Overview
Disappearing messages automatically delete after a set period. You can enable this feature for entire chats or send individual messages that disappear.
Ephemeral Durations
Supported time periods for disappearing messages:
| Time | Seconds |
|---|
| Remove | 0 |
| 24h | 86,400 |
| 7d | 604,800 |
| 90d | 7,776,000 |
You need to pass in seconds, not milliseconds. The default is 7 days.
WA_DEFAULT_EPHEMERAL Constant
Baileys provides a constant for the default 7-day duration:
import { WA_DEFAULT_EPHEMERAL } from '@whiskeysockets/baileys'
// WA_DEFAULT_EPHEMERAL = 7 * 24 * 60 * 60 = 604,800 seconds
src/Defaults/index.ts:23:
export const WA_DEFAULT_EPHEMERAL = 7 * 24 * 60 * 60
Enable Disappearing Messages in a Chat
Turn on disappearing messages for all future messages in a chat:
// Turn on disappearing messages (7 days)
await sock.sendMessage(
jid,
{ disappearingMessagesInChat: WA_DEFAULT_EPHEMERAL }
)
Custom Duration
// 24 hours
await sock.sendMessage(
jid,
{ disappearingMessagesInChat: 86400 }
)
// 90 days
await sock.sendMessage(
jid,
{ disappearingMessagesInChat: 7776000 }
)
Disable Disappearing Messages
Turn off disappearing messages in a chat:
await sock.sendMessage(
jid,
{ disappearingMessagesInChat: false }
)
This only affects future messages. Previously sent disappearing messages will still delete at their scheduled time.
Send Individual Disappearing Messages
Send a single message that will disappear without enabling the feature for the entire chat:
// Send a disappearing text message (7 days)
await sock.sendMessage(
jid,
{ text: 'hello' },
{ ephemeralExpiration: WA_DEFAULT_EPHEMERAL }
)
Custom Expiration
// Send a message that disappears after 24 hours
await sock.sendMessage(
jid,
{ text: 'This message will disappear in 24 hours' },
{ ephemeralExpiration: 86400 }
)
// Send media with disappearing
await sock.sendMessage(
jid,
{
image: { url: './image.jpg' },
caption: 'Disappearing image'
},
{ ephemeralExpiration: WA_DEFAULT_EPHEMERAL }
)
Complete Example
import { makeWASocket, WA_DEFAULT_EPHEMERAL } from '@whiskeysockets/baileys'
const sock = makeWASocket({ /* config */ })
const jid = '[email protected]'
// Enable disappearing messages for the chat (7 days)
await sock.sendMessage(jid, {
disappearingMessagesInChat: WA_DEFAULT_EPHEMERAL
})
// Send a regular message (will disappear after 7 days)
await sock.sendMessage(jid, { text: 'This will disappear' })
// Send a one-time disappearing message (24 hours)
await sock.sendMessage(
jid,
{ text: 'Custom expiration' },
{ ephemeralExpiration: 86400 }
)
// Disable disappearing messages
await sock.sendMessage(jid, {
disappearingMessagesInChat: false
})
// Future messages won't disappear
await sock.sendMessage(jid, { text: 'This is permanent' })
Update Default Disappearing Mode
Set a default disappearing message duration for all new chats:
// Set default to 24 hours for new chats
await sock.updateDefaultDisappearingMode(86400)
// Disable default disappearing mode
await sock.updateDefaultDisappearingMode(0)
Implementation Details
From src/Utils/messages.ts:465 and src/Utils/messages.ts:717:
// When enabling for chat
if (content.disappearingMessagesInChat !== undefined) {
// Sets chat-level ephemeral setting
// Uses WA_DEFAULT_EPHEMERAL if true
}
// When sending individual message
if (options.ephemeralExpiration) {
message.ephemeralMessage = {
message: message,
expiration: options.ephemeralExpiration || WA_DEFAULT_EPHEMERAL
}
}
- Disappearing messages can still be saved by recipients through screenshots or forwarding before deletion
- The timer starts when the message is read, not when it’s sent
- Media files are deleted from WhatsApp servers when messages expire
Time Conversion Helper
// Helper function to convert days/hours to seconds
const toSeconds = {
hours: (h: number) => h * 60 * 60,
days: (d: number) => d * 24 * 60 * 60
}
// Usage
await sock.sendMessage(jid,
{ text: 'Disappears in 1 day' },
{ ephemeralExpiration: toSeconds.days(1) }
)