WhatsApp changes frequently and it’s hard to keep track of everything that has changed over time and new ways the app has to notify you of certain data. Some of these notices apply to the mailing list, where you can see next to a chat sign such as a green circle or at sign. What do they mean?
Don’t worry, this has nothing to do with WhatsApp’s black circle that “terrified” our cats a few years ago, but rather it’s WhatsApp’s way of letting you know that you have unread messages, because you mentioned it yourself. We tell you exactly how matter works.
Why does a WhatsApp chat have a green circle?
WhatsApp chats that have unread messages are displayed at the top, on the right side of it a green circle with the number of unread messages. As soon as you enter this chat, the whole chat is marked as read and if you go back to the chat list, you will see that the green circle is gone.
What if you had hundreds of messages to read and only read the last ones? In this case, you can return to the chat list, long press the chat to select it, use the ⋮ menu and choose Mark as unread.
When you mark a chat as unread, WhatsApp adds green circle indicator in chat, although it does not move the chat itself, i.e. it does not rise to the top, as would happen when a new message arrives. Basically, it’s the same badge that appears when there are unread messages, but since WhatsApp doesn’t know exactly how many unread messages you have, only the circle appears and not the number.
Other, as soon as you enter the chat it will be marked as reread and therefore the green circle will no longer be displayed in the chat list. If you haven’t finished reading all pending messages yet, you’ll need to mark it as unread again.
Why does an at sign appear in a WhatsApp chat?
Ok, we already know what are the green circles with or without numbers that appear in the WhatsApp chat list, but this badge can be accompanied by a more enigmatic symbol: an at or @ sign next to the WhatsApp chat.
It’s something that you will only see in groupsbecause it is a way for WhatsApp to show you that, somehow, someone is talking about you in said group and that you might be interested in reviewing the message in case you want to reply.
Specifically, when an at sign appears next to a WhatsApp chat, it means that someone mentioned you or replied to one of your posts in a group. WhatsApp mentions are available in groups and are done by typing @ in a chat and choosing the person’s name. Replies to your WhatsApp messages in groups also show the same sign of the at sign.
Basically, it’s a way for you to distinguish where your attention is required in a group that may have hundreds of posts, so you don’t have to sift through them all. When you open the chat with pending mentions, a floating button with an at sign will allow you to skip to the last mention, making it easier and faster to answer.
