WhatsApp Sticker Pack Requirements: Every Rule for iPhone Packs
8 min read · By Feral Online · Updated 27 October 2026
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A WhatsApp sticker pack made in an iPhone app must hold 3 to 30 stickers, each exactly 512 x 512 pixels: still stickers 100 KB or less, animated stickers WebP, 500 KB or less and 10 seconds or shorter. The pack also needs a 96 x 96 tray icon of 50 KB or less. These rules come from WhatsApp's own iOS sticker documentation on GitHub, checked on 23 Oct 2026. A pack cannot mix still and animated stickers.
The rules at a glance
Every WhatsApp sticker rule for third-party packs lives in one public repository that WhatsApp maintains, with its limits written as constants in the sample app's Limits.swift. The table below collects them, all checked on 23 Oct 2026; the repository's last commit was on 7 Nov 2025.
| Rule | Value |
|---|---|
| Sticker size | exactly 512 x 512 px, transparent background |
| Still sticker file | PNG or WebP, 100 KB or less (sent to WhatsApp as WebP) |
| Animated sticker file | WebP only, 500 KB or less |
| Animated length | 10 seconds or less in total |
| Frame duration | each frame at least 8 ms |
| Stickers per pack | at least 3, at most 30 |
| Mixing still and animated | not allowed |
| Tray icon | still, exactly 96 x 96 px, 50 KB or less, sent as PNG |
| Emoji per sticker | 0 to 3 (optional on iPhone) |
| Pack name and publisher | required, 128 characters each at most |
Sticker size and file weight
The file weight limit, not the picture size, is the WhatsApp rule people hit most. A still sticker may weigh 100 KB, which WhatsApp's code writes as 102,400 bytes; an animated sticker may weigh 500 KB, or 512,000 bytes. A full animated pack of 30 stickers can therefore reach about 15,000 KB before it goes to WhatsApp.
The picture itself must be exactly 512 x 512 pixels. WhatsApp's README asks for a transparent background and recommends an 8 pixel white outline, which keeps a cut-out readable on both light and dark chat wallpapers.
An App Store review of Top Sticker Maker dated 5 Oct 2023 (US) reads: "the app doesn't accept files more than 500 Kb!" (listing). A good sticker app shrinks the file for you rather than asking you to guess.
Animated sticker rules
An animated WhatsApp sticker is an animated WebP file of 10 seconds or less in which every frame lasts at least 8 milliseconds. WhatsApp opened animated packs from third-party apps worldwide on 24 Mar 2021, with WhatsApp for iPhone 2.21.31.2, according to the repository's Animated Stickers wiki page.
Three details catch people out:
- The first frame matters. WhatsApp ends the animation on the first frame after looping, so that frame should show the whole sticker, not a blank start or a half-faded subject.
- There is no frame count limit, but 500 KB, 10 seconds and the 8 ms minimum bound it in practice. Long clips usually run out of file weight long before they reach 10 seconds.
- Fast GIF frames fail. A GIF with frames shorter than 8 ms breaks the rule. App Store reviews of Sticker Maker Studio quote the resulting message: "One of the stickers in this sticker pack has an invalid frame duration" (5 Mar 2025, US, listing).
Telegram's limits are much tighter, with 3 seconds and 256 KB for video stickers, so a sticker that fits WhatsApp does not automatically fit Telegram.
Pack rules: count, tray icon, names and emoji
A WhatsApp pack from another app needs at least 3 stickers, at most 30, one kind of sticker throughout, and a tray icon. The tray icon is the small picture in WhatsApp's sticker tray: a still PNG of exactly 96 x 96 pixels and 50 KB or less, even when the pack is animated.
Each pack carries metadata. The identifier is required, unique and under 128 characters; the pack name and the publisher name are required, 128 characters at most. A publisher website, a privacy policy link and an App Store link are optional. When the App Store link is set, WhatsApp's README says a person who receives a sticker can tap it to see the maker app on the App Store.
Emoji tags are optional on iPhone, up to 3 per sticker (Android requires them). Accessibility text is also optional: up to 125 characters for a still sticker and 255 for an animated one. One more rule binds the apps rather than you: an app may not offer an "add all packs" button, so every pack is added on its own.
How a pack reaches WhatsApp on iPhone
An iPhone app hands a pack to WhatsApp through the clipboard, not through a file. The app places the whole pack, tray icon and stickers included, on the system pasteboard with a 60 second expiry, then opens WhatsApp, which shows a preview with a Save button, as WhatsApp's hand-off sample code shows.
One pack moves per hand-off, so three packs mean three trips to WhatsApp. Once you tap Save, the pack belongs to WhatsApp: the README says saved packs stay even if you delete the app that made them.
WhatsApp documents no maximum size for that hand-off. A full animated pack is about 15 MB of stickers before encoding for the clipboard, and we found no public report of a size failure, but there is no official figure either.
Updating a pack adds a second copy
On iPhone, WhatsApp cannot update a pack that came from another app: sending it again, even with the same identifier, adds a new pack. Developers first reported this on WhatsApp's GitHub in September 2020 (issue 688), and on issue 981, opened in October 2023, a comment dated 21 Aug 2025 says it is "still not possible to update a sticker pack".
Android has a version field for updates. A WhatsApp staff member explained on issue 754 (26 Mar 2021) that iPhone relies on a manual import, so the same field "would not make sense" there.
In practice, if you add a sticker to a pack that is already in WhatsApp, send the whole pack again and then remove the old copy from WhatsApp's sticker settings. Better still, finish a pack before you send it.
What WhatsApp and Apple do without an app
The rules above apply to packs that arrive from another app; WhatsApp's own tools work differently. In January 2024 WhatsApp for iPhone added a Create sticker button that cuts a subject out of a photo and lets you add text and drawings, and in April 2025 it added sticker packs you build inside WhatsApp, according to 9to5Mac. The reports we found describe photos; check WhatsApp's Help Center for the features in your version.
Apple's Live Stickers, made from a Live Photo in the Photos app, can be sent from the iPhone keyboard in any app, WhatsApp included, as Apple's guide to making stickers from your photos explains. Whether they arrive animated in WhatsApp is not documented by Apple or WhatsApp, and published guides disagree, so results vary. Neither tool exports a pack with a name and publisher to WhatsApp.
Apps that build packs to these rules
Sticker maker apps exist mostly to do this formatting for you. Sticker Maker Studio has 80,171 US ratings and no in-app purchases, and its listing says it contains advertising; reviewers report ads when adding a pack to WhatsApp. Top Sticker Maker has 98,822 US ratings, ads and paid plans. Sticker.ly has 150,366 US ratings, ads, a watermark on free saves according to reviews, and a PLUS plan at $39.99 a year in the US. All three were checked on the App Store on 23 Oct 2026.
Export errors show up in reviews as well: a Sticker.ly review dated 22 Aug 2026 (US) reports "error 1000" when adding to WhatsApp (listing).
Pixtide Sticker, our own app, is coming soon to the App Store (not released yet). It keeps still and animated stickers in separate packs of up to 30, sends WhatsApp packs of at least 3, and lets you pick the first frame WhatsApp shows when a sticker stops. The cut-out is made on your iPhone with Apple's on-device Vision. The free version keeps two packs for good, one still and one animated, with no ads, no watermark and no account; free packs list PixTide.com as publisher. Pro is $19.99 a year (£19.99 in the UK), and its privacy page lists what the app sends. The Pixtide Sticker page has the full feature list, and Pixtide Swipe and the other apps are on the family page.
Common mistakes
- Sending 1 or 2 stickers. WhatsApp refuses packs with fewer than 3.
- Mixing a GIF into a still pack. Make a second pack for animated stickers.
- Skipping the first frame. A blank or faded first frame becomes the resting image in every chat.
- Fixing a pack after sending it. Each re-send on iPhone adds another copy, so delete the old one.
- Very fast GIFs. Frames under 8 ms trigger the invalid frame duration error.
Pixtide is independent and is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or sponsored by the apps named on this page. All product names and trademarks are the property of their respective owners. This comparison reflects publicly available information as of October 2026; pricing and features change, so please check each app's store listing for the latest details.
Frequently asked questions
How many stickers do you need for a WhatsApp sticker pack?
A WhatsApp sticker pack made in another app needs at least 3 stickers and can hold at most 30, according to WhatsApp's iOS sticker documentation on GitHub (checked 23 Oct 2026). Every sticker in the pack must be the same kind: all still or all animated. If you have more than 30 stickers, split them into two packs, each with its own name and its own add button in WhatsApp.
What size does a WhatsApp sticker have to be?
Every WhatsApp sticker must be exactly 512 x 512 pixels on a transparent background. A still sticker must be 100 KB or less and an animated one 500 KB or less, sent to WhatsApp as WebP. The pack's tray icon is a separate still image of exactly 96 x 96 pixels and 50 KB or less. These limits come from WhatsApp's iOS sticker README, checked on 23 Oct 2026.
How long can an animated WhatsApp sticker be?
An animated WhatsApp sticker can last up to 10 seconds in total, and every frame must stay on screen for at least 8 milliseconds, according to WhatsApp's iOS sticker README and its sample code (checked 23 Oct 2026). The file must also stay at or under 500 KB, which in practice limits long clips more than the 10 second cap. WhatsApp stops the animation on the first frame after it loops.
Can I mix animated and still stickers in one WhatsApp pack?
No. WhatsApp requires every sticker pack from a third-party app to be either all still or all animated, and animated packs must be marked as animated. WhatsApp's sample code rejects a mixed pack with a dedicated error. Keep still stickers in one pack and animated stickers in another; each pack still needs at least 3 and at most 30 stickers (WhatsApp iOS README, checked 23 Oct 2026).
Why does my iPhone add a second copy when I update a WhatsApp sticker pack?
On iPhone, WhatsApp has no update path for packs that come from another app: sending a pack again, even with the same identifier, creates a new pack. Developers have reported this on WhatsApp's GitHub since 2020, and a comment on issue 981 dated 21 Aug 2025 says it is still not possible. Send the changed pack, then delete the old copy inside WhatsApp.
Why does WhatsApp say a sticker has an invalid frame duration?
WhatsApp's sample code for iPhone rejects animated stickers with any frame shorter than 8 milliseconds, so a GIF or clip with very fast frames is the most likely cause. App Store reviews of Sticker Maker Studio and WhatSticker from March 2025 quote this exact error. Re-export the sticker at a lower frame rate, or slow it down, so every frame lasts at least 8 ms.