How to export a WhatsApp chat
WhatsApp can export any one-to-one or group chat as a file you keep: the messages as text, plus your photos, voice notes and documents if you want them. It’s the easiest way to keep a copy of a conversation that matters, outside WhatsApp.
Export a chat on Android
- Open WhatsApp and open the chat you want to keep.
- Tap ⋮ (the three dots, top right), then More, then Export chat.
- Choose Include media to keep photos, videos and voice notes, or Without media for text only.
- Pick where it goes: an app like ThreadKeep, Google Drive, email, or Files to save it on your phone.
Export a chat on iPhone
- Open WhatsApp and open the chat.
- Tap the contact or group name at the top.
- Scroll down and tap Export Chat.
- Choose Attach Media or Without Media, then pick where to send or save it.
Media or no media?
Without media, the export is a small text file and finishes in seconds. With media, it’s a .zip file with the text and every photo, video, voice note, sticker and document still on your phone, so it can be large for a long chat. WhatsApp limits how many recent messages an export can include, and the limit is lower when you include media, so very long chats may not come through in full.
If you want to keep the photos and voice notes in their place in the conversation, choose media.
What’s in the export file
The messages come as a plain .txt file: one line per message with the date, time, sender and text. Media files sit next to it in the .zip, and the text only says which file was attached. It’s complete, but it’s hard to read: no bubbles, no pictures in line, and a long chat becomes thousands of lines.
Read your export like a real chat
ThreadKeep opens WhatsApp exports and shows them as real chat bubbles again, with photos, videos, voice notes, stickers and documents right where they were sent. You can search with a match count, jump to any date and see “your story” in numbers. When you export, just pick ThreadKeep in the share menu. It works with exports from Android and iPhone, in any language and date format, and everything stays on your phone.
Questions
Does exporting a chat delete it from WhatsApp?
No. Exporting makes a copy. The chat stays in WhatsApp exactly as it was.
Does the other person know I exported the chat?
WhatsApp doesn’t send a notification when you export a chat.
Why can’t I see Export chat?
Make sure WhatsApp is up to date and look under ⋮ › More on Android, or at the bottom of the contact or group info on iPhone. If someone in the chat has turned on WhatsApp’s Advanced Chat Privacy, exporting is turned off for that chat.
Can I open an exported chat on another phone?
Yes. Move the .zip or .txt file to the other phone and open it with a chat viewer like ThreadKeep. Exports from iPhone open on Android and the other way round.