Social media expert Matt Navarra shared an image on Threads showing the new WhatsApp Plus promotion screen.
According to the pop-up, WhatsApp Plus currently includes a range of additional features such as:
- Premium sticker styles
- Theme customization options
- Custom app icons
- Up to 20 pinned chats, increased from the current limit of three
- Premium ringtones for calls and messages
- Expanded chat sorting tools
WABetaInfo also shared further screenshots of these features, including examples of the custom app icons.
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Meta confirmed to TechCrunch that it is currently testing WhatsApp Plus. The company said: “WhatsApp is testing a new, optional subscription called WhatsApp Plus, designed for users who want more ways to organize and personalize their experience. We’re starting with a small test to gather feedback and ensure we’re building something people find genuinely valuable.”
The new subscription offering comes just weeks after Meta confirmed it is also testing an “Instagram Plus” add-on package, which would give paying users additional tools and features to customize and expand their in-app experience.
Together, these two packages could significantly boost Meta’s subscription-based revenue stream, which already includes Meta Verified add-ons for Facebook and Instagram.
Meta has not disclosed official adoption figures for Meta Verified, but based on its quarterly updates, estimates suggest that roughly 35 million Facebook and Instagram users may have subscribed so far, potentially generating around $2 billion in annual revenue.
However, no exact numbers have been confirmed, as Meta has not publicly released detailed breakdowns. Still, the strong uptake indicates that Meta Verified is proving to be a meaningful revenue driver, which helps explain the company’s growing focus on subscription products.
The broader push toward subscription revenue has also been influenced by developments at X (formerly Twitter), where Elon Musk has promoted X Premium as a key part of the platform’s future.
Soon after acquiring the company in 2022, Musk suggested that subscription-based social media could eventually become “the only social media that matters,” arguing it would help eliminate bots and ensure authentic user identities.
He also predicted that X could eventually generate around 50% of its revenue from subscriptions. While that target has not yet been reached, his approach helped normalize paid social features across the industry, encouraging platforms like Snapchat and Meta to expand their own subscription models and create new revenue streams.
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