Creating and sharing stickers is one of the most used features on WhatsApp. They help people react faster, joke around, or express things that are hard to type. WhatsApp now lets users create their own stickers and sticker packs directly in the app. You can turn photos into stickers, generate AI stickers using text, organise stickers into packs, add more later, and share the entire pack with others. There is no need to download any third-party apps. Everything happens within WhatsApp itself. The steps are similar on Android and iOS, with small interface differences. Below is a detailed, step-by-step guide that covers every sticker-related option currently available.
How to create a custom sticker from a photo on WhatsApp
You can make any picture on your phone into a sticker with WhatsApp. This is helpful for personal photos, reactions, or inside jokes that you want to use again in chats.
Steps to follow on Android and iOS:
-
Open the stickers section in a chat.
-
Tap Create or the pencil icon.
-
Select a photo from your phone’s gallery or click a picture from your phone’s camera.
-
From the preview screen, select from one of the preset options and further:
-
Tap Add sticker emoji to add a sticker or emoji to your sticker
-
Tap Add text to sticker (T icon) to add text to your sticker.
-
Tap Draw on sticker (pencil within circle icon) to draw on your sticker.
-
Tap Dismiss (X icon) to cancel the sticker or start over.
-
-
Tap ‘>’ to send your sticker.
How to create an AI sticker on WhatsApp
WhatsApp also has an AI sticker feature that makes stickers based on what you type. This is helpful if you want a sticker of a certain picture but don’t have one.
Steps to follow:
-
Open the stickers section.
-
Tap Create.
-
Select Generate with AI.
-
Enter a short text description of the sticker you want.
-
Tap Generate to see the options.
-
Choose one sticker and save it.
The AI sticker will appear alongside your other custom stickers.
How to create a sticker pack on WhatsApp
Sticker packs help keep related stickers together. Instead of scrolling through many individual stickers, you can group them into a named pack.
Steps for Android and iOS users:
-
Open the stickers section.
-
Tap Create or the pencil icon.
-
Select one or more stickers you have created.
-
Tap the three-dot menu.
-
Choose Add to sticker pack.
-
Select New sticker pack.
-
Enter a name for the pack and save.
The new sticker pack will now appear in your sticker tray.
How to add WhatsApp stickers to an existing sticker pack
Sticker packs can change. You can add more stickers to a pack at any time in WhatsApp. This keeps the pack up to date as you make new stickers.
Steps to follow:
-
Open the stickers section.
-
Tap Create or the pencil icon.
-
Select the sticker you want to add.
-
Tap the three-dot menu.
-
Choose Add to existing sticker pack.
-
Select the sticker pack you want to update.
-
Save the changes.
The sticker will get added to the selected pack immediately.
How stickers are uploaded on WhatsApp
WhatsApp does not support uploading sticker files directly from your phone storage. All stickers must be created using the tools built into the app.
Key points to know:
-
Stickers can only be created from photos in your gallery or the AI sticker feature.
-
Once created, stickers are saved automatically.
-
You can organise them into packs later.
-
No external sticker apps are required.
How to share your sticker pack with others
Sharing a sticker pack lets other users add the entire pack to their own WhatsApp instead of saving stickers one by one.
Follow these steps:
-
Open the stickers section.
-
Find the sticker pack you want to share.
-
Tap the three-dot menu next to the pack name.
-
Tap Share sticker pack.
-
Choose a chat and send it.
-
The recipient can tap the shared pack and add it to their stickers.
Sticker pack rules you must know
WhatsApp applies a few limits to keep sticker packs consistent across devices.
-
A sticker pack must contain at least 3 stickers.
-
A single pack can have up to 30 stickers.
-
Only stickers you create yourself can be added to custom packs.
-
Default WhatsApp sticker packs cannot be mixed with custom ones.
