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Google Messages redesigning pinned chats and moving search

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Google Messages redesigning pinned chats and moving search

Abner Li | Nov 3 2026 - 1:14 pm PT 1 Comment

In addition to the new app icon , Google Messages is testing a redesign of pinned chats and search on the homepage.

Instead of pinned chats just appearing at the top of the list, Google Messages is trying a redesign that significantly elevates them above all conversations.

This redesign takes advantage of the existing background layer that’s currently just home to the logo/wordmark, search, and account menu.

You’ll see large contact photos appear above all chats, which pushes the list of other conversations down the page. Like iMessage on iOS, this layout has the downside of not showing any history or last sent information.

Meanwhile, Google is testing another change where search becomes a centered floating action button (FAB) alongside new chat. When you’re scrolling down the page, you’ll see “Search” in a pill-shaped button, with the other button minimized.

Otherwise, you’ll see a circular magnifying glass icon and “Start chat” in the pill. The animation that accompanies this change looks nice and feels alive.

This is a nice change for one-handed usage. It’s unclear if Google is removing the Gemini FAB with this update.

These updates are currently in the beta channel and not yet widely rolled out to testers.

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