WhatsApp is finally bringing ads to its app for the first time in the service’s 13-year history. Meta, the company behind WhatsApp, has been planning this for years. And it comes after years of discussion and pushback from the app’s over 2 billion users. Despite the rumors, though, these ads aren’t yet taking over WhatsApp’s chat experience — for now, at least.

Instead, WhatsApp’s introducing them in the Updates tab, a section of the app where users post 24-hour disappearing messages and follow Channels based on interests. Ads are rolling out gradually, Meta says, and will only appear in this part of the app.

The company emphasizes that chats won’t have ads and users won’t see ads in their chats.

If you’re only using WhatsApp to chat with friends and join group chats, then you may not see this change. However, if you use the Updates tab regularly, it’s about to look more commercialized.

Meta says that more than 1.5 billion people view the Updates tab every day. That’s a massive user base — and one that advertisers want to reach. Still, WhatsApp is taking things slowly.

What type of Ads are We Talking About?

There are three different types of ads coming to WhatsApp. First, ads in Status. They’ll show up alongside your friends’ 24-hour disappearing posts — just like how ads work on Instagram Stories. When scrolling through your friends’ statuses, you might see a picture, video, or message from a brand or company. You’ll be able to reply to the ad and start a chat with the advertiser.

Second, WhatsApp is launching Promoted Channels. It allows admins and businesses to promote their content inside the app. Brands that pay to promote their content will be more visible, which helps them grow their presence inside WhatsApp itself — without relying on other platforms.

Third, and most interestingly, is a new paid subscription feature. Businesses and creators can now offer exclusive updates for a monthly fee. For example, a user might pay to subscribe to a cooking Channel and get early drops or exclusive recipes. It’s a new way for businesses to monetize their presence — and for WhatsApp to make money.

This is key. Until now, WhatsApp has been making money mostly through its Business Platform, a paid service that allows businesses to communicate with their customers, and via click-to-WhatsApp ads on Facebook and Instagram. However, Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg has said that he wants to do more. On an investor call earlier this year, he said that the Business Platform is “growing,” but that there’s still more to do. This new change is a part of that plan.

“It’s really been a natural evolution,” said Alice Newton Rex, VP of Product at WhatsApp. “For many years, there’s been a call for us to offer more features for businesses to expand their reach inside of WhatsApp.” She says that the ads are being rolled out to meet that need.

That’s also why WhatsApp chose the Updates tab to roll out ads. The company saw an opportunity to use a part of the app that wasn’t being used as much. “You’re talking about something where it makes a lot of sense because there’s an unused feature there,” says Newton Rex. “There are a lot of ads there.”

Of course, the conversation around adding ads to a platform that prioritizes privacy wasn’t easy. “We’re going to do this in a very thoughtful way,” says Meta spokesperson Brian Swarts. “The first place where we’re rolling out these ads is in a portion of the app where it doesn’t impede on the conversation and isn’t going to be seen by everyone. There’s also transparency that we can give people around why they’re seeing an ad, hide ads from certain advertisers, and reporting.”

WhatsApp says that it’s always working on ways to keep users’ information private. Ads will be served based on generalized information — things like your age, country code, language settings, and general location (not your precise location). WhatsApp will also take into account how you use the Updates tab — for example, which Channels you follow and which type of content you interact with.

There’s also an optional setting to connect your WhatsApp account to Meta’s Accounts Center. It lets WhatsApp show you more personalized ads based on your activity on Facebook, Instagram, and other Meta services. This setting is off by default and can be turned off at any time.

You’ll also be able to see why you’re seeing a particular ad, hide ads from certain advertisers, or report ads that seem inappropriate. “We’re really focused on being able to give people as much control as possible,” says Swarts.

The move isn’t surprising in the grand scheme of things. With 98% of its revenue coming from advertising, and with its WhatsApp purchase back in 2014 costing it $16 billion, it was only a matter of time before the platform was used to generate more ad dollars.

And it’s not just Meta. Other platforms are doing the same. Discord recently added ads in 2024. Reddit has also seen its ad business explode, recently reporting its first profit ever. In a challenging economic climate, even platforms built on community and privacy are looking to bring in advertisers.

For now, the effect on WhatsApp users is minimal. But this marks the beginning of a new era for the app. Ads have arrived — and while they may only be limited to the Updates tab for now, it’s clear that Meta is building the foundation for something much bigger.