Will WhatsApp be paid? The WhatsApp you have always used for free has just gained a paid version for R$ 14.60 per month called WhatsApp Plus, and Meta is already testing the plan with extra customization features that the free version will not offer.

Written by Maria Heloisa Barbosa Borges

Published on 22/04/2026 at 14:22

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Meta started testing WhatsApp Plus in 2026, a paid version of the app that costs 2.49 euros per month in Europe and 29 pesos in Mexico, equivalent to about R$ 14.60. The plan includes advanced customization, up to 20 pinned chats, and exclusive stickers, but the basic features of WhatsApp remain free for all users.

The WhatsApp has just crossed a line that many users thought would never be crossed. Meta, the owner of the world’s most used messaging app, has begun testing a paid version called WhatsApp Plus, currently available to a limited group of beta users in Europe and Mexico. The plan costs 2.49 euros per month in Europe and 29 pesos in Mexico, amounts that correspond to approximately R$ 14.60 and R$ 8.34, respectively. The subscription is optional and can be canceled at any time.

The decision is noteworthy because WhatsApp has always been synonymous with free usage. Since the app abandoned the annual fee of $0.99 in 2016, no cent has been charged to users for sending messages, making calls, or sharing files. Now, Meta bets that a portion of the more than two billion WhatsApp users will be willing to pay for extra customization and organization features that the free version will not offer. The strategy follows the path already taken by platforms like Telegram and YouTube, which maintain free basic versions and charge for premium features.

What WhatsApp Plus offers that the free version does not

The premium plan brings new features to WhatsApp. Photo: Disclosure/WABetaInfo

According to information released by the portal Xataka, the main change in WhatsApp Plus is the number of conversations that can be pinned on the home screen. While the free version limits pinning to three chats, the paid plan allows pinning up to 20 conversations, a feature that makes a difference for those who use the app intensively, whether for work, business, or personal organization. The difference may seem small on paper, but in practice, it facilitates quick access to priority contacts and groups without needing to scroll through the screen.

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Why Meta decided to charge for WhatsApp features

The decision to create a paid version of WhatsApp is linked to Meta’s monetization strategy, which seeks to diversify its revenue sources beyond advertising. Even with Mark Zuckerberg amassing a fortune estimated at around R$ 1.01 trillion, the company faces pressure from investors to demonstrate that each of its platforms can generate its own revenue, especially in a landscape of increasing competition with apps like Telegram, Signal, and iMessage.

WhatsApp is the platform with the largest user base of Meta, but historically it has contributed the least to the company’s revenue. The introduction of WhatsApp Plus tests the public’s willingness to pay for convenience and customization, without altering the basic functionality of the app. The company has made it clear that sending messages, voice and video calls, and all fundamental features remain free. The premium plan is positioned as a complement, not as a replacement.

Who can test WhatsApp Plus and when it arrives in Brazil

For now, WhatsApp Plus is available only to a small group of beta users in Europe and Mexico. The tests are focused on Android devices, with plans to expand to iOS after the initial evaluations are completed. When available, the subscription option appears directly in the app’s settings, according to the specialized site WABetaInfo.

Meta has not announced an official date for the global launch of the service nor confirmed when Brazil will be included in the tests. The company stated that the goal is to collect user feedback before expanding the novelty to other countries, following the pattern adopted in other recent launches. For Brazilians, who represent one of the largest user bases of WhatsApp in the world, the arrival of the paid plan is a matter of time, not if it will happen.

What it means for users who do not want to pay

The question that millions of people will ask is straightforward: will the free WhatsApp get worse to force migration to the paid plan? Meta assures that it will not, and states that the traditional version will continue to function exactly as it always has, without additional restrictions or removal of existing features. WhatsApp Plus is positioned as an extra layer, not as a mandatory upgrade.

However, the history of digital platforms shows that the introduction of paid versions often comes with a gradual differentiation that makes the free version less attractive over time. If customization and organization features become exclusive to the paid plan, the free WhatsApp may start to seem limited in comparison, even if no functionality is removed. The balance between keeping the free user base satisfied and encouraging migration to WhatsApp Plus will be Meta’s biggest challenge in the coming months.

Would you pay R$ 14.60 per month for extra features on WhatsApp, or do you think the app should remain completely free? Let us know in the comments if the features of WhatsApp Plus justify the charge or if Meta is trying to monetize something that has always worked for free.

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Will WhatsApp be paid? The WhatsApp you have always used for free has just gained a paid version for R$ 14.60 per month called WhatsApp Plus, and Meta is already testing the plan with extra customization features that the free version will not offer.

What WhatsApp Plus offers that the free version does not

Why Meta decided to charge for WhatsApp features

Who can test WhatsApp Plus and when it arrives in Brazil

What it means for users who do not want to pay

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Will WhatsApp be paid? The WhatsApp you have always used for free has just gained a paid version for R$ 14.60 per month called WhatsApp Plus, and Meta is already testing the plan with extra customization features that the free version will not offer.

What WhatsApp Plus offers that the free version does not

Why Meta decided to charge for WhatsApp features

Who can test WhatsApp Plus and when it arrives in Brazil

What it means for users who do not want to pay

While in Brazil a 10-story building takes 2 years to complete, in China a company stacks pre-fabricated modules and raises the entire building in just 28 hours and 45 minutes.

Egypt wants to draw 10 million cubic meters of water from the Nile per day into the desert, irrigate a new agricultural frontier, and build a city where there is currently only sand.

BRICS is preparing a payment system inspired by the Brazilian PIX that will allow direct transactions between countries using national digital currencies without relying on the dollar or Western banks as intermediaries.

Ethiopia has banned gasoline and diesel cars, placed over a hundred silent electric buses on the streets of Addis Ababa, and now aims for half a million electric vehicles by 2030, all powered by Africa’s largest dam and a courage that few countries have shown.

In the South Atlantic, three isolated volcanic islands cause the wind to draw perfect spirals visible from space: a rare phenomenon called von Kármán vortex streets forms symmetrical patterns behind the peaks of the South Sandwich Islands and was recorded by the NOAA-20 satellite in 2025.

Created to cling to ships like a lamprey, the new U.S. underwater drone sleeps on the ocean floor, launches torpedoes, and recharges itself with the current.

Solar-powered ice factory in the Amazon that eliminated a 5-hour trip to Manaus, prevents the loss of up to two-thirds of the fish, and now ensures income for more than 30 riverside families.

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