Another Android Version Loses WhatsApp Support, iPhone to Come November 2026
- WhatsApp confirmed two separate cutoff dates affecting both Android and iPhone users later in 2026
- Android 5.0 and 5.1 users face the harder challenge, as their devices cannot receive the required upgrade
- iPhone users running iOS 15 have a simpler path forward, but only if they act before the November deadline
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WhatsApp has set two separate deadlines in 2026 that will cut off access for users on older operating systems, with the first arriving on Monday, September 8.
From that date, phones running Android 5.0 or 5.1 will no longer be able to use the messaging app.
WhatsApp confirmed this on its help page listing supported operating systems, where it also disclosed a second deadline that has largely gone unnoticed in coverage of the Android cutoff.
Source: UGC
On November 30, 2026, WhatsApp will raise the minimum requirement for iPhones from iOS 15.1 to iOS 15.5.
Android users likely need a new phone
The Android deadline carries more serious consequences. Android 5.0 launched in November 2014, with Android 6.0 following a year later in October 2015.
Devices that shipped with version 5.0 or 5.1 and never received a system update have no path to Android 6 now. For those users, buying a new handset is the only way to keep using WhatsApp.
The exact number of people affected is difficult to pin down. StatCounter recorded Android 5.0 and 5.1 accounting for 0.58 per cent of mobile and tablet page views worldwide in August 2026, rising to 1.67 per cent in Germany.
German technology outlet heise online, drawing on Google's own distribution figures, put the proportion at roughly 0.4 per cent in late April.
WhatsApp says it reviews its supported systems annually, removing versions that are outdated and have few remaining users.
The platform has also been tightening security more broadly, recently replacing the six-digit PIN with a password requirement. Android 5.1, which has not received security updates for years and carries numerous documented vulnerabilities, fits that criteria.
Anyone affected should back up their chat history before Monday. WhatsApp supports backups through Google Drive, and a local backup stored on the device can be transferred to a newer handset later, Notebook Check reported.
Users handing over an old phone should also remove it from the list of linked devices on their WhatsApp account.
iPhone owners can resolve this with a software update
The November deadline is far less disruptive for iPhone users. iOS 15 is compatible with the iPhone 6s, iPhone 6s Plus, the first-generation iPhone SE, the iPhone 7, and the iPhone 7 Plus.
Apple released iOS 15.8.8 for all of those models on May 11, 2026, a version well above the 15.5 minimum that WhatsApp will require from November 30.
Source: UGC
No currently supported iPhone running iOS 15 is hardware-blocked from meeting the new requirement.
Any user who loses WhatsApp access in November will simply not have installed available updates. Going to Settings, then General, then Software Update is all that is needed to resolve it.
WhatsApp has been notifying affected users inside the app for several weeks ahead of the September cutoff.
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Source: Legit.ng
