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See the full story · 1 sourcesGo to the 9to5Mac home page Switch site 9to5Toys 9to5Google Logo 9to5Google Electrek Drone DJ Logo DroneDJ Space Explored About Privacy Toggle social menu Toggle dark mode Search for: Submit Toggle search form Forums Store Podcasts Apple@Work Happy Hour 9to5Mac Daily Overtime iPhone iPhone Mac Mac MacBook Pro MacBook Air iMac Mac mini Mac Studio Mac Pro iPad iPad Pro iPad Air iPad mini iPad iPadOS Watch Apple Watch Apple Watch Ultra Apple Health Apple Watch SE Vision Vision Pro visionOS Music and TV Apple Music AirPods HomePod Apple TV Guides Reviews How Tos AAPL Apple Store Apple Arcade Apple Card Apple Silicon Apple One Apple Fitness+ CarPlay Siri HomeKit Toggle dark mode WhatsApp WhatsApp working on customizable emoji reaction sets on iOS Marcus Mendes | Aug 14 2026 - 2:49 pm PT 0 Comments New references in the latest WhatsApp beta for iOS suggest users may soon be able to replace the app’s standard set of emoji reactions with their own selection. Here are the details.
As spotted by WABetaInfo , WhatsApp’s latest TestFlight build includes references to a “Default reactions” setting that lets users change which emojis appear in the app’s reaction tray.
When users long-press a message, they see the emoji reaction tray, which currently starts with 👍, ❤️, 😂, 😮, 😢, and 🙏. These six default reactions are followed by commonly or recently used emojis in a horizontally scrollable tray. Users can also tap the + button to quickly find a different emoji.
However, according to WABetaInfo ’s findings, the new feature, which might be exclusive to WhatsApp Plus subscribers, will let users replace any of those six default reactions with an emoji of their choice.
In a future update, WhatsApp will address this issue by introducing default reactions. With this feature, users will be able to manage their reaction tray directly from the app settings. The attached image shows both the default set on the left and a personalized version on the right. In the second screenshot, you can see completely different emoji selected from the full keyboard. Users will be able to replace any emoji with one from the keyboard, and they can change as many as they want. Users will also be able to restore the default reaction tray at any time.
WABetaInfo notes that the feature is currently unavailable even to beta testers. However, given that similar references were previously found in the WhatsApp beta for Android, it likely won’t be long before the platform starts rolling out the feature to beta testers ahead of a wider release.
To read WABetaInfo ’s full report, follow this link .
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Expand Close comments Expand Close comments Guides WhatsApp Author Marcus Mendes https://www.threads.com/mvcmendes Marcus Mendes is a Brazilian tech podcaster and journalist who has been closely following Apple since the mid-2000s.
He began covering Apple news in Brazilian media in 2012 and later broadened his focus to the wider tech industry, hosting a daily podcast for seven years.
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