WhatsApp increases group call limit from 4 people to 8: You can start using it next week

WhatsApp is now going to allow eight people to chat on a group call instead of four. The group call limit has been expanded making it easier for you to keep in touch with friends and family over the pandemic.

The announcement was made last night by Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg who went live with a whole bunch of announcements around new product updates coming to Facebook and its family of apps.

WhatApp had started rolling out the eight-participant call option in beta across Android and iOS last week. However, now, following this announcement, the feature will be available to every WhatsApp user starting next week and works on voice calls and video calls both.

Facebook upgrading the group call limit from four to eight is their way of catching up with other chat apps that offer video calling as well. Houseparty, which became insanely popular over this lockdown, accommodates eight people in a video call at one time. Google Duo can accommodate 12 people in a group call.

Zuckerberg also made some other announcements like Messenger Rooms and more. You can read all about them here.

How to use it:

It works the same way as group video and voice calls. If you're in a WhatsApp group with more than four members you can make a voice or video call by adding up to eight people including yourself.

- Tap on the call icon on top of the group chat to make a group call.

- If the group has more than eight members, you'll have to select the participants.

- You can select all of them if you want, you can also select a couple from the list. Eight is the upper limit, including the person making the call.