Messaging apps like WhatsApp have lately become an important—if not integral—part of our lives. They are not just little tools for messaging and calling people but essential resources that let you be in the loop with people that matter. As such, they can cause some real trouble if they don’t function properly. However, trouble is exactly what happens when WhatsApp doesn’t notify you about incoming calls.
Whenever you receive a WhatsApp call, you expect to hear the ring no matter whether you are using WhatsApp at the time. But sometimes, the app might not ring upon getting a call. Or worse, you might not receive a call at all until you open the app. This can be really problematic as you might miss a lot of important calls due to this weird issue.
Fortunately, you are very close to solving this issue now that you have landed on this page. We will explore this issue’s depth and how you can fix it. So, make sure to read till the end.
Why Can’t i Receive Whatsapp Calls until i Manually Open the App?
Normally, the calls you receive on WhatsApp are no different from traditional calls. Your phone would ring as usual, with a WhatsApp notification at the top of the screen showing you the name or number of the caller. Unless you have changed your phone’s ringtone, even the ringtone for WhatsApp calls is the same as that of offline calls.
But if you cannot see or hear a WhatsApp call when the app is not open, there can be multiple reasons behind it. Let’s first look into how this problem might take shape:
Reason 1: WhatsApp cannot send you notifications
Sometimes, you might not hear the notification ringtone when you receive a call on WhatsApp. The caller would hear the ring and see the call status as Ringing, meaning the call is connected. But there would be dead silence on your side unless you have the app open.
The reason behind this problem lies inside your phone’s notification settings. Since you receive the calls but don’t see or hear the notifications, it most likely means WhatsApp cannot send you notifications. In this case, you will likely not get message notifications, either.
Reason 2: WhatsApp’s background data is restricted
In this case, you won’t receive any calls at all, and the caller would see Calling as the call status, meaning the call isn’t connected. You will see the missed call when you open the app and get calls while it is open. But you would not get calls when you aren’t using the app.
If WhatsApp cannot receive calls in the background, it indicates the app is facing some restrictions on background data usage. In other words, WhatsApp cannot use your phone’s data in the background.
Reason 3: WhatsApp has a bug
Though this rarely happens, WhatsApp can occasionally have bugs affecting certain app features. This can sometimes lead to calling issues like this one. This is often the case if you can’t receive calls but can receive messages.
How to get WhatsApp to receive calls in the background?
Now that we are done with the problem and its causes, let’s turn to solutions that can fix the issue. Let us discuss the solutions to these problems:
Fix 1: Check WhatsApp’s notification settings
Incorrect notification preferences are among the most common causes behind the calling issue on WhatsApp. Therefore, the first thing you might want to check is WhatsApp’s notification settings.
Step 1: Open your phone’s Settings app and go to the Applications section.
Step 2: Find WhatsApp from the list of applications and open its App Info screen. Tap on Notifications to view the app’s notification settings.
Step 3: Make sure to enable notifications and select Allow sound and vibration. After that, scroll down to the bottom and tap on Notification Categories. To ensure you don’t miss any notifications, enable notifications for all the categories, especially Call notifications.
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