WhatsApp's new Communities tab is still in the works but it isn't ready yet

Whatsapp Group Message on iPhone X (Image credit: Luke Filipowicz/iMore)

What you need to know

WhatsApp continues to test a new Communities tab in its iPhone app.
The Communities tab will be a place for groups to live.
The Communities tab isn't yet available for beta testers.

The popular instant messaging app WhatsApp continues to work on a new tab that will house all Communities, according to a new report.

The new Communities tab will give WhatsApp users a focal point for a feature that we're still learning about. Essentially, Communities "bring related groups together" according to a screenshot shared by WABetaInfo. While it was able to share that screenshot, the outlet notes that the new tab isn't yet ready for beta testers, let alone the version of WhatsApp that can be downloaded via the App Store.

As you can see in this screenshot, WhatsApp is working on bringing the communities tab into the iOS app as well, and it replaces the camera tab. When you open this tab and no communities are available, we can read an introduction for communities: a community brings related groups together, and all your communities or the ones you get added to will show up in this section. It's probably soon to say what a community will offer, but we know that a community also lets us reach everyone at once by sending messages to all their members if we are a community admin.

Whatsapp Communities Tab Explainer (Image credit: WABetaInfo)

WhatsApp is already one of the best iPhone apps at what it does — making it easier for people to send and receive instant messages with people who are in international countries and not using iPhones. The addition of new features like the Communities tab will only help drive the app onto more Home screens around the world, too.

Not a fan of WhatsApp? Check out our collection of the best WhatsApp alternatives and pick your favorite instead.

Oliver Haslam has written about Apple and the wider technology business for more than a decade with bylines on How-To Geek, PC Mag, iDownloadBlog, and many more. He has also been published in print for Macworld, including cover stories. At iMore, Oliver is involved in daily news coverage and, not being short of opinions, has been known to 'explain' those thoughts in more detail, too. Having grown up using PCs and spending far too much money on graphics card and flashy RAM, Oliver switched to the Mac with a G5 iMac and hasn't looked back. Since then he's seen the growth of the smartphone world, backed by iPhone, and new product categories come and go. Current expertise includes iOS, macOS, streaming services, and pretty much anything that has a battery or plugs into a wall. Oliver also covers mobile gaming for iMore, with Apple Arcade a particular focus. He's been gaming since the Atari 2600 days and still struggles to comprehend the fact he can play console quality titles on his pocket computer.