Meta is testing a new paid tier for WhatsApp called WhatsApp Plus, adding a batch of customization and convenience features while keeping the core messaging app free. Reports published on April 20, 2026, say the subscription is being rolled out to a limited number of users rather than being launched broadly, so for now, this is a test, not a full public release.
The features being reported are mostly about personalization. Early details point to exclusive stickers, new app themes, custom app icons, premium ringtones, the ability to pin up to 20 chats, and tools to apply custom settings across multiple chats at once. In other words, this looks less like a major overhaul of messaging itself and more like a paid layer for users who want extra control over how the app looks and feels.
There is an important wrinkle here, though. The name “WhatsApp Plus” has long been associated with an unofficial modified version of WhatsApp, which has circulated outside Meta’s official ecosystem for years. That makes the current branding a little awkward, and it is one reason careful wording matters: this new version being reported is described as an official Meta test, not the old third-party mod that many users may remember.
The trial appears to be limited in scope. Reporting says it is currently focused on WhatsApp Messenger for Android, with iOS support planned later, and it is separate from WhatsApp Business. A reported monthly price shown in testing is €2.49, though that figure should still be treated as provisional while the company experiments with rollout and packaging.
The broader context is that Meta has already signaled it wants to test more premium subscriptions across its apps. In January, the company said it would explore paid experiences on Instagram, Facebook and WhatsApp, offering special features and more control while keeping the core services free. That makes WhatsApp Plus look less like a one-off idea and more like part of a wider push to build optional subscription products around Meta’s biggest platforms.
At the same time, Meta’s own recent WhatsApp announcements have focused on rolling out free product updates such as storage tools, account switching, AI-assisted image edits, smart message drafting, group chat tags and other quality-of-life changes. I did not find a formal Meta newsroom post announcing a full consumer launch of WhatsApp Plus yet, which suggests the paid tier is still in the testing phase rather than ready for a polished public debut.
So the cleaner headline is not that “WhatsApp Plus subscription [is] launching soon,” but that Meta is testing a WhatsApp Plus subscription with new features. That may sound like a small distinction, but in tech coverage it is a meaningful one. A test can expand, change price, lose features, get renamed, or disappear altogether. Right now, WhatsApp Plus looks real enough to watch closely, but still early enough that Meta has room to change the plan before any wider rollout.
