A small change in Status could have a significant impact on users: WhatsApp is beginning to roll out a new design update that places Status updates directly at the top of the chat list. This move effectively eliminates the need to switch to the “Updates” tab to see what’s new from contacts. The feature, first spotted in an Android beta version, reshapes the app’s main screen and brings personal conversations and social content closer together.
The new update, currently available to some beta users in version 2.26.17.1, introduces a Status row at the top of the Chats screen. Instead of entering a dedicated tab, users are immediately shown the latest updates posted by their contacts as soon as they open the app. This is a more compact view compared to the traditional Status tab, but it still clearly indicates who has posted new content.
In the first stage, up to three contacts with recent Status updates are displayed at the top of the screen. Scrolling down reveals additional updates, including from archived contacts or people with whom there is no active conversation. This removes a previous limitation, where Status updates were only visible from the Chats screen for contacts with an existing conversation.
The new design closely resembles Instagram’s Stories model, where updates appear at the top of the feed, highlighting a broader trend of blurring the lines between messaging apps and social networks. Instead of separating private conversations from content consumption, WhatsApp is merging both experiences into a single screen.
Alongside this, the change also affects other interface elements. When Status updates are shown at the top, the “WhatsApp” label in the upper corner temporarily disappears and only reappears after scrolling down. This design adjustment emphasizes the importance of the content presented to the user upon opening the app.
Despite the new integration into the Chats screen, the “Updates” tab is not going away. WhatsApp continues to display Status updates there in a fuller format, with preview images that provide context before opening. In contrast, the Chats screen shows a more minimal and streamlined version designed to avoid clutter and integrate the information intuitively alongside conversations.
WhatsApp is currently testing the feature with a limited group of users, and it is expected to gradually reach a wider audience in the coming weeks. If fully implemented, this could become one of the most significant interface changes the app has seen in recent years.