WhatsApp is a popular messaging app that allows you to send text, voice, and video messages, as well as make calls, with your smartphone. But did you know that you can also use WhatsApp on your Ubuntu desktop?
In this article, you will learn how to install WhatsApp web app on Ubuntu using two methods: a snap package and a custom desktop file. You will also learn how to use the web version of WhatsApp on Ubuntu without installing anything.
Table of Contents
Method 1: Install WhatsApp Web App Using Snap
Snap is a package manager that allows you to install applications on Ubuntu and other Linux distributions. Snap packages are self-contained and isolated from the system, which makes them secure and easy to update. To install WhatsApp web app using snap, follow these steps:
- Open a terminal window by pressing Ctrl+Alt+T or searching for “terminal” in the Dash.
- Type the following command to install the snap package of WhatsApp web app: sudo snap install whatsapp-for-linux
- Enter your password when prompted and wait for the installation to complete.
- To launch WhatsApp web app, search for “whatsapp” in the Dash or type the following command in the terminal: whatsapp-for-linux
- You will see a QR code on the screen. Open WhatsApp on your phone and tap the menu button (three dots) in the top right corner. Select “WhatsApp Web” and scan the QR code with your phone’s camera. You will be logged in to WhatsApp web app on your computer.
Method 2: Install WhatsApp Web App Using a Custom Desktop File
Another way to install WhatsApp web app on Ubuntu is to create a custom desktop file that will launch the web app in your browser. This method requires Google Chrome or Chromium browser to be installed on your system. To install WhatsApp web app using a custom desktop file, follow these steps:
- Open a text editor by searching for “text editor” in the Dash or typing the following command in the terminal: gedit
- Copy and paste the following text into the text editor:
[Desktop Entry] Name=WhatsApp GenericName=WhatsApp Comment=WhatsApp desktop webapp Exec=/opt/google/chrome/google-chrome --app=https://web.whatsapp.com/ Terminal=false Type=Application StartupNotify=true MimeType=text/plain; Categories=Network;Application; Keywords=WhatsApp;webapp; X-Ubuntu-Gettext-Domain=WhatsApp StartupWMClass=web.whatsapp.com - If you are using Chromium browser, replace /opt/google/chrome/google-chrome with the path to your Chromium executable. You can find it by typing which chromium-browser in the terminal.
- Save the file as whatsapp-webapp.desktop in your ~/.local/share/applications directory. You can do this by clicking the “Save” button in the text editor and navigating to the directory. If the directory does not exist, create it by typing the following command in the terminal: mkdir -p ~/.local/share/applications
- Make the file executable by typing the following command in the terminal: chmod +x ~/.local/share/applications/whatsapp-webapp.desktop
- To launch WhatsApp web app, search for “whatsapp” in the Dash or double-click the whatsapp-webapp.desktop file in your file manager. You will see a QR code on the screen. Follow the same steps as in Method 1 to scan the QR code with your phone and log in to WhatsApp web app on your computer.
How to Use the Web Version of WhatsApp on Ubuntu
If you don’t want to install anything on your system, you can also use the web version of WhatsApp on Ubuntu. This is the same as the web app, but without a dedicated window or icon. To use the web version of WhatsApp on Ubuntu, follow these steps:
- Open your browser and go to WhatsApp Web.
- You will see a QR code on the screen. Follow the same steps as in Method 1 to scan the QR code with your phone and log in to WhatsApp web on your browser.
- You can now use WhatsApp on your browser as you would on your phone. You can switch between tabs or windows without losing your connection.
Conclusion
In this article, you learned how to install WhatsApp web app on Ubuntu using two methods: a snap package and a custom desktop file. You also learned how to use the web version of WhatsApp on Ubuntu without installing anything. You can now enjoy WhatsApp on your Ubuntu desktop and stay in touch with your friends and family.