Recover Deleted WhatsApp Messages on Android Mobile

If you accidentally deleted WhatsApp chat history, messages and attachments on Android phones, like Samsung galaxy phones, LG phones, HTC, Lenovo, Motorola, you can get them back. In this article, we will show you different ways to recover deleted WhatsApp data. We will introduce how to get back your recover deleted WhatsApp messages or chat history with the chat app, we will also recommend a more powerful Android data recovery which is easy to use and free to download.

#1. Recover WhatsApp Chat History from recent backups

whatsapp message restore on android mobile

If you have any backups of WhatsApp chat history, you will be able to recover chat history from your backups. If you deleted any Chat history or messages without backup, you can still recover lost messages, attachments from the WhatsApp automatic backups. It is because WhatsApp automatically makes backups every day at 4 AM (your local time) and stores them on your phone’s internal memory (only given that there is enough free space) or external microSD card of your Android phone. What you will need in order to recover WhatsApp messages is to uninstall the WhatsApp, then reinstall the chat app again. During the installation process, you will be prompted to restore your message history. Simply tap Restore and everything less than seven days old is restored.

#2. Recover WhatsApp Chat History from older (less recent) backups

You can follow below instructions to restore WhatsApp messages or chats from a backup:

  1. Uninstall WhatsApp.
  2. Open the WhatsApp database or backup folder. Decide which backup file you want to restore.
  3. Rename that file from “msgstore-YYYY-MM-DD.1.db.crypt7” to “msgstore.db.crypt7”.
  4. Install WhatsApp.
  5. When asked to restore, tap Restore.

You can find the WhatsApp backup files from /sdcard/WhatsApp/Databases folder, you will see that they are saved with names like “msgstore-YYYY-MM-DD.1.db.crypt7”. Note that WhatsApp backup folder may be located in either your phone’s internal memory or external memory.

What are the disadvantages of recovering WhatsApp chat messages from backups?

  • The automatic backup files of your WhatsApp chat history and messages are only valid for 7 days after last saved. Make sure you import your chat history before it expires! You can’t find or restore data from backups that are more than 7 days old.
  • You will lose the newest WhatsApp messages. Current chat history that has not been backed up yet will be lost upon restoration. That is to say you will lose all of the messages that you have sent and received since the backup was created.
  • You can’t restore chat messages if your SD card and/or chat history is corrupted.
  • You can’t restore chat history if you have a different phone number than when you backed up your chats.
  • If you run a manual backup, it will overwrite the most recent automatic backup file.

#3. How to recover recent WhatsApp chat messages without losing newest chat history?

We know that new messages sent/received after a backup, and deleted before the next backup, cannot be restored. If you want to keep a copy of the newest WhatsApp messages, you can create a manual backup from
WhatsApp > Menu Button > Settings > Chat Settings > Backup conversations.

WhatsApp message backup settings samsung galaxy phones

This manual backup file will normally be saved as “msgstore.db.crypt7” in your /sdcard/WhatsApp/Databases folder. Rename this chat backup file to something like “msgstore.db.crypt7.newest” or “msgstore.db.crypt7.current”.

There’s no simple way to merge your new message with your old, recovered messages though.

264 thoughts on “Recover Deleted WhatsApp Messages on Android Mobile”

  1. Hie
    Is it possible bto recover my old messages if I once deleted the whatapp account

  2. Hi Mat,
    It seems you understand in those stuff so I would like to tell you my sad story and see if you can help me.

    My phone was stolen a week ago, and I took my mom’s phone and retrieved all the msgs but bcz the memory was small the media and docs weren’t back but I assumed it is on the drive.

    After three days, I bought a new phone, I made a back up with the chats on mom’s phone and deleted the whatsapp hoping that when I install it in my bew phone everything will be back, but it unfortunately it retrieved a backup from date 14/5/2016 while I made the backup 2/6/2017!

    I was shocked and I deleted it again and insralled it for the 2nd time and yhe shock was that my whatsapp was as good as new with no chats or anything!

    I lost my work that was saved for over a year and a half. All pics, chats, docs, everything and I’m in trouble and very sad.

    Today while checking the whatsapp darabase I found in the internal memo of the new phone a backup dated with 2/6/2017, bow I’m not sure if this back up is from the recent or from yesterday’s that I was looking for.

    Please advice if there is anything I can do and God bless you ?

    Regards,

    Zahra.

  3. Hi, I have a Samsung A3 and I want to recover Whatsapp and SMS data from upto 6 months ago. The data was deleted at the time it was sent / received. I guess it has been overwritten and gone forever but I don’t know. Is it possible to recover the data ?

    1. it is hard to known whether the deleted data has been overwritten or not before we use this software to scan the device storage. sometimes we can recover data deleted last month but not last week.

    1. it supports some GALAXY S6 Edge models running on Android 6.0.1, such as SM-G928G, SM-G9287C, SM-G9287, SM-G9280, etc.

  4. I have used What’s app once so sorry for my lack of knowledge.
    Will every single what’s app chat be in the back-up file if I uninstall then reinstall? Long story but my what’s app shows I was last in it in November 2016 however my first and last conversation was July 2016. I think November may have been my children playing with my phone but husband seems to think I’m having an affair! Any help to prove I have had one and only one conversation on what’s app would help greatly.

    1. if you can find old chats in July 2016, but not any chats in November 2016, the latter if any might be deleted. have you used Whatsapp after November 2016?
      if so, the most recent whatsapp backup may not contain the lost chat in November 2016, since a new backup will overwrite previous backup. you can try to install the whatsapp to a new device to confirm. you can also download the above android phone data recovery software to scan your phone, if you are using a compatible device model. the data recovery software can scan and find those deleted data before they are overwritten by new data saved on your phone.

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