How do I export a WhatsApp chat?

In the chat: on iPhone, tap the name at the top, then "Export Chat"; on Android, the ⋮ menu, "More", then "Export chat". Choose to include media to get the photos.

Is the chat sent anywhere?

No. The export is opened in your browser; nothing leaves your device.

Why does the screen say the date is ambiguous?

An export writes "03/04" without saying whether it is 3 April or 4 March. As long as no day goes above 12, Klarinbox cannot decide alone: it tells you and lets you choose.

Read an exported WhatsApp chat

Export the chat from the phone, then drop the file here: it is shown as on the screen, as bubbles, with its photos and voice notes. Pick a period or messages, and the extract says what it leaves out.

Or drop a WhatsApp chat export (.zip with media, or .txt) here. Nothing is uploaded: the files stay in this tab.

When to use it

A dispute with a landlord, an employer or a builder played out on WhatsApp, and the lawyer asks for "the messages, printed".

A group chat spanning years needs to be read on a big screen, or a specific period found.

What this tool does

Exports from iPhone or Android, in any phone language, in 12 or 24-hour time: the screen says how the date was read, and you can correct it if it is ambiguous.
Messages as bubbles, yours on the right; photos shown, voice notes and videos playable, other files ready to save.
An extract by period or message by message, with the context you want around it: what is left out is counted and written in its place.
Inconsistencies in the export (times going backwards, lines in another format, media mentioned but missing) are stated as observations, with their possible innocent cause.

What it does not do: Klarinbox reads the exported file; it does not connect to WhatsApp. An export is plain text: on its own it does not prove the messages were not altered, and Klarinbox does not attest it. Times are those of the phone that exported.

What it reads

WhatsApp exports from iPhone or Android: .zip with media, or .txt only.
One-to-one and group chats, in French, English and other common languages.

No file is uploaded: the message is read by your browser, in this tab, and the page is not allowed to open a connection to any other site.

Frequently asked questions

How do I export a WhatsApp chat?: In the chat: on iPhone, tap the name at the top, then "Export Chat"; on Android, the ⋮ menu, "More", then "Export chat". Choose to include media to get the photos.
Is the chat sent anywhere?: No. The export is opened in your browser; nothing leaves your device.
Why does the screen say the date is ambiguous?: An export writes "03/04" without saying whether it is 3 April or 4 March. As long as no day goes above 12, Klarinbox cannot decide alone: it tells you and lets you choose.

Other tools

WhatsApp chat to PDF : A WhatsApp chat as PDF: bubbles or table, photos, omissions written out, record.
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Open an .eml file : The standard email format, and Apple Mail's .emlx: every encoding, every part.
Open a winmail.dat : The unreadable attachment Outlook sends: the real files inside come out.
Open a PST file : A whole Outlook mailbox (.pst, .ost): its folders, its messages, search and filters.