WhatsApp, the globally renowned messaging app, has become an essential tool for communicating with friends, family, and businesses. However, it’s easy to accidentally delete important messages while navigating through multiple apps and conversations on mobile or desktop. Fortunately, WhatsApp provides a useful feature that allows you to recover deleted messages on your iPhone, Android, and even on the web, though it’s worth noting that this feature is not available on desktop applications for Mac and Windows.
Here’s how you can recover deleted WhatsApp messages across different platforms:
Recovering deleted WhatsApp messages on Android
To restore a deleted WhatsApp message on an Android device, follow these steps:
- Open a conversation in WhatsApp.
- Long press the message you wish to delete.
- If you accidentally delete the message by selecting “Delete for Me,” a small banner will appear at the bottom of the screen.
- Tap on “Undo” within this banner, and the deleted message will reappear in your chat.
This method also works if you delete multiple messages at once, as well as for other types of media like photos, videos, and documents.
Recovering deleted WhatsApp messages on iPhone
The process to recover deleted messages on an iPhone is similar to Android, albeit with slight differences in the user interface:
- Open WhatsApp and navigate to the desired conversation.
- Long press on the message you want to delete and then select “Delete.”
- Choose multiple messages if needed by tapping the radio button next to each message.
- Tap on the delete icon located in the lower-left corner.
- Select “Delete for Me” from the menu at the bottom.
- A small pop-up will appear at the bottom; tap “Undo” to recover the deleted messages.
Recovering deleted WhatsApp messages on the desktop
Although the undo feature is not available on the dedicated desktop apps, you can use WhatsApp Web or the web-based apps for Windows or Mac to recover deleted messages:
- Open WhatsApp on your desktop and choose a conversation.
- Hover over the message you want to delete and click the down-arrow icon, then select “Delete.”
- Choose “Delete for me.”
- Immediately after, a banner message will appear in the lower-left corner. Click “Undo” to retrieve your message.
Important observations
- WhatsApp gives you approximately five seconds to undo a deletion. If you miss this brief window, the message cannot be recovered.
- If you navigate back to the WhatsApp home screen after deleting a message, the undo option remains visible briefly on the home screen.
- This feature is applicable in group chats as well.
- When deleting multiple messages, it’s not possible to selectively recover specific messages; the action recovers all deleted messages.
Using Third-Party apps
There are numerous third-party applications available that claim to recover WhatsApp messages. These typically require connecting your phone to a computer and following specific instructions. Exercise caution with these tools, as their effectiveness and safety may vary. Look for apps that offer a money-back guarantee for added security.
