WhatsApp has become an essential communication tool for many people. It allows us to stay in touch with friends and family through messaging, voice notes, video calling, and more. However, most of us rely solely on the chats stored on our phones, which can be risky. If you lose your phone or it becomes damaged, you could lose all your WhatsApp chats and media forever. That’s why it’s important to regularly back up your WhatsApp data.
Backing up WhatsApp is easy to do when you’re connected to WiFi. But sometimes you may need to back up your chats while data roaming. Data roaming allows you to access mobile internet when you’re outside of your carrier’s coverage area. Here’s what you need to know about backing up WhatsApp during data roaming.
What are the risks of backing up on data roaming?
The main risk of backing up WhatsApp on data roaming is the potential cost. Backups can use a considerable amount of mobile data, which can become very expensive if you don’t have an unlimited data plan. The amount of data used will depend on how many chats and media files you have, but it’s not uncommon for a WhatsApp backup to be 100MB or more.
At standard roaming data rates, backing up 100MB of WhatsApp data could cost you $10 or more. Some carriers may also throttle your data speeds after you hit a certain roaming data usage limit, which can make backups very slow.
However, if you have an unlimited international data roaming plan, or your carrier offers discounted roaming data rates, then the risk of high costs may be minimal. The other risk is that backup could fail or become corrupted if the roaming data connectivity is spotty.
How to backup WhatsApp chats on data roaming
If you understand the risks and still want to backup your WhatsApp chats while data roaming, here are the steps:
- Open WhatsApp and tap on the More options or Settings icon (this looks like three vertical dots on Android or three horizontal lines on iOS)
- Go to Chats > Chat Backup
- Tap on Back Up. WhatsApp will start backing up your messages to iCloud (for iOS) or Google Drive (for Android)
- Wait for the backup to complete. This can take several minutes depending on your data connection speed and how much data is being backed up.
- Once complete, you’ll see a “Backup successful” confirmation. Your chats are now safely stored in the cloud.
A few tips for minimizing data usage and costs when backing up on roaming:
- Disable auto-download of media in WhatsApp settings before backing up. This prevents large photos/videos from being backed up.
- Connect to hotel or café WiFi to back up if available. Their WiFi networks are often free to use.
- Schedule backups to run at night when many carriers offer discounted data rates.
- Consider backing up only your most important recent chats rather than your entire history.
Alternative backup options
If you don’t want to use a lot of data roaming, there are a couple alternative options for backing up your WhatsApp chats:
- Local Backup: You can back up directly to your device storage rather than the cloud. Go to WhatsApp > Settings > Chats > Chat Backup and tap Back Up. This will save a backup file to your phone which you can later transfer to a computer.
- iTunes or Finder Backup: iOS users can backup WhatsApp along with all their iPhone data to iTunes on a computer. For Android, use ADB or connect your phone to a computer and transfer WhatsApp data folders.
- Third party apps: Apps like iMazing (iOS) or SMS Backup & Restore (Android) can backup WhatsApp chats without needing data roaming.
Enable data roaming on iPhone
Before you can backup WhatsApp using mobile data while roaming on iPhone, you first need to enable data roaming:
- Go to Settings > Cellular.
- Turn on cellular data.
- Tap Cellular Data Options.
- Turn on Data Roaming.
You can also enable/disable data roaming from Control Center by force pressing the mobile data icon. Some additional settings your carrier may need to enable roaming are:
- Allow Roaming
- Enable LTE Roaming
- Enable 4G Roaming
Check with your carrier to ensure data roaming is properly enabled on your account before trying to back up WhatsApp while traveling.
Enable roaming on Android
To enable mobile data while roaming on Android:
- Open Settings and go to Network & internet > Mobile network.
- Tap Roaming.
- Enable both National and International roaming options.
As with the iPhone, you may also need to enable additional roaming settings like:
- Allow roaming
- LTE/4G roaming
- Data services while roaming
Check with your carrier before travelling to confirm data roaming is active on your SIM card.
Disable data roaming automatically
Once you complete your WhatsApp backup on data roaming, it’s a good idea to disable roaming again to avoid unnecessary charges for other mobile data usage. Here’s how to disable roaming automatically:
On iPhone
- Go to Settings > Cellular.
- Tap Cellular Data Options.
- Under Data Roaming, select Disable.
This will turn off data roaming once you leave the roaming network and reconnect to your home carrier.
On Android
- Open Settings > Network & Internet > Mobile Network.
- Tap Roaming.
- Disable both National and International roaming.
You can also set a data roaming limit so Android will automatically disable roaming after your usage hits a certain threshold.
This way you don’t have to remember to manually turn roaming off again when you return home.
Monitor data roaming usage
It’s important to keep an eye on your data usage when roaming to avoid bill shock from unexpected charges. Here’s how to monitor roaming data usage:
On iPhone
- Go to Settings > Cellular.
- Scroll down to see a usage breakdown for your home carrier vs roaming.
- You can reset the counters if needed.
You can also monitor roaming usage under Settings > Mobile Data. iOS will warn you if your roaming usage exceeds a set threshold.
On Android
- Open Settings > Network & Internet > Mobile network.
- Check the data usage numbers for roaming.
- Tap App data usage to see consumption per app.
Some Android devices have a Roaming usage alert you can enable to be warned about high usage. You can also set a roaming data limit in your settings.
Minimize WhatsApp data usage
In addition to carefully monitoring your data consumption when roaming, you can also minimize how much data WhatsApp uses to control your costs:
- Enable Data Saver mode in WhatsApp settings.
- Turn off auto-download of media and files.
- Use WhatsApp’s data usage tool to see consumption.
- Limit background data usage.
- Reduce chat backup frequency.
- Avoid making WhatsApp calls over data roaming.
Enabling these options will help cut down on accidental data usage that can really add up if you’re not paying attention.
Conclusions
Backing up WhatsApp chats while data roaming is convenient but can be costly if you’re not careful. To recap:
- Only backup essential chats or use WiFi if available.
- Monitor your data usage closely.
- Disable roaming again once backup is complete.
- Limit WhatsApp data consumption.
With the right settings and vigilance, you can safely back up your WhatsApp chats while traveling internationally or outside your carrier’s network area. Just be cautious of unintended data charges.