We consider the Widom–Rowlinson model on the lattice {mathbb {Z}}^d in two versions, comparing the cases of a hard-core repulsion and of a soft-core repulsion between particles carrying opposite signs. For both versions we investigate their dynamical Gibbs–non-Gibbs transitions under an independent stochastic symmetric spin-flip dynamics. While both models have a similar phase transition in the high-intensity regime in equilibrium, we show that they behave differently under time-evolution: the time-evolved soft-core model is Gibbs for small times and loses the Gibbs property for large enough times. By contrast, the time-evolved hard-core model loses the Gibbs property immediately, and for asymmetric intensities, shows a transition back to the Gibbsian regime at a sharp transition time.