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Export a WhatsApp chat on Android

Export happens in the WhatsApp app on the phone, one chat at a time. Depending on the version, it produces a .zip file, or a .txt file along with the media.

Step by step

  1. Open the chat

    In WhatsApp, open the chat to export.

  2. The menu

    Tap the three dots at the top right, then "More", then "Export chat".

  3. With or without media

    "Include media" adds the photos, voice notes and videos; "Without media" keeps the text only.

  4. Keep the export

    Choose where to send it: the Files app or Google Drive to keep it, or an email to yourself if the export is small.

Good to know

  • Labels change from one version of WhatsApp and one phone to another; the path stays the same: the chat's menu, "More", then export.
  • When the export is a .txt followed by separate files, keep them together: the text names each media file.
  • WhatsApp's help says an export with media may be limited to the 10,000 most recent messages, and to 40,000 without media: check the date of the first message.
  • Media never downloaded or deleted from the phone is not in the export; the text still mentions it.
  • If a participant has turned on advanced chat privacy, WhatsApp no longer offers the export.
  • Times are those of the exporting phone, in its time zone and format.

Then, in Klarinbox

Drop the .zip, or the .txt with its media, on Read a WhatsApp chat, from a computer or from the phone: the chat appears in bubbles, with its photos. WhatsApp chat to PDF turns it into a dated PDF that states what it leaves out.

Frequently asked questions

The file says "media omitted": what happened?
The export was made without media, or the phone no longer had the file. Export again with media if you need it.