WATag

A browser extension for web.whatsapp.com (desktop Chrome, Edge, or Brave) that flags promotional content and gives you a one-click Archive button.

It works on regular chats and groups: a chat is flagged if its message preview contains a word from your keyword list. Edit that list from the extension's popup — defaults include "sale", "% off", "discount", "buy now", etc.

Any chat you archive here syncs to your phone automatically, since it's the same WhatsApp account — you don't need to install anything on iPhone or Android.

Demo

Recorded against a local mock chat list with realistic sample data (see demo/) — the extension itself is unmodified and driving the interactions for real, not staged.

Install (takes ~1 minute)

1. Get this repo onto your machine somewhere permanent — git clone it, or download and unzip the ZIP from GitHub (don't delete or move it after installing — the browser loads the extension from this folder each time).
2. Open chrome://extensions (or edge://extensions, or brave://extensions).
3. Turn on Developer mode (top-right toggle).
4. Click Load unpacked and select this project's folder.
5. Open web.whatsapp.com and log in as usual.

You'll see small badges appear under flagged chats with icon buttons for Archive and Not an ad.

Using it

• Click the extension icon in your toolbar to:
  • Turn detection on/off
  • Add or remove keywords
  • See how many chats you've archived
  • Manage your "never flag" list (built automatically when you tap "Not an ad" on a chat)
• Click Archive directly on a flagged chat to act on it immediately — no need to open the chat first.

Please read: honest limitations

• WhatsApp doesn't run ads in normal chats. This tool flags things that look promotional (keyword matches in previews) — it's a heuristic, not an official WhatsApp feature. You'll want to tune the keyword list to your own inbox.
• WhatsApp Web's page structure isn't public and changes over time. This extension avoids relying on their internal class names and instead looks for stable signals (button labels, menu text). If WhatsApp ships a redesign, one-click actions may only get partway (it'll open the right menu for you and ask you to finish with one manual click) until the extension is updated.
• This only runs while web.whatsapp.com is open in your browser — it can't scan or act on chats in the background.
• This is for personal use, unpacked/side-loaded — it isn't published to the Chrome Web Store, so there's no auto-update. Pull the latest files and reload the extension to update.

License

MIT