How to Format Text in WhatsApp Chats

Have you ever been typing a message in WhatsApp and wished you could use bold text to emphasize your point? Or maybe you just want to add some fun to your messages to friends. Even though it’s not obvious in the app, it is possible to format text and change its appearance in WhatsApp chats.

You can change styles without leaving WhatsApp, or you can make even more changes to the font and style by using websites or third-party apps.

Change Styles within WhatsApp

To get started, open a private or group chat and type your message. I used “Good morning” as my text.

Once you have typed your message, you can change the styles without leaving the WhatsApp app by adding different symbols to the beginning and end of the text. As soon as you type the second symbol, you will see the change in your text, even before you send it.

Italicize — to add italics to your text, place an underscore on either side of the text you want to change.

_Good morning_

Bold — change plain text to bold by placing an asterisk before and after the text.

*Good morning*

Strikethrough — if you want to say something without really saying it, you can use strikethrough text by adding a tilde on both sides of the text.

~Good morning~

Monospace — coders may want to send lines of code for others to copy, and if you do, surround your text with three backticks at the beginning and end.

```Good morning```

You can also highlight part of the text to change it, then click on the three dots at the end of the window to opens above the message. Scroll down that menu and choose the style you want to add.

Change Fonts with Generative Websites

If you want to add even more style to your WhatsApp messages, you can copy text from a generative website like igfonts.io, Lingojam, or Yaytext.

Here’s how this works on LingoJam:

1. Open the site in your browser.

2. Type your text in the box and watch as different fonts and styles show up on the site.

3. When you have finished typing the text, select from the options the site generated.

4. Highlight and copy the style you want.

5. Paste the text into your WhatsApp message.

Hint: These generative sites also work on other websites such as Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter.

Use Third-party Apps

If you don’t want to copy and paste from your browser, you can download a third-party app that will give you more options for your text styles. Three good ones that allow you to send the message directly to WhatsApp without any copy and paste are Textility Copy Anywhere, Fonts for WhatsApp, and Chat Styles.

They all work in very similar ways. Here’s how to use Textility:

1. Type your message.

2. Scroll to find a font you want to use.

3. Click the WhatsApp icon at the end of the box.

4. Go back to WhatsApp and send the message by clicking on the text.

These apps and many others also work with other messaging and social media apps.

If you really want to make a point or want to brighten someone’s day, you can format your text in WhatsApp using these different styles and fonts. You can also make use of sticker packs to send interactive messages to your friends.