Version 8.3.026 of the Google Messages app is rolling out tonight to users on the beta program, and it enables a long-awaited feature for some: the ability to pin conversations to the top of the list.

Late last month, we first discovered that version 8.1.050 had the hidden ability to pin conversations to the top. We learned that the Messages app will let users pin up to 3 conversations to the top of the list, ensuring that they'll never be displaced by incoming messages in other conversations. This is a basic feature found in many other messaging apps, and fortunately, users haven't had to wait long for the feature to start rolling out since we discovered it.

If you update to version 8.3.026 of the Messages app, you may not immediately see the conversation pinning feature. If you don't see it, try clearing the cache and force closing the app. That's what XDA Member cstark27 did, and he confirmed to us that the feature is available on his Pixel 4a 5G running Android 12 as well as his Pixel 4 XL running Android 11. While it doesn't seem like this feature is tied to any particular OS version, I haven't spotted the feature on any of my non-Pixel devices, but I did get it on my Pixel 3 XL. If you notice the feature on your own device after updating to the latest Google Messages beta, let us know in the comments below!

Google recently rolled out another feature to the Messages app: message starring. With this feature, you can star a message and quickly return to it in the future by tapping on the "starred" filter in search. Another useful feature — message categorization — sadly still seems to be region-limited. Version 8.3.025 of the Messages app — which also rolled out today — changed the "More" category to "Updates" but otherwise did not expand the availability of message categorization.