Systems and methods for visual cue based messaging. A visual cue module can provide visual cue data indicative of a visual cue assigned for a contact or a group of contacts from a contact list. A messenger module can output on a display a messenger application GUI. The messenger application GUI includes a message field, a message window with a message thread between a user and the contact or the group of contacts, and a virtual keyboard. The messenger module can output the messenger application GUI with a visual cue graphical element representative of the visual cue to provide a visual indication of the contact or the group of contacts on the display to the user based on the visual cue data. The visual cue can be associated with the messaging field, the message thread, or at least one virtual key of the virtual keyboard.