Typing indicator and read receipts
The three dots and the read line say something no message can: someone is thinking, or someone has seen it and not answered. Here is how to use them and where they are available.
Try it: start from this sample
Any news from the studio?
They called an hour ago.
And?
What each signal says to the viewer
The typing indicator, three small dots, tells the audience a reply is coming and invites them to guess it. A read receipt says the message was seen, which makes silence after it feel pointed. Used together, a seen message followed by dots and then a short reply can carry a whole scene.
Which looks support them
Not every look has both. Among the Free plan looks, iMessage, WhatsApp and Instagram DM support the typing indicator and read receipts, Discord supports typing only, and X DM supports read receipts only. Standard and Creator looks vary, so open the settings and see which toggles the look offers before you plan a scene around them.
Video versus a still image
In a still image the dots are a frozen moment, which works well for a thumbnail or a slide: the viewer sees the question and the pending reply together. In a video the dots appear and vanish over time, so you control how long the audience waits. Video export needs the Creator plan.
Use the wait deliberately. A short pause suggests hesitation, while a long one suggests dread or doubt, so decide what feeling you want before you set how long the dots stay up.
Placing the dots in a script
Put the indicator before the line that matters, not before every line. Pair a one-word question with a read receipt and no reply, then let the other person type. Do not overuse it, or the effect turns into background noise. A reliable pattern is question, read receipt, long wait, then a very short answer such as Yes or Maybe.
Tips
- Turn on the typing indicator only for scenes where timing is the point.
- End a still image on the dots to make viewers wonder what comes next.
- Pair a short question with a seen message to make a silence feel loud.
- Test the look you chose first, because a few looks do not offer one of the signals.
- Mix it up: give some replies instantly and make only the important one wait.
Questions
Which looks have a typing indicator?
Many do, including iMessage, WhatsApp, Instagram DM and Discord on the Free plan. A few, such as X DM, do not. The editor shows only the toggles a look supports.
Do read receipts work on every look?
No. Discord, for example, has none. The editor shows the toggle only where the look supports it.
Does the indicator animate in a still image?
A PNG or JPG shows it as a single frozen moment. To see the dots appear and disappear, export a video on the Creator plan.
Can I turn both off?
Yes. Both are optional settings, and a clean chat with neither often suits a slide or a design mock-up.
Use it for simulated, labelled content. ChatsRat makes mock-ups and fictional conversations for creators, designers and teachers. Do not use it to pass off a made-up conversation as a real one, to impersonate a real person, or as proof of anything. See the Acceptable Use policy.
About the watermark. Exports on the Free plan carry a visible ChatsRat watermark, and every export carries an invisible mark that the verify page can read. Plans list what changes on paid plans.
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