That's a policy, not a fault — use your phone instead with Status Saver for Android.

Related

• How to view WhatsApp status on WhatsApp Web
• WhatsApp Web statuses not loading?

Steps

1. Open web.whatsapp.com in Google Chrome, Chromium, Brave, Vivaldi or Edge and link your phone.
2. Install the Status Saver extension.
3. Open the Status tab and watch statuses — photos and videos you open are kept automatically.
4. Click Viewed statuses, or open the viewer page, and Save. Files land in ~/Downloads.

Firefox can't run Chrome extensions, so on Firefox only screenshots and screen recordings are available.

Snap and Flatpak browsers

Browsers installed as a Snap or Flatpak are sandboxed. Saving still works, but the download folder may be inside the sandbox's own ~/Downloads mapping — if a saved file seems missing, check your browser's download settings for the real path.

Unofficial "WhatsApp for Linux" apps

Several community apps wrap WhatsApp Web in their own window. They're not from WhatsApp, can't run browser extensions, and you're trusting a third party with your session. A regular browser tab is safer.

Playing saved videos

Status videos are MP4 (usually H.264), which plays in any standard player. If one won't open, see a saved status video won't play.

In a browser: keep the original

Open web.whatsapp.com in Chrome (or another Chromium browser such as Edge, Brave or Arc). With the Status Saver extension installed, every photo and video status you open is kept in its original quality. Click Viewed statuses to browse them, or use our status viewer page, and Save writes a normal file to ~/Downloads.

Safari can't run Chrome extensions, so on Safari only the fallbacks below apply.

In the Mac app: capture it

The native app can't host an extension. You can still:

• Screenshot a photo status — Cmd + Shift + 4, then press Space and click the WhatsApp window to capture it cleanly.
• Record a video status — Cmd + Shift + 5, choose Record Selected Portion, and draw around the status. Turn on the microphone option only if you want room noise; system audio isn't captured by default.

A recording is a copy of your screen, not the file — expect softer detail and a bigger file than the original.

From your phone

If the status was also on your phone, saving it there with Status Saver for Android gives you the exact file, which you can AirDrop-free move to the Mac through Google Photos, a cloud drive, or by emailing it to yourself.

Tips

• Statuses disappear 24 hours after they're posted. Saving is only possible while you can still see them.
• Saved files are just photos and videos — the person who posted them isn't notified either way. See does someone know if you save their status?

The short version

1. WhatsApp Web + the Status Saver extension

This is the only route that gives you the original file on the computer directly.

1. Open web.whatsapp.com in Chrome and link your phone if you haven't.
2. With the Status Saver extension installed, open the Status tab and watch statuses as usual.
3. Each photo and video you open is kept automatically. Click Viewed statuses (bottom-right) to see them, or open our status viewer page.
4. Click a tile, then Save. The file lands in your Downloads folder as a normal .jpg or .mp4.

Nothing is uploaded — the library lives in your browser. Statuses you never open are never touched.

2. The WhatsApp desktop app

The Windows and Mac apps are not browsers, so no extension can run inside them. Your options there are a screenshot (Win + Shift + S on Windows, Cmd + Shift + 4 on a Mac) or a screen recording (Win + Alt + R with Xbox Game Bar, or Cmd + Shift + 5). Both re-capture the screen, so a video loses quality and picks up anything that overlaps the window.

If quality matters, open the same status on WhatsApp Web instead.

3. Save on the phone, move it to the PC

Your Android phone already stored the real file when you watched the status. Status Saver for Android copies it to your gallery, and from there it is an ordinary photo or video: send it to yourself, sync it with Google Photos, or plug in a USB cable and copy it from Download/MobileByteSensei/WhatsappStatuses on the phone.

Which should you pick?

If you are already at the computer, use WhatsApp Web with the extension. If the status is on your phone, save it there — it takes one tap and you keep the exact file WhatsApp delivered.

Related: Saving a status from WhatsApp Web · Where WhatsApp stores status files on a phone

With Status Saver

1. Watch the status in WhatsApp.
2. Open Status Saver, grant the WhatsApp statuses folder when prompted.
3. Tap download on what you want to keep — it goes to Download/MobileByteSensei/WhatsappStatuses.

With the built-in Files app

1. Open Files (or File Manager) → the menu → Settings → enable Show hidden files.
2. Go to Phone storage → Android → media → com.whatsapp → WhatsApp → Media → .Statuses.
3. Long-press → Copy → paste into Download or DCIM.

Some versions refuse to list files inside Android/media. That's Android's storage protection; the app route doesn't depend on it.

App Cloner / Parallel apps

ColorOS, realme UI and OxygenOS all offer cloning ("App Cloner", "Clone Apps" or "Parallel Apps"). A cloned WhatsApp stores statuses under a different user, out of reach of normal apps — see dual WhatsApp and cloned apps.

Battery optimisation

These skins freeze apps they think you don't use. Under Settings → Battery → App battery management → WhatsApp, allow background activity so statuses finish downloading.

Statuses look blurry once saved?

That's usually WhatsApp's compression, not the phone — see why saved statuses look worse than the original.

The method that works

1. Watch the status in WhatsApp.
2. Open Status Saver. The first time, Android shows its folder picker — choose Use this folder on the WhatsApp statuses folder. This is Android's own permission screen; the app can only ever read that one folder.
3. Tap download on a photo or video. It's saved to Download/MobileByteSensei/WhatsappStatuses and appears in Google Photos under the Download folder.

Why Files by Google usually can't

Files by Google can show hidden files, but since Android 11 apps aren't allowed to browse inside other apps' Android/media folders through a normal file manager. You'll often see the .Statuses folder and no files inside it. The folder-picker permission in step 2 is the sanctioned way in.

The full background is in status saving and Android's storage permissions.

Pixel features that interfere

• Private space (Android 15) — WhatsApp installed in Private space is invisible to apps outside it.
• Pause app — a paused WhatsApp doesn't download statuses.
• Work profile — a WhatsApp in the work profile keeps its files there.

Pixel tablets and foldables

Statuses on a Pixel Tablet only exist if WhatsApp is set up there as a linked device. See saving statuses on a tablet.

Method 1: Status Saver (one tap)

1. Watch the status in WhatsApp first — that's what puts the file on your phone.
2. Open Status Saver, grant the WhatsApp statuses folder once when asked.
3. Tap the download button on any photo or video.

Saved files go to Download/MobileByteSensei/WhatsappStatuses and show up in Gallery under the Download album.

Method 2: Samsung My Files (no extra app)

1. Open My Files → the three-dot menu → Settings → turn on Show hidden system files.
2. Go to Internal storage → Android → media → com.whatsapp → WhatsApp → Media → .Statuses.
3. Long-press a file → Copy → paste it somewhere visible, such as Download or DCIM.

On recent One UI versions My Files may refuse to open folders under Android/media; if the folder looks empty or locked, Method 1 is the reliable route. Files you leave in .Statuses are deleted by WhatsApp after about 24 hours.

Samsung settings that hide statuses

• Dual Messenger — a second WhatsApp lives in a separate profile, and its statuses are in a different folder. See dual WhatsApp and cloned apps.
• Secure Folder — WhatsApp installed inside Secure Folder is invisible to apps outside it, including any status saver.
• Put unused apps to sleep — if WhatsApp is put to sleep it won't refresh statuses in the background, so open WhatsApp once before saving.
• Media visibility off in WhatsApp — doesn't stop statuses being stored, only gallery thumbnails for chat media.

Nothing showing at all?

Run through why statuses aren't showing in a status saver — it covers permissions, auto-download and the common Android 13–14 folder issues.

With Status Saver

1. View the status in WhatsApp.
2. Open Status Saver and allow the WhatsApp statuses folder.
3. Tap the download icon. Saved files land in Download/MobileByteSensei/WhatsappStatuses.

With the File Manager

1. Open File Manager → Settings → turn on Show hidden files.
2. Open Internal storage → Android → media → com.whatsapp → WhatsApp → Media → .Statuses.
3. Copy the file to Download or DCIM before WhatsApp clears it, about a day after posting.

The vivo battery setting

vivo's Background power consumption management can stop WhatsApp the moment you leave it, so status videos you haven't fully watched may never finish downloading. Go to Settings → Battery → Background power consumption management → WhatsApp → Allow high background power consumption (the wording varies by version).

App Clone

vivo's App Clone runs a second WhatsApp in its own space. Its statuses aren't visible to a normal status saver; see dual WhatsApp and cloned apps.

Still empty?

Work through why statuses aren't showing, starting with WhatsApp's media auto-download setting.

The quick way

1. Watch the status in WhatsApp.
2. Open Status Saver and grant access to the WhatsApp statuses folder when asked.
3. Tap download. The file goes to Download/MobileByteSensei/WhatsappStatuses and appears in the Gallery app.

Without an extra app

1. Open the File Manager app → menu → Settings → turn on Show hidden files.
2. Browse to Internal shared storage → Android → media → com.whatsapp → WhatsApp → Media → .Statuses.
3. Copy the photo or video you want into Download or DCIM.

If File Manager won't show the contents of Android/media, that's Android's storage rules at work, not something broken — use the app method instead.

Xiaomi quirk 1: battery saver stops WhatsApp

HyperOS/MIUI aggressively suspends apps. If WhatsApp is restricted, statuses may not finish downloading, so there's nothing on the phone to save. In Settings → Apps → WhatsApp → Battery saver, choose No restrictions. Your phone's battery won't notice.

Xiaomi quirk 2: "Second space" and "Dual apps"

A WhatsApp running in Second space or as a Dual app keeps its statuses in a separate user profile that other apps can't read. See dual WhatsApp and cloned apps.

Also check

• Media auto-download in WhatsApp decides whether a status file reaches the phone at all — here's why it matters.
• Saved videos with no sound? See status video plays with no sound.

1. The file was copied before it finished downloading

If you save a video status you only half-watched, WhatsApp may still have been fetching it. The copy is a truncated MP4 — it might play for a few seconds and stop, or not open at all.

Fix: watch the status to the end in WhatsApp, then save it again. In Status Saver the refresh button re-reads the folder.

2. The status expired mid-copy

Statuses are deleted about 24 hours after posting. A copy started seconds before WhatsApp's cleanup can end up empty (0 KB).

Fix: check the file size. A 0 KB or tiny file can't be repaired — the original is gone.

3. Your player doesn't support the codec

Most status videos are H.264, which everything plays. Some phones record in HEVC (H.265), and an older PC or TV may show a black screen with sound.

Fix: play it in VLC, or convert it to H.264 — see how to compress a video for a WhatsApp status, which uses the same settings.

4. It was saved with the wrong extension

Renaming a .mp4 to something else, or a cleaner app stripping the extension, makes players refuse the file. Rename it back to .mp4.

5. On a computer, with the Chrome extension

The Status Saver extension fetches the complete video file the moment you open a status on WhatsApp Web, so a cut-short copy is rare. If a video in the viewer still won't play, delete it there and open the status on WhatsApp Web again while it's still up — a fresh copy is kept.

Sound but no picture, or picture but no sound

• No sound → status video plays with no sound
• Blurry → why saved statuses look worse

1. Save the real file

Save the status with Status Saver rather than taking a screenshot. A screenshot captures the status overlay, the progress bar and your screen's resolution; the saved file is the photo itself. (And ask the person, if it's a personal photo.)

2. Check the shape

Status photos are usually tall (9:16), which suits a phone. Landscape photos get cropped hard when you set them — the wallpaper picker lets you pan to keep the important part in view.

3. Set it

• Most Android phones: open the photo in Gallery or Google Photos → menu → Use as / Set as wallpaper → choose Home screen, Lock screen, or both.
• Samsung: Gallery → menu → Set as wallpaper.

Why it might look soft

WhatsApp compresses status photos, so fine detail is already gone. On a big, sharp phone screen that shows. Two things help:

• Use it on the lock screen, where clock and notifications cover part of it anyway.
• Turn off "Perspective"/"motion" zoom, which enlarges the image slightly and exaggerates softness.

More on why: getting the full resolution of a status photo.

Your own status

The best file is the original on your phone — the photo or video you posted. Share that to Instagram directly from your gallery. WhatsApp's copy of your status has already been compressed once; Instagram will compress it again.

So keep the original until you've shared it everywhere you want — it's the best-quality copy you'll ever have.

Someone else's status

Ask first — it's their photo or video, and Instagram is a much bigger audience than their WhatsApp contacts. If they agree:

1. Save the status with Status Saver (original file, no screenshot).
2. Open Instagram → Your story → pick the saved file from the gallery.
3. Credit them with a mention or a text sticker.

More on etiquette in reposting a status decently.

Keep the quality

• Don't screenshot or screen-record — that's a third generation of compression.
• Trim before posting, not after: longer clips get split into segments, so cut on a natural pause.
• Avoid re-saving through other apps — every hop can re-encode.

Audio only?

To pull just the song out of a status video, convert it to MP3 — here's how.

Availability: the extension is on its way to the Chrome Web Store. The install button appears on our status viewer page and the home page as soon as it's live.

What it does

• Keeps statuses as you watch them. Open a photo or video status and it's added to your library in the original quality. You don't click anything.
• Never duplicates. Watching the same status again doesn't create a second copy.
• Shows a "Save this status" button while a status is open, if you want the file right now.
• Gives you a gallery. The Viewed statuses button (bottom-right on WhatsApp Web) opens your library, grouped by day, with Photos and Videos filters, a full-screen preview, and Save, Save all and Delete.
• Cleans up after itself. Statuses are removed after 7 days by default; choose 1, 3 or 30 days from the toolbar button.

The same library is also on our status viewer page — handy on a big screen, and it works whether or not WhatsApp Web is open.

What it doesn't do

• It doesn't touch statuses you never open. Nothing is downloaded in the background.
• It doesn't read your chats or messages. It only looks at the status viewer.
• It can't keep text statuses — those aren't files. See why text statuses can't be saved.
• It makes no network requests of its own. Your statuses aren't uploaded anywhere — not to us, not to anyone.

Permissions, in plain language

Where the files live

In your browser's storage for the extension, on your computer. When you click Save, a normal .jpg or .mp4 goes to your Downloads folder.

Removing everything

• One status: open it in the gallery and choose Delete.
• Everything: remove the extension from chrome://extensions. Chrome deletes its storage with it.

Be fair to the people you follow

A status is someone else's photo or video. Keep what you save for yourself, and ask before you share it on. More in is it legal to save someone's WhatsApp status?

Status Saver is not affiliated with WhatsApp or Meta.

Grant it correctly

1. In Status Saver, tap Give access.
2. Android opens its folder picker already inside the WhatsApp media folder. Don't navigate away — tap Use this folder at the bottom.
3. Confirm Allow on the next dialog.

If you accidentally picked a different folder (Downloads, DCIM, the WhatsApp root), the app won't find statuses there. Tap Give access again and pick the statuses folder.

Why it gets lost

• WhatsApp was reinstalled or restored from backup. The folder is recreated, and Android treats it as new — the old permission no longer points at anything.
• You cleared Status Saver's storage or data. That wipes saved permissions with it.
• A phone cleaner app revoked it. Some "optimizer" apps reset folder permissions.
• You moved WhatsApp to a different user (Second space, Dual apps, Secure Folder). The new copy has its own folder.

WhatsApp and WhatsApp Business

They use separate folders. Grant both if you use both — each needs its own Give access. More on Business statuses.

The older permission option

On Android 10 and earlier, the app can use the standard storage permission instead (Grant standard permission). Newer Android versions require the folder picker; that's a platform rule, not a choice the app makes. Background in status saving and Android's storage permissions.

Granted, but still empty?

Then the permission is fine and the folder simply has nothing in it yet — watch a status in WhatsApp first. Work through why statuses aren't showing.

New status missing

• WhatsApp hasn't written it yet. A status is stored once it has been downloaded, which usually happens while you watch it. A video you skipped through may not be complete yet.
• The list was loaded before you watched it. Pull down or tap refresh in Status Saver to re-read the folder.
• Auto-download is off on mobile data. Then the file only arrives when you open the status. More on auto-download.

Old status still there

WhatsApp deletes status files on its own schedule, roughly 24 hours after posting — not the instant a status expires in the app. Until WhatsApp's cleanup runs, the file is still in the folder and still saveable. That's harmless and occasionally useful.

If you want a status you already saved to stop appearing, delete it from the saver's Saved tab — the copy in your Downloads is yours to keep or remove.

On WhatsApp Web

With the Status Saver extension, the library only contains statuses you opened in the browser, and items are removed after the number of days you choose (7 by default). If something's missing in the viewer, it simply wasn't opened on that computer.

Related

• A status vanished before 24 hours were up
• Can you recover a status after 24 hours?

No. Here's the mechanism, step by step.

Where the statuses are

The extension stores what you watch in its own storage inside your browser, on your computer. Browsers keep each extension's storage separate from every website — including ours.

How the page shows them anyway

1. When you open the viewer page, a tiny part of the extension tells the page "the extension is installed, here's how to reach it". That's all it says.
2. The page then opens a small, invisible window that belongs to the extension, not to the website. Inside it, the extension reads your library.
3. The extension hands the photos and videos to the page inside your browser, which displays them.

At no point is anything sent over the internet. The page's code runs on your machine; the files move from one part of your browser to another.

What the website is allowed to do

The extension only answers our site and WhatsApp Web, and it gives the site fewer powers than WhatsApp Web gets:

Any other website that tries to talk to the extension gets nothing back.

Without the extension

The viewer page has nothing to show — it just explains how to install the extension. There's no account, no upload button and no server-side library.

Removing everything

Delete items from the viewer or the WhatsApp Web gallery, or remove the extension from chrome://extensions to wipe its storage completely. More in the complete extension guide.

What a backup contains

WhatsApp's Google Drive (or local) backup holds your chats and chat media. It doesn't include the .Statuses folder — statuses are temporary by nature, and backing them up would defeat the point.

So after a restore:

• Your chats are back.
• Statuses from contacts start fresh — you'll see whatever is posted from now on.
• Statuses you saved are only there if your saved copies were moved too.

Your saved statuses

Statuses saved with Status Saver are normal files in Download/MobileByteSensei/WhatsappStatuses. They're not part of WhatsApp's backup either. Keep them by:

• letting Google Photos back up the Download folder, or
• copying the folder to the new phone, or a computer, before the reset — see moving saved statuses to a new phone.

After restoring

1. Open WhatsApp and let it finish restoring.
2. Open Status Saver and grant the statuses folder again — the restore recreates it, so the old permission no longer applies. How.
3. Watch a status to confirm everything works.

1. Re-grant the folder (most common)

A WhatsApp update or reinstall can recreate the media folder, and Android's saved permission stops pointing at it. Open Status Saver, tap Give access, and pick the statuses folder again. Details: fixing the folder permission.

2. A major Android update moved things

The big change was Android 11: WhatsApp's media moved from WhatsApp/Media to Android/media/com.whatsapp/WhatsApp/Media. Phones jumping several versions at once can leave old files in the old place and new statuses in the new one.

Check: watch a fresh status, then look in the new path — see how to find the .Statuses folder.

3. WhatsApp changed how it downloads

Occasionally WhatsApp changes when status media is fetched — for example only when you open the Updates tab. If statuses only appear after you open the Updates tab, that's expected: open WhatsApp, visit Updates, then return to the saver.

Also check your auto-download setting

Updates sometimes reset settings. In WhatsApp Settings → Storage and data → Media auto-download, make sure photos and videos are allowed on the connection you're using — that setting decides whether status files reach the phone at all. Why it matters.

Still nothing

• Restart the phone once — it clears stale media-scanner state.
• Make sure you're looking at the right WhatsApp: personal and Business keep separate folders.
• Make sure you're on the latest Status Saver from Google Play.

Find the Status tab

1. Open web.whatsapp.com and scan the QR code from your phone (WhatsApp → Settings → Linked devices → Link a device).
2. In the left strip, under the Chats icon, click the Status icon — a circle with a dashed ring.
3. The panel lists My status at the top, then recent updates, then ones you've already seen.

Click any contact to start. The bar at the top shows how many updates they posted and which one you're on.

Moving around

Statuses that won't open

• Grey ring that never loads — WhatsApp Web fetches each status from your linked session. A weak connection, or a phone that has been offline for a long time, can leave it stuck. Refresh the page.
• Missing contacts — you only see statuses from people who have your number saved and whose privacy settings include you. That's the same rule as on the phone.
• Text statuses look different — they are drawn by WhatsApp, not stored as a picture. That's also why text statuses can't be saved as files.

Saving what you watch

WhatsApp Web has no download button for statuses. The Status Saver extension adds one: every photo and video you open is kept on your computer, and you can browse them in WhatsApp Web or on our status viewer page. The full walkthrough is in how to save a WhatsApp status on a PC.

Does watching on the web mark it as seen?

Yes. A status you open on WhatsApp Web counts as viewed, exactly as on your phone, and you appear in the poster's viewer list unless you have read receipts turned off. More on that in the status viewer list.

Linking a Business account

In the WhatsApp Business app: Settings → Linked devices → Link a device, then scan the QR code on web.whatsapp.com. If you use both a personal and a Business account, they're separate logins — use two browser profiles, or log one out before linking the other.

Saving Business statuses on a computer

The Status Saver extension works the same for both account types: open a photo or video status and it's kept, in original quality, in your browser. Browse and save from Viewed statuses or the viewer page.

With two browser profiles (one per account), each profile has its own extension library — they don't mix.

On the phone

On Android, WhatsApp Business stores statuses in its own folder, separate from personal WhatsApp, so a status saver needs permission for each. Details in saving statuses from WhatsApp Business.

Posting statuses for your business

Statuses are a free way to reach customers who saved your number. Keep videos short and under the length limit — see how long a status video can be and the best video settings for a status.