WhatsApp has become one of the most popular messaging apps, with over 2 billion users worldwide. Given how often we use WhatsApp to communicate with friends, family, coworkers, and more, our contact lists can get very long. Sometimes we may decide to delete some contacts to declutter our lists. But what if you delete a contact by accident and want to retrieve it? Is there any way to get back deleted WhatsApp contacts?
Can you recover deleted WhatsApp contacts?
The short answer is yes, it is possible to recover deleted WhatsApp contacts, but only under certain conditions. Here’s a quick overview of when you can and can’t regain deleted contacts on WhatsApp:
- If you delete a contact but don’t close the WhatsApp app, you can often still find and restore the deleted contact from the Recycle Bin or Archived Chats section within the app.
- If you delete a contact and close the app, the contact is gone from your phone’s local WhatsApp storage. However, it may still be recoverable from a recent backup.
- If the deleted contact only existed on your phone’s local WhatsApp storage and you do not have a backup from after you added the contact, it is likely unrecoverable.
So in summary, your best bet for retrieving deleted contacts is if they still exist in a WhatsApp backup. Let’s look more closely at how to restore contacts from a backup.
Restoring deleted WhatsApp contacts from a backup
WhatsApp automatically backs up your messages, contacts, and other data regularly. There are two main backup destinations:
- Local backup to your phone’s storage
- Cloud backup to your Google Drive or iCloud account
If you maintain regular backups, you can use them to recover deleted information like contacts. Here are the steps to restore deleted WhatsApp contacts from a backup:
From local backup
- Open WhatsApp and go to Menu > Settings > Chats > Chat Backup.
- Tap “Restore” to restore your chats and contacts from the latest local backup.
- Verify that the deleted contact(s) have been restored in your contacts list.
From Google Drive backup
- On your phone, open the WhatsApp Settings.
- Tap Chats > Chat Backup > Backup to Google Drive.
- Tap “Restore” to restore your backup from Google Drive.
- Check if the deleted contacts are now back in your contact list.
From iCloud backup
- Go to WhatsApp Settings > Chats > Chat Backup.
- Tap “Restore” to restore the iCloud backup to your device.
- The deleted contact(s) should be added back to your contact list.
Keep in mind the backup must have been created after the contact was added for it to be restored. Also, restoring from a backup will overwrite your current WhatsApp data.
How to recover deleted WhatsApp contacts without backup
If you don’t have a backup that contains the deleted WhatsApp contact, things get trickier. Here are a few last resort options to try:
- Check your email or phone’s call history – you may find contact info like a phone number you can add back.
- Use a third party Android contact recovery app to scan your device for residual data from deleted contacts.
- If you synced WhatsApp contacts to your device address book, the contact may still be in your regular contacts list.
- Ask a friend who may have the contact’s details in their WhatsApp or phone contacts list.
Unfortunately without a backup, your prospects of recovering a deleted WhatsApp contact are low. That’s why it’s so important to regularly back up your WhatsApp data!
How to prevent accidentally deleting WhatsApp contacts
Recovering deleted contacts can be frustrating. Here are some tips to avoid deleting WhatsApp contacts by accident in the first place:
- Be careful when selecting contacts to delete – double check you are selecting the right ones.
- Back up your data – regular backups let you quickly restore deleted contacts.
- Archive instead of delete – archiving removes contacts from your main list but keeps them recoverable.
- Use favorites – starring important contacts makes them stand out.
- Rely on chat history – you can still find and message contacts through your chat history.
Following these tips will help avoid the hassle of trying to recover unexpectedly deleted WhatsApp contacts.
What happens when you delete a WhatsApp contact?
When you delete a contact in WhatsApp, here is what happens:
- The contact is removed from your main contacts list and any WhatsApp groups you shared.
- Your chat history with the contact remains in WhatsApp.
- If the contact only existed in your WhatsApp, it is deleted entirely from your phone.
- The contact may continue to exist in your phone or cloud contacts if it was synced from there.
- If you have a backup, the contact is retained in the backup until you create a new backup.
So in essence, the contact is immediately removed from your WhatsApp contacts and groups. But previous chat history and backups may continue to hold the contact’s data. This allows you to recover the deleted contact if you act quickly.
Does deleting a WhatsApp contact also delete the chat history?
No, deleting a WhatsApp contact does not delete or erase your chat history with that contact. Your entire chat history remains available in WhatsApp even after you delete a contact. This applies to both individual and group chats.
Some key points about chat history with deleted contacts:
- You can still search and view all past messages with the contact.
- Media like photos and videos exchanged with the contact are retained.
- Call history also remains accessible.
- The contact’s name is replaced with their phone number in the chat history.
- If you re-add the contact, the full chat history is linked to them again.
So don’t worry about losing your message history when you delete a WhatsApp contact. The history remains available in your archived chats. You only lose access to actively message and view the current profile of the deleted contact.
Does the deleted contact know you deleted them?
No, contacts are not notified when you delete them from your WhatsApp contacts list. There is no message or indication sent to them. Your disappearance from their contact list is the only potential sign.
Specifically:
- You are removed from the contact’s WhatsApp contacts silently.
- Any groups you shared with the contact show you as leaving the group.
- Your last seen status and online status no longer updates for the contact.
- The contact may notice if your read receipts and typing indicators disappear.
- If you re-add the contact, they will see you joining groups again and your status updates.
So while the contact may notice clues that you deleted them, there is no direct notification sent by WhatsApp when you delete a contact.
Should you delete or block a WhatsApp contact?
If you need to remove a WhatsApp contact, you have two options – delete or block. But which should you choose?
Here’s an overview of deleting vs. blocking a contact on WhatsApp:
| Action | Delete Contact | Block Contact |
|---|---|---|
| Removes from contact list | Yes | Yes |
| Prevents messaging you | No | Yes |
| Leaves groups | Yes | No |
| Keeps chat history | Yes | Yes |
| Notifies contact | No | No |
| Can reverse action | Easily | Difficult |
In summary:
- Delete simply removes the contact from your list while retaining chat history.
- Block prevents messaging and gives the contact limited signs you blocked them.
If you want a clean break, blocking is more definitive. But deleting still removes the contact while allowing the possibility to restore them.
Conclusion
Retrieving deleted WhatsApp contacts is possible if you act quickly and have a recent backup. Within the app, check for the contact in the Recycle Bin or Archived Chats. If that fails, restore your local or cloud backup. Without a backup, you’ll have to get in touch with the contact again or find their info from another source. To avoid this hassle, be careful when deleting contacts and back up your data regularly. With billions of users, WhatsApp is too important a communication platform not to take steps to preserve your contacts.