WhatsApp's new iOS shortcut fixes an annoying search step

Ever tried to find one message buried in a months-old WhatsApp chat and given up halfway through scrolling? WhatsApp just fixed the clunky detour that made searching harder than it needed to be, and it only took one tap to get there.

Until now, searching inside a chat meant leaving the conversation entirely. You had to open the chat info screen, tap search there, and get bounced back into the chat in search mode. It worked, but it added steps for something that should've been instant.

This shortcut was initially introduced back in August by WhatsApp in a previous beta of WhatsApp Messenger for iOS; however, before its release, it underwent some refinements to its design.

These were successful since the feature has now been released in WhatsApp Messenger for iOS version 26.36.74, which can be downloaded from the App Store, and its functionality is limited to just one thing: putting search one tap away.

The button can be seen at the top of the screen, though only if you scroll up in a conversation; if you scroll down, the button disappears. This was done to change the initial placement of the button since originally it was located at the bottom of the screen.

And it was moved most probably due to the conflict with another button located there.

Channels get the same treatment. If you follow a channel that posts frequently, digging through old updates just to find one post used to mean the same info-screen detour. Now the shortcut sits in the same spot, making channel search just as fast as chat search.