Meta-owned WhatsApp announced on December 29, 2025 that it has introduced festive updates for some time to improve the New Year celebrations. New Year’s Eve is the platform’s busiest day, with an average of more than 100 billion messages and nearly 2 billion calls per day worldwide.
New Features:
– 2026 Sticker Pack: An exclusive animated sticker pack to share New Year wishes in chats.
– Video call effects: Add animations like fireworks, confetti and stars to the screen by tapping the effects icon during a call.
– Animated confetti reactions: Reacting with party-related emoji (e.g., party popper, confetti ball, cheering glasses) will show fun animations in chats.
– Animated status updates: For the first time, users can add animated stickers to statuses, including a special 2026-themed layout for festive posts.
The purpose of these new features is to make virtual celebrations even more fun and spectacular.
Planning tools emphasized:
WhatsApp is also boosting existing group features for New Year’s events: create/pin events with RSVP, use polls to drive decisions, share live location for security, and send voice/video notes to include friends who aren’t present.
These updates are rolling out worldwide and will be available through the holiday season.
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