Google Messages’ New Features for January 2026

Google Messages continues to evolve, introducing a suite of new features designed to enhance user experience, security, and functionality within the popular Android messaging app. While many of these updates are currently in a beta testing phase, they offer a clear glimpse into the future of RCS communication. The development process involves extensive A/B testing, which can mean a gradual rollout before features become widely available in the stable version.

A significant interface change is the new long-press menu. Instead of a traditional toolbar, holding down on a message or image now triggers a floating menu. The background subtly blurs, the selected content remains centered, and you receive haptic feedback for confirmation. This redesign streamlines the interaction, making actions feel more immediate and integrated.

The playful Nano Banana Remix feature has received a more subdued visual treatment. When you long-press an image, the “Remix” label in the corner is now smaller and no longer features the banana emoji. The button has also been relocated from an overlay on the fullscreen viewer to a fixed position at the bottom of the screen, creating a cleaner look.

For group chats, @mentions are now functional in RCS conversations. This allows you to directly notify a specific person within a group thread, ensuring your message gets their attention even if they have muted notifications for that chat. It’s a practical tool for coordinating within busy conversations.

A major advancement in security is the integration of MLS encryption. As part of the Universal Profile 3.0 update, support for the Messaging Layer Security protocol is being added. This technology paves the way for true cross-platform end-to-end encrypted RCS messaging between Android and iOS devices. You can verify if this is active for a specific chat by long-pressing a message, opening the Details page, and checking the “Encryption Protocol” section. A value of “0” indicates the current E2EE method, while “1” signifies the new MLS-based approach.

The read receipts have undergone another redesign. Following an update in 2023, they now appear within a small circle at the bottom-right corner of message bubbles and images. Swiping left on a bubble reveals all timestamps and the encryption status, while swiping right allows you to reply or quote. This feature began rolling out in late 2024. In a subsequent tweak, Google changed the circular background to white, making the read receipts stand out more distinctly against the colored message bubbles.

Several features have recently graduated from testing to the stable version of the app. The in-app camera has been tweaked, with a slightly reduced viewfinder height that now extends into the status bar area, framed by rounded corners. The gallery preview below now displays two full rows of images, with a partial view of a third.

The Gemini floating action button (FAB) is now larger, aligning with the latest Material Design guidelines that phased out the smaller component size. It now matches the size of the “Start chat” FAB when you are scrolling through your conversations.

Link previews have been redesigned with a taller cover image and a larger, more prominent page title. The domain is now accompanied by a favicon on a distinct background. However, in a trade-off for this new layout, the informative article snippet has been removed. Notably, YouTube Picture-in-Picture functionality has returned with this update. To open a video in the full YouTube app, you must first fullscreen it within Messages and then tap the YouTube logo in the corner.

A helpful new privacy control allows you to leave group chats started by unknown numbers. When added by someone not in your contacts, an alert card appears above the text field explaining the situation, showing the number, and listing the group size. This card provides quick buttons to “Leave group,” “Block,” and “Report,” and will inform you if any of your known contacts are also participants.

Finally, the image viewer has been fully redesigned. The fullscreen interface now features a blurred background, swipe navigation between photos, and a central tap-to-zoom area for your media. Options are neatly tucked into the top-right corner, while the bottom row provides quick access to comment and frequent emoji reactions. Google has also updated how consecutive images are grouped together in the main conversation timeline.

(Source: 9to5 Google)