Google is continuing its push toward a more unified Material 3 Expressive design language, and the Phone by Google app is the latest to receive a subtle but noticeable refinement. With the rollout of stable version 204, the app now features a shorter, more compact bottom navigation bar, bringing it fully in line with Material 3 Expressive guidelines.
Although the Phone app was refreshed with Material 3 Expressive styling last year, it continued to use an unusually tall bottom bar for Home, Keypad, and Voicemail. The latest update finally addresses this inconsistency by shrinking the navigation component. Users will immediately notice the reduced vertical padding above the pill-shaped tab indicator, along with minor adjustments to the text labels beneath each tab.
This update is being delivered server-side, meaning it may not appear immediately for all users. If the new layout isn’t visible yet, force-stopping the app from App info can help trigger the change.
While the actual space savings are minimal, the visual improvement is more apparent when using dark mode, where the slimmer navigation bar gives the interface a cleaner and more modern look. The update is less about functionality and more about design consistency, following similar changes recently introduced in the Google Home app.
That said, not all Google apps have made the transition. Google Photos still retains its older navigation style, alongside slower adopters like Google Fi and Google Voice.
Meanwhile, some long-standing feature gaps remain. The Phone app has yet to restore the “Keep portrait mode” option for any users, and Expressive Calling continues to remain in beta.
Overall, this update reflects Google’s steady if gradual approach to refining its core apps under the Material 3 Expressive vision.