How to turn off last seen on WhatsApp
You can hide your last seen from everyone, from one person, or from a list, and you can hide "online" too. Here is where, and the one trade-off to know.
WhatsApp lets you control who sees your last seen and your "online" state, from the same place.
The steps
Open WhatsApp and go to Settings › Privacy › Last seen and online. Under Who can see my last seen, choose Everyone, My contacts, My contacts except (to hide it from certain people), or Nobody. Under Who can see when I’m online, choose Everyone, or Same as last seen so that online follows the setting above.
Hide last seen from one person only
Choose My contacts except and tick the people you want to hide it from. They will no longer see your last seen or, if you set online to follow it, your online state, while everyone else still does.
The reciprocal rule
There is a cost: if you set last seen to Nobody, WhatsApp also stops you seeing anyone else’s last seen. "My contacts" and "My contacts except" do not have this effect. This is the usual reason someone’s own last seen disappears for everyone, covered in last seen not showing.
What stays visible
Turning off last seen does not hide your profile photo, your about, your status updates or read receipts; those are separate settings in the same Privacy menu. And hiding your last seen does not stop the people you choose from being seen by their own settings; for following those, see the last seen tracker.
Common questions
Can I hide last seen from one person only?
Yes. Use My contacts except in Settings, Privacy, Last seen and online, and pick that person.
If I hide my last seen, can I still see others?
Only if you use My contacts or My contacts except. Choosing Nobody also hides everyone else’s from you.
Does turning off last seen hide that I am online?
Only if you set "who can see when I’m online" to Same as last seen. Otherwise online can still show.