WhatsApp is rolling out a new navigation experience for chats and groups on iPhone. The contact name at the top of a conversation is now a button, and tapping it opens a menu of shortcuts that used to sit inside the chat info screen.
The change arrived with WhatsApp for iOS 26.39.75 on the App Store, and WABetaInfo spotted the update. It is limited to accounts that already have the Liquid Glass interface enabled, and it is reaching users gradually.
The contact name at the top of a chat is now a Liquid Glass button
The new button holds the profile photo, the contact or group name, and the online status or last seen. It uses the Liquid Glass design, so its background adapts to the wallpaper behind it and the text stays readable.
That fixes a problem left over from the Liquid Glass redesign of the chat screen. WhatsApp for iOS 26.35.72 made the navigation bar transparent on iOS 26 and a uniform background layer on iOS 27 when messages scroll behind it. Some wallpapers made the contact name hard to read, because plain text looks the same whatever sits behind it while a glass button can adjust.
Tapping the button opens a menu with six shortcuts
A popup menu drops down from the top of the screen when you tap the button. It uses the same translucent Liquid Glass look, so the conversation stays visible behind it.
Individual chats get six shortcuts in the menu.
- Search
- Contact info
- Media, links, and docs
- Chat theme
- Disappearing messages
- Mute
Group chats get the same shortcuts plus an option to add new members, and chats with business accounts get a similar version of the menu. Most of these options used to require opening the chat info screen first. WhatsApp had already trimmed that route for search with a one-tap search shortcut for chats and channels, and the new menu extends the idea to the rest of the list.
The new navigation is still reaching accounts in stages
Some users who install the latest version from the App Store have it now. Some beta testers on the latest TestFlight build have it too. Everyone else still sees the old navigation bar, and WhatsApp has not said when the rollout will reach all accounts.
The chat screen is one piece of a wider cleanup. WhatsApp is also bringing Liquid Glass to the rest of the iPhone app, and the video player picked up the design in beta this week. The build that carries the new chat navigation is WhatsApp for iOS 26.39.75.
