Typing Indicators

Send and receive real-time typing indicators in conversations using the CometChat Android SDK.

AI Integration Quick Reference

// Start typing indicator
val typingIndicator = TypingIndicator("UID", CometChatConstants.RECEIVER_TYPE_USER)
CometChat.startTyping(typingIndicator)

// Stop typing indicator
CometChat.endTyping(typingIndicator)

// Listen for typing events
CometChat.addMessageListener("LISTENER_ID", object : MessageListener() {
    override fun onTypingStarted(indicator: TypingIndicator) { }
    override fun onTypingEnded(indicator: TypingIndicator) { }
})

Send a Typing Indicator

Start Typing

Use startTyping() with a TypingIndicator object to notify the receiver that you’re typing.

Java (User)

TypingIndicator typingIndicator = new TypingIndicator(UID, CometChatConstants.RECEIVER_TYPE_USER);

CometChat.startTyping(typingIndicator);

Kotlin (User)

val typingIndicator =TypingIndicator(UID,CometChatConstants.RECEIVER_TYPE_USER)

CometChat.startTyping(typingIndicator)  

Java (Group)

TypingIndicator typingIndicator = new TypingIndicator(GUID, CometChatConstants.RECEIVER_TYPE_GROUP);

CometChat.startTyping(typingIndicator);

Kotlin (Group)

val typingIndicator = TypingIndicator(GUID,CometChatConstants.RECEIVER_TYPE_GROUP)

CometChat.startTyping(typingIndicator)

Stop Typing

Use endTyping() to notify the receiver that you’ve stopped typing.

Java (User)

TypingIndicator typingIndicator = new TypingIndicator(UID, CometChatConstants.RECEIVER_TYPE_USER);

CometChat.endTyping(typingIndicator);

Kotlin (User)

val typingIndicator = TypingIndicator(UID,CometChatConstants.RECEIVER_TYPE_USER)
   
CometChat.endTyping(typingIndicator)

Java (Group)

TypingIndicator typingIndicator = new TypingIndicator(GUID, CometChatConstants.RECEIVER_TYPE_GROUP);

CometChat.endTyping(typingIndicator);

Kotlin (Group)

val typingIndicator = TypingIndicator(GUID,CometChatConstants.RECEIVER_TYPE_GROUP)

CometChat.endTyping(typingIndicator)

Use setMetadata() on TypingIndicator to pass additional custom data. Retrieve it with getMetadata() on the receiver side.

Real-time Typing Indicators

Use onTypingStarted and onTypingEnded in MessageListener to receive typing events.

Java

CometChat.addMessageListener("Listener 1", new CometChat.MessageListener() {
@Override
public void onTypingStarted(TypingIndicator typingIndicator) {
  Log.d(TAG, " Typing Started : " + typingIndicator.toString());
}

@Override
public void onTypingEnded(TypingIndicator typingIndicator) {
  Log.d(TAG, " Typing Ended : " + typingIndicator.toString());
}

});

Kotlin

CometChat.addMessageListener("Listener 1",object :CometChat.MessageListener(){
override fun onTypingEnded(typingIndicator: TypingIndicator?) {
  Log.d(TAG,"onTypingEnded: ${typingIndicator.toString()}")
}

override fun onTypingStarted(typingIndicator: TypingIndicator?) {
  Log.d(TAG,"onTypingStarted: ${typingIndicator.toString()}")
}

})

The TypingIndicator class consists of the below parameters:

Parameter	Information
sender	An object of the User class holding all the information related to the sender of the typing indicator.
receiverId	UID of the receiver. This is the ID of the group or the user the typing indicator is being sent to.
receiverType	This parameter indicates if the typing indicator is to be sent to a user or a group. The possible values are: 1. CometChatConstants.RECEIVER_TYPE_USER 2. CometChatConstants.RECEIVER_TYPE_GROUP
metadata	A JSONObject to provider additional data

TypingIndicator Payload Structure

TypingIndicator Object

The TypingIndicator object contains information about typing status:

Parameter	Type	Description
sender	User	User who is typing
receiverId	String	ID of the receiver (user UID or group GUID)
receiverType	String	Type of receiver. Values: "user", "group"
metadata	JSONObject	Custom typing metadata
lastTimestamp	long	Unix timestamp of last typing event
typingStatus	String	Typing status. Values: "started", "ended"

Sample TypingIndicator Object:

{
  "sender": {
    "uid": "user_123",
    "name": "John Doe",
    "avatar": "https://example.com/avatar.png",
    "status": "online",
    "role": "default"
  },
  "receiverId": "user_456",
  "receiverType": "user",
  "metadata": {},
  "lastTimestamp": 1699900000,
  "typingStatus": "started"
}

User Object (Typing)

The nested User object in sender contains:

Parameter	Type	Description
uid	String	Unique identifier of the user
name	String	Display name of the user
avatar	String	URL to user’s profile picture
link	String	URL to user’s profile page
role	String	User role for access control
metadata	JSONObject	Custom data set by developer
status	String	User online status. Values: "online", "offline"
statusMessage	String	Custom status message
lastActiveAt	long	Unix timestamp of last activity
hasBlockedMe	boolean	Whether this user has blocked the logged-in user
blockedByMe	boolean	Whether the logged-in user has blocked this user
tags	Array<String>	List of tags for user identification
deactivatedAt	long	Unix timestamp when user was deactivated (0 if active)

Always remove message listeners when they’re no longer needed (e.g., in onDestroy() or when navigating away). Failing to remove listeners can cause memory leaks and duplicate event handling.

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Next Steps

Delivery & Read Receipts

Track message delivery and read status

Receive Messages

Handle incoming messages with listeners

Retrieve Conversations

Fetch conversation list

Real-Time Listeners

Learn more about event listeners