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For those wanting to know how to see deleted messages on WhatsApp, this article will show you how. WhatsApp has the handy function of allowing its users to delete messages. This allows users to change their minds once a message has been sent. You have probably seen this in your WhatsApp chats a message that has been deleted and can no longer be seen. This can be frustrating as you will never know what was sent, luckily there are methods to get around this and recover deleted messages.
If you are in this situation and don’t want to download third-party apps that could violate WhatsApp’s terms of service and potentially get your account banned then we’ve got you covered.
Keep reading this article and we’ll go over what the WhatsApp delete message feature is, and all of the ways that you can restore a deleted WhatsApp message on your iOS/Android device below.
What is the WhatsApp delete message feature?
There are two types of deletion, below we’ll go over them
Delete for everyone
WhatsApp allows users to delete messages that they’ve sent, even if the recipient or multiple people in the group chat has seen the message. The message is replaced by a message saying “This message was deleted”
Delete for me
This just deletes the message on your device and doesn’t affect the recipients.
Archived messages
This is different from deleting a message, you may have accidentally archived a chat and thought you have deleted it. Luckily we have a handy guide on how to unarchive a chat that you can read up on.
How to see deleted messages on WhatsApp – iPhone
iCloud
You can use iCloud to restore deleted messages.
If you have the feature enabled where WhatsApp messages are backed up on iCloud then you will be able to recover them by restoring the backup. For this to work you will need to have enough storage space on your iPhone and in your iCloud. You will also need to use a phone with the same number as the Whatsapp account you are trying to recover the messages from. finally, ensure that your iCloud drive is logged in with the same Apple ID you use for your iCloud.
Now that’s out of the way we’ll go over the steps on how to see deleted messages on WhatsApp for iPhone.
Step
How to see deleted messages on WhatsApp – iCloud
Make sure you have an iCloud backup
- Open WhatsApp
- Tap the settings icon in the bottom right-hand corner
- Select chats and the ‘Chat Backup’.
- Once you know you have your chats backed up, delete and reinstall WhatsApp
- To restore your chat history, enter your phone number and follow the on-screen instructions
iTunes
Another way to restore deleted messages is through the use of iTunes, the following steps will show you how.
Step
How to see deleted messages on WhatsApp – iTunes
- Connect your iPhone to your PC or Mac and start iTunes.
- Select the devices button and choose ‘Summary’.
- In the ‘Backups’ section select ‘Restore Backup’
- Choose the WhatsApp backup and restore it.
How to see deleted messages on WhatsApp – Android
This article will now go over the ways in which you can restore deleted messages on Android phones.
Notification History
Android phones using the Android 11 operating system or newer are able to view deleted messages on WhatsApp. The operating system keeps a notification log of all messages sent or received. Even if someone has deleted the message on their end the notification will remain in this log.
Step
How to see deleted messages on WhatsApp – Notification History
- Open the Settings App.
- Scroll down to Apps & Notifications, then select Notifications.
- From this menu select Notification History and toggle on ‘Use Notification History’
From now on in this area all notifications will be displayed, allowing you to go to past message notifications and see the message even after it was deleted by the sender.
Google Drive
You are also able to restore messages via a Google Drive backup, we’ll go over the steps below. You must ensure that you have the same phone number and Google account that you used to create the backup.
Step
How to see deleted messages on WhatsApp – Google Drive
- Uninstall and Reinstall Whatsapp on your phone
- Once you’ve entered your phone number you’ll have the option to restore your WhatsApp using Google Drive.
- Press restore and complete the process.
- Once done press ‘Next’ and all of your chats will be restored.
WhatsApp Database
The third option is to restore the WhatsApp database, this is a slightly longer process but we’ll go over all of the steps.
Step
How to see deleted messages on WhatsApp – WhatsApp Database
- Launch the file browser
- Open the WhatsApp folder, and select database. this is where all local backups are saved on you phone
- Hold down on ‘msgstore.db.crypt12’, then rename the file to ‘backupmsgstore.db.crypt12’. This will prevent it from being overwritten.
- Now change the name of the most recent backup file to “msgstore.db.crypt12”
- Open Google Drive, and press the three dots in the right-hand corner
tap on ‘Backups’ and delete all - Delete and reinstall WhatsApp, when asked to restore you will have to use locally saved backup files as you no longer have a cloud backup.
- Choose ‘msgstore.db.crypt12
Final Thoughts
When WhatsApp messages are deleted be it on purpose or by accident recovering them can be essential. Hopefully, with the steps outlined in this article, you are able to restore deleted WhatsApp chats on your Android and iOS devices without having to resort to using third-party apps. The use of which can result in security risks and the banning of your account as they can violate WhatsApp’s terms of service.
