Everything We Know About WhatsApp’s Paid Subscription Service
In January, I wrote about Meta’s plans to test subscription services for some of its platforms. The idea is to keep each app’s current experience the same (i.e. free), while adding new features that users can access for a monthly subscription. It’s not a bad compromise: if you hate the idea of paying for Instagram or WhatsApp, you can continue to use the apps as you always have. If you like the new features, you can pay for them. Hell, maybe Meta will make enough money from subscriptions to shut down its data collection business! (Hey, a guy can dream.)
Now, it looks like Meta is moving forward with WhatsApp’s premium subscription. According to WABetaInfo, the company is working on “WhatsApp Plus”, an optional paid plan that adds additional features to the messaging app. There are a number of new features on offer, but not as many as I expected for a subscription version of an app that has always been available for free. (That said, there’s no indication what WhatsApp Plus will cost, so it’s possible these features cost around $1 per month.)
What features will be available on WhatsApp Plus?
If you choose to pay for WhatsApp, Meta will give you 14 new icons to choose from and over a dozen options for changing the app’s theme. Free users can currently pin up to three threads to the top of the Chats window; paid users will be able to pin up to 20. (A screenshot from WABetaInfo shows that if you try to add too many pins, you receive a pop-up warning you “You can only pin 20 discussions.” Only 20!) Many of us keep our smartphones on vibrate or silent all the time, but for anyone who doesn’t, paying for WhatsApp will unlock a new set of ringtones. WABetaInfo says each new ringtone “has its own distinctive style” but does not share any of the audio files.
These are the features currently in testing, but WABetaInfo says WhatsApp has more features planned for its Plus service. This could include exclusive stickers that free users won’t get, and reactions could be “more immersive and interactive.”
What do you think of it so far?
How to try WhatsApp Earlier
There is no official timetable for the launch of WhatsApp Plus, so it’s hard to say when Meta plans to roll it out. However, WABetaInfo reports that the latest beta version of WhatsApp for Android (version 2.26.9.6) adds a banner, either in the keyboard sticker or at the top of the settings menu, to sign up for the WhatsApp Plus waitlist.
If this works for you, sign up for the WhatsApp for Android beta, update your app to install it, then check one of these locations within the app. Note that when you sign up for the waitlist, it does not require you to register. This only gives you the option to do this when Meta rolls out WhatsApp Plus. If you decide you don’t feel like paying, you can simply ignore the option.
