Google Messages Is Getting a New Coat of Paint—at a Snail's Pace

June 06, 2025 June 06, 2025

Google Messages Gets a Material 3 Expressive Makeover (Slowly)

Google Messages' Slow but Stylish Material 3 Expressive Update

Google's design language is constantly evolving. Remember Material You? Now, Google's pushing forward with Material 3 Expressive, a fresh design approach that's slowly making its way into various Google apps. Google Messages is one of these apps receiving this visual refresh, but the rollout is, shall we say, a bit uneven.

This new look is currently only available to beta testers. If you're not already a beta tester for Google Messages, you won't see these changes yet. Don't worry, joining the beta program is simple. Just head over to the Google Messages page on the Google Play Store. Scroll down until you find the "Join the beta" option, tap it, and you should receive an update to the beta version shortly.

A Piecemeal Makeover: Material 3 Expressive in Google Messages

Beyond the visual tweaks, Google has been working on other improvements to Messages, such as a new mentions feature. However, the rollout of the Material 3 Expressive design is particularly unusual because different users are seeing these changes in different areas of the app. Reports indicate some users see changes on the home screen, in the settings, on the search screen, the new chat screen, and within individual chats themselves. The confusing part? Many users report only seeing these changes in some of these sections, not all of them.

We at [Website Name] tested the update on a Vivo X Fold 3, and we can confirm the inconsistencies. In our experience, the changes were visible on the home screen and within individual chat conversations, but not consistently across all sections of the app.

The changes themselves are subtle yet noticeable. In the chat interface, a border now neatly separates the list of conversations from the elements at the top of the screen (your profile picture, the search bar, and the Google logo). The color of this border and background will adapt to your phone's overall color scheme.

When accessing the search function, you'll notice that the search filters ("Unread," "Known," "Unknown," "Starred," "Images," "Videos," "Places," and "Links") are presented within nicely rounded rectangles. The new chat screen also features rounded rectangles bordering the search bar, the Gemini button (if you have it enabled), and the chat list. The "Create Group" button now spans the entire width of the screen, making it more prominent and easier to use.

The settings menu follows the same design language, with each setting option residing within its own rectangular bubble. This consistent visual treatment extends to elements like the emoji picker, the sticker picker, and the "+" menu for adding new contacts or starting new conversations. The overall effect is a cleaner, more cohesive user experience.

If you're a beta participant, it's highly recommended to update your Google Messages app to see these changes firsthand. Because the rollout is so inconsistent, it's difficult to predict precisely which of these Material 3 Expressive design elements will make it into the final, public release of Google Messages. Some elements might be refined further, others might be removed entirely. Only time will tell.