Reply to, star, forward, delete or find one message

Getting here

Inbox → open a conversation → hover a message for Reply, Select, Forward, Star and Delete for me. The magnifier (Search this conversation) is in the header; Starred messages sits above the conversation list. In the app: long press a message bubble for the same actions, and open Starred messages from the inbox header.

Before you start

• Starring, hiding and searching need no special role. A viewer can do all three.
• Forwarding sends a message, so it needs an owner, admin or agent, and the same channel rules as any other send.
• There is nothing to set up. Every action works on messages already in the conversation.

How it works

• Reply puts the message above the reply box under Replying to. Your next reply, file, product or template answers it; the × (Cancel reply) clears it.
• Where the channel shows quotes, as WhatsApp does, the customer sees a quoted reply. Where it cannot, the strip says Replying to (visible to your team) and only your team sees the quote.
• Star keeps a message on your own list. It is private: Only visible to you — starring never changes what anyone else sees.
• The Starred messages page lists them with the contact, the message, the channel and when you starred it, and you can search that list.
• Unstar takes one off again, from the message or from the starred list.
• Select turns on multi-select. Tick up to 20 messages, then Forward {count} messages.
• The forward picker offers Frequently forwarded and Recent chats, and searches by name or phone. This chat is offered too.
• A forward sends the text and each attachment again in the target chat — one message per attachment, the text riding on the first — and says Forwarded to {name}.
• Attachments are fetched and copied before the first send, so a file that can no longer be fetched refuses the whole forward. If a later send fails, the error says how many attachments went.
• Delete for me hides the message from your view only. The message that follows says Only you stopped seeing it — nobody else’s view changed. and offers Undo.
• Search this conversation filters the messages on screen to those that match, and the header shows {count} found.
• Load earlier messages at the top fetches the previous page. It walks past the conversation itself, so a chat that was closed and started again still reads as one history.
• In the app the search also steps between matches with Previous match and Next match, and shows {at} of {total}.

When it fails

• Could not star this message — the star was not saved; the message is unchanged.
• Could not delete this message — the message stays on screen for you.
• Internal notes can’t be forwarded. — a note is for your team, so it cannot be sent to a customer.
• Template messages can’t be forwarded — send the template from the composer instead. — an approved template has to be sent as a template.
• That kind of message can’t be forwarded. — the message holds only something the composer cannot send, such as a location or a contact card.
• There is nothing in that message to forward. — no text and nothing sendable in it.
• Could not load earlier messages. Please try again. — the older page did not load; what is on screen is unchanged.
• No messages match your search. — nothing in the loaded part of the conversation contains those words.
• In the app, That message is older — use Load earlier messages above. means the match you tapped is not loaded yet.

Limits

• Reply is not offered on an internal note, on a message still sending, on a send the platform refused, or to a viewer.
• An internal note never carries the quote, and a quote picked earlier is dropped when the WhatsApp window closes.
• Delete for me does exactly that. The customer still has the message, and your teammates still see it.
• Nothing here deletes a message for the customer or takes back a delivered message.
• A star is private and is not a task. Nobody is notified, and nothing reminds you about it later.
• Searching inside a conversation reads the messages already loaded. Words in an older, unloaded part are found only after Load earlier messages.
• The search matches message text. It does not read a file's contents, and it does not read a voice note nobody has transcribed.
• A forward is a new message on the target channel, with that channel's own rules — including a closed WhatsApp window.
• At most 20 messages can be forwarded at once, and one forward carries only the first few attachments of a message.
• Web has no step-through of search matches. It highlights and counts them; moving between them one by one is in the app.

Best practices

• Star the message that carries the address, the reference number or the promise. It is faster than scrolling for it tomorrow.
• Forward the customer's own words to a colleague rather than retyping them. The original wording usually carries the detail.
• Use Delete for me for something you opened by mistake, not as a way to correct the record — the record does not change.
• Search inside the conversation before asking the customer to repeat themselves.
• Check the Undo offer straight away. It is the one moment where hiding a message can be taken back with a click.

Use cases

• Michael Torres sends a delivery address in the middle of a long chat: star it before you scroll on.
• A customer reports a fault another teammate is handling: forward their two messages into that chat.
• You need to know what was agreed about a refund: search the conversation for the word.
• An accidental duplicate clutters your view: Delete for me, and leave the customer's view alone.
• A colleague asks what a customer said last month: Load earlier messages until it appears, then forward it.

FAQ and troubleshooting

Does Delete for me delete the message for the customer?

No. It hides it from your own view. The customer keeps it, and so do your teammates.

Can my teammates see what I starred?

No. The starred list is yours alone, and starring changes nothing anyone else sees.

Can I forward a template or an internal note?

No. A note is internal, and an approved template has to be sent as a template from the composer. Both refusals say so.

I searched and the message is not found, but I know it exists.

Search reads the part of the conversation that is loaded. Click Load earlier messages until the older part is on screen, then search again.

How many messages can I forward at once?

Up to 20. One forward carries only the first few attachments of a message, and the error tells you how many went if a send fails part way.

The conversation was closed and started again. Do I lose the old messages?

No. Load earlier messages reaches past the earlier conversation, so the history reads as one.

Related

• Reply to a customer — The box at the bottom sends a reply, an internal note, a file or a voice note, and says what it costs.
• Find the conversation you need — Views, search, the channel filter and the Unreplied switch narrow the inbox down to the chats you still have to answer.
• Close, reopen, snooze, pin and mute a conversation — Clear a chat out of your working views without losing it, park it until later, or keep it on top of the list.
• Let the AI draft, polish or brief you — Four AI helpers read the conversation and give you text or a short briefing. You still press send yourself.