WhatsApp is working on a new search button for iPhone users. It will let you enter chat search mode with one tap, right from inside the conversation you’re already reading. The feature is still being built. It showed up inside a WhatsApp beta for iOS, version 26.31.10.70, shared through TestFlight, and was first spotted by WABetaInfo on August 9, 2026.
How Chat Search Works on iPhone Right Now
Finding an old message inside a chat takes a few steps today:
- Open the chat you want to search
- Tap the contact or group name at the top to open the chat info screen
- Tap the search option on that screen
- You get sent back into the chat, now in search mode
iPad users already have it easier. They can tap “More” inside the chat and pick “Search,” without ever leaving the conversation. iPhone users don’t have that shortcut yet, and that’s the gap this update aims to close.
What’s Changing
WhatsApp is building a search button that lives right inside the chat screen. Based on what’s been found in the beta code, here’s how it will work:
- The button only shows up when you scroll up to read older messages
- It appears near the bottom of the screen, in the same spot as the existing “jump to latest message” button
- Once you scroll back down to the latest message, the button disappears again
- Tapping it opens the same search mode you get today, just without the extra steps
The search results themselves won’t change. Only the path to reach search mode gets shorter.
Why This Update Is Useful
Scrolling through a short chat to find one message is quick and easy. In a chat with years of history, that same scroll can take a while. This button places search right where you’re already reading, so you don’t need to leave the chat and hunt for it in a separate screen.
When Will It Launch
This feature is not live yet, not even for beta testers. WhatsApp has not given a release date. WABetaInfo expects it to reach TestFlight testers in a future update, ahead of a full public release.
| Detail | Info |
|---|---|
| Feature | In-chat search button for iPhone |
| Found in | WhatsApp beta for iOS 26.31.10.70 (TestFlight) |
| Status | In development, not yet in beta testing |
| Discovered by | WABetaInfo, August 9, 2026 |
| Official release date | Not announced yet |
