First-time guide 4 of 7
Chats, groups and calling your family
Every relative on the tree is a tap away: a private thread, the family groups Kunbaa keeps for you, and a call from the top of any chat. One-to-one calls are free.
Chats and calls live in the Kunbaa mobile app, not on the website.
The Chats tab
Tap Chats at the bottom of the app. Two segments sit at the top: Direct, which opens first, and Groups.
Step 1: Message one relative
- Under Direct, the Family section lists everyone on your tree who has joined Kunbaa. Tap a relative to open a direct chat with them.
- Type a message, or tap the attachment button to send a photo or video. You can reply to a specific message, react with an emoji, and pin a message the family should be able to find again.
- Relatives who have not joined yet sit under Not on Kunbaa yet, each with an Invite button.
Step 2: Find your family groups
Tap Groups. The first section, Family groups, is managed by Kunbaa from your tree. It holds your Household group: your parents, partner and children who are on Kunbaa, once three or more of you have joined. You did not make it and you do not have to keep it up to date.
It is badged Managed by Kunbaa. When your daughter accepts her invite, she appears in it on her own; when the tree changes, the group follows. Under it, Groups holds the groups you and your family make yourselves: the siblings, the cousins, the wedding planning. They work like any other group chat.
Step 3: Make a call
- Open a chat with a relative. At the top are two buttons: the handset (Start voice call) and the camera (Start video call).
- Tap one. It rings on every device your relative is signed in on, including the lock screen when the app is closed. You see Connecting…, then Ringing….
- To bring someone else in, on Kunbaa Plus or Kunbaa Ultra tap Add during the call and pick them under Add to the call. How many people fit on one call, and how a call with a whole family group works, is in Group calls.
Every call leaves one line in the thread: answered, missed, declined or no answer, so a missed call is never lost; tap the line to call back. If a call will not connect, the checks are in Calls not connecting?
Step 4: Share where you are, into a chat
In any chat, tap the attachment button and choose Live location. Pick 15 minutes, 1 hour or 8 hours. A card appears in the chat, and only the people in that chat can open it to see where you are. It ends by itself at the time you picked; tap Stop sharing on the card to end it sooner. Sharing with the family on the Safety map is the next guide.
Muting and reporting
A relative who is being unkind can be muted from their profile. You stop seeing their messages and posts, they are not told, and nothing is deleted. Reporting a message is always available, whatever your level.
Questions families ask
Are calls really free?
Yes. One-to-one calls between people on Kunbaa are free on every plan, in every country, unlimited and unmetered. Kunbaa never charges per call. They run over the internet, so they use your data or Wi-Fi rather than your phone plan.
Can I call someone who isn't on Kunbaa?
Calls are between Kunbaa accounts. Invite them first. Everyone you invite joins free, and the call button appears at the top of your chat with them.
Why is there a Household group I never made?
Kunbaa makes it from your tree, for every household with three or more members on Kunbaa, and keeps it in step as relatives join. It is badged Managed by Kunbaa. You can mute it; it stays because the tree says the household exists. For your brothers and sisters, or the cousins, make a group yourself under Groups.
Someone is missing from the household group.
The household group follows the tree, and only relatives who have joined Kunbaa are in them. Check the person is linked to the right parents on the tree and has accepted their invite; the group updates on its own after that.
Does chat work on the website?
Chat and calls are in the mobile app; the website has no chat screen. The website has the tree, the wall, the Library, events, member permissions and the importers, and what you post in one place is what the family sees in the other.
How long are photos sent in chat kept?
On the free plan, for a year from the day they were sent; a placeholder says so when one goes, and in its last month anyone who runs the family can tap Keep this to save a copy to the family archive for good. On Kunbaa Plus they stay in the chat for as long as the family is on Plus.