WhatsApp has taken over and nowadays it’s rare to find a smartphone without the recognizable green logo in it. We use it to quickly chat and get in touch with our friends and family and it makes the world a smaller place. 🌍
Using it for 1 on 1 communication is fun, fast and secure but WhatsApp has 2 more features called Groups and Broadcast which let you communicate with multiple people at the same time.
But you may wonder.. 🤔 What’s the difference between them? Well, let’s take a dive into it 🤿
No time to read it all? Check out the whatsapp broadcast vs group summary at the end of the article. 👇
💬No time to read it all? Check out the Summary of WhatsApp broadcast vs group differences at the end of the article. 👇
Create new WhatsApp group and broadcast buttons (Android – left) and (iOS – right)
The distinction between WhatsApp broadcast vs group
WhatsApp groups are designed for a 2 way communication between participants with a max limit of 256 group members.
You’re probably a part of some WhatsApp group and you’ve noticed you can see all of the participants and their phone numbers. Whenever someone new is added it is visible and everyone can write and send messages which appear in the common chat.
The group always has an admin, the lord of the realm 🤴. Admins have exclusive powers which let them add and remove group members, create an invite link, restrict changes to the group description and control the ability to write in the group chat. You can add anyone in the group if they are in your contacts and the added person doesn’t have to have you in their contacts list.
WhatsApp group chat
💬Learn more about groups in our How to create a group in WhatsApp article.
WhatsApp broadcast works in a different way compared to groups. It is designed for a 1 way communication and participants in it don’t know that the message they received was sent through the broadcast feature, neither can they see the other contacts in the broadcast list.
When you create a broadcast you can select a maximum of 256 contacts which will receive the same message once you send it out. They will get the message in a direct chat with you, so for the recipient it looks like a regular WhatsApp chat.
If you get a response it will also appear in the individual chat you have with the contact. Basically broadcasts are a fast way to send the same message to many contacts. 🚀
In order to receive a message sent through a broadcast, the recipient has to have your number saved as a contact. This restriction protects us all from spam messages in WhatsApp.
WhatsApp broadcast list (left), message appears in the regular chat window (right)
When to use WhatsApp Groups?
WhatsApp groups are great for when you want to have a 2-way communication with people. Brainstorm, share news and ideas, plan a trip with your friends. 🚌 Everyone will be able to write and read messages from other group members.
When to use WhatsApp Broadcast?
WhatsApp broadcast will save you precious time when you want to send the same message to many contacts all at once. The effect is the same as if you went to each chat individually and sent the message, just a lot faster.
🐱🏍 Broadcasts are especially useful for updates and announcements.
Summary of WhatsApp broadcast vs group differences
WhatsApp group
- One common chat for all group members.
- Maximum of 256 participants.
- The admin adds and removes group members.
- Communication and member contact details are available for all participants.
WhatsApp broadcast
- Message is sent individually to the contact (no group chat).
- Maximum of 256 contacts in the broadcast list.
- Communication is private.
- Recipients are not aware the message is sent through a broadcast.
- Responses show up in the regular WhatsApp chat with the contact.
- Recipient must have your number saved as a contact in order to receive the message.
We went through all the differences in WhatsApp Broadcast vs Groups. Hope you will take this new knowledge and use WhatsApp to create fun and useful groups and broadcast lists 🥳
