Meta Launches Paid WhatsApp, Instagram, and Facebook Plus Subscriptions

Meta is adding a new paid layer to WhatsApp, Instagram, and Facebook, giving users optional extras for a few dollars per month.

The new subscriptions are sold separately. WhatsApp Plus costs $2.99 per month, while Instagram Plus and Facebook Plus each cost $3.99 per month.

Meta launches Plus plans for its biggest apps

WhatsApp Plus focuses mostly on personalization. Subscribers get custom app themes, ringtones, premium sticker packs, more pinned chats, and extra customization options.

Instagram Plus goes further than cosmetics. It includes story rewatch counts, unlimited audience lists, longer story duration, extra profile customization, more bio font options, and additional profile pins.

Subscribers can also extend stories beyond the standard 24-hour window, preview a story without appearing as a viewer, and spotlight one story per week for additional visibility.

Facebook Plus adds similar paid extras

Facebook Plus appears to follow the same direction as Instagram Plus, with extra customization and audience-focused tools.

Meta is positioning these plans as optional add-ons, not replacements for the free versions of its apps. Users can still use WhatsApp, Instagram, and Facebook without paying.

The plans are also separate from Meta Verified, which remains focused on account verification, impersonation protection, and creator or business identity features.

Meta One is coming next

The new Plus plans are part of a wider subscription push called Meta One.

Meta plans to test AI subscriptions next month in Singapore, Guatemala, and Bolivia. Meta One Plus will cost $7.99 per month and offer more access to Meta AI features than the free tier.

Meta One Premium will cost $19.99 per month and add deeper reasoning, plus more image and video generation.

Creator and business plans are also planned

Meta will also test creator and business subscriptions in Saudi Arabia, Morocco, Thailand, and Bangladesh.

Meta One Essential will cost $14.99 per month and include a Verified badge, impersonation protection, and an enhanced link sheet.

Meta One Advanced will cost $49.99 per month and add reach-focused tools. These include placement opportunities in the Facebook feed, higher ranking in Facebook and Instagram search, a bold Follow button on Reels, and automatic follow invitations for people who engage with a creator’s content.

The subscriptions mark another step in Meta’s effort to build revenue beyond ads, especially as it spends heavily on AI infrastructure.

In other Meta news, Instagram has removed support for optional end-to-end encrypted DMs, while Meta has also quietly launched Forum, a standalone app built around Facebook Groups.

Via Tech Crunch