Pixel 11 HiLight now also works with WhatsApp messages

After being simple at launch, Google is improving the Pixel 11 Pro’s Hilight feature with messages support, now including WhatsApp.

As part of the November 2026 Pixel Drop released this week, Google Messages added support for HiLight on the Pixel 11 Pro series. As we reported back in September, when Google began beta testing the feature, users can select a contact and enable a specific color light for phone calls and/or messages.

Google’s announcement only officially introduced support for the Google Messages app, but it turns out that WhatsApp is also supported.

Shenaz Zack, Senior Director of Product Management at Pixel, confirmed through a brief video on Twitter/X that WhatsApp messages can now also enable HiLight. This isn’t a huge surprise given that WhatsApp calling has been supported since day one, but it’s a nice addition for the a lot users who prefer WhatsApp over SMS/RCS.

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Android 17 QPR2 allows the update and it is now rolling out to all Pixel 11 Pro devices.

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