What is the problem?
Sometimes WhatsApp messages can be lost or deleted from your iPhone, even if you have iCloud backup enabled. This can happen for various reasons:
- You disabled iCloud backup for WhatsApp at some point
- Your iCloud storage was full when the last backup occurred
- Your phone had connectivity issues during the last backup
- You recently got a new iPhone and didn’t properly restore from iCloud
- The app glitched and failed to backup properly
Fortunately, even if your WhatsApp messages are not on iCloud, there are still ways to try recovering and restoring them.
Check iCloud Backups First
Before trying any advanced recovery methods, double check that your WhatsApp messages are truly not in iCloud:
- Open the Settings app on your iPhone
- Tap on your Apple ID banner at the top
- Select iCloud > Manage Storage > Backups
- Select your device backup
- Look for the WhatsApp backup size – if it’s >0 MB, messages exist!
If you do see WhatsApp data in your iCloud backup, you can restore from it to retrieve missing messages:
- Delete and reinstall WhatsApp
- When prompted, tap Restore from iCloud Backup
- Select the backup with your messages
This will overwrite your current WhatsApp data with the iCloud backup version, restoring any missing messages.
Try Third-Party iOS Data Recovery Software
If WhatsApp messages are nowhere to be found in iCloud, your best bet is a dedicated iOS data recovery program. These powerful software solutions can scan your iPhone’s internal storage for residual data from deleted WhatsApp messages. They search for chat logs, media files, and attachment fragments that may remain.
Here are the top 3 WhatsApp recovery software options to try:
| Software | Price | Key Features |
|---|---|---|
| iMyFone iBypasser | $35.95 one-time purchase | – Retrieve 1500+ types of lost iOS data – User-friendly interface – Detect residual WhatsApp data |
| Fonelab | $69.95 one-time purchase | – Scan iPhone directly or from iTunes backup – Preview recoverable WhatsApp data – Export chats, photos, videos |
| Tenorshare UltData | $39.95 one-time purchase | – iPhone, iPad, iPod Touch supported – Flexible scan filters – Save data directly back to device |
These programs provide an extensive scan of your iPhone’s storage that can uncover WhatsApp data lingering in the system. Even if not visible in the app, fragments often remain that can be restored.
How iOS Recovery Software Works
iOS data recovery software works by creating an SSH connection with your iPhone to bypass the standard sync process. This gives the program direct access to every bit on your device’s storage.
It can then forensically scan chat databases, media files, and other data for pieces of deleted WhatsApp messages. Advanced algorithms piece these fragments back together into complete, readable conversations.
The software also utilizes caching techniques to speed up the recovery process. Overall, you can expect to get back 10-30% of deleted WhatsApp data from a thorough iOS scan.
Using WhatsApp Recovery Software
The process of using WhatsApp recovery software follows these basic steps:
- Download, install, and launch the program on your computer
- Connect your iPhone to the computer via USB cable
- The software will detect your device and prompt you to begin
- Select the WhatsApp chat data types you wish to scan for
- Let the deep scan run – this can take 1-2 hours
- Preview and select the WhatsApp messages to recover
- Save the restored data back to your iPhone or export it
Be sure to close all apps and disable passcodes on your iPhone for the duration of the scan. Also, do not disconnect the USB cable prematurely.
Ask Friends to Send You Chat History
Another option is to ask your WhatsApp contacts to send you back your own chat history with them. Friends you frequently message may still have portions of your conversations on their phones.
You can request them to:
- Open the WhatsApp chat with your number
- Tap and hold to select portions of the conversation
- Tap the forward arrow and send you selections
Reacquiring even parts of chats this way can help restore vital communications. Just beware that any media will be compressed when forwarded.
Find Local WhatsApp Backups on Computer
WhatsApp automatically saves daily backups on computers when you connect a phone with the app open. These get stored in internal user folders unless configured otherwise.
You can browse to these folders and dig up old WhatsApp backups:
- Windows: C:\Users\[USERNAME]\AppData\Roaming\WhatsApp\Databases
- Mac: ~/Library/Application Support/WhatsApp/Databases/
Look for the most recent files ending in .crypt12. Copy these to another location on your computer and don’t modify them. Then install and use a free decryption tool such as Crypt12 to convert them into readable SQL databases containing your messages.
The verifiable timestamps on local backups can also help restore chats in the correct sequence.
Retrieve Deleted WhatsApp Messages from Google Drive
Google Drive can serve as a backup source for WhatsApp if configured as such under WhatsApp > Settings > Chats > Chat Backup.
Even after deleting WhatsApp itself, the linked Google Drive account retains chat data for up to 60 days in the WhatsApp folder:
- Drive.google.com > Backups > WhatsApp
- WhatsApp > Databases > MsgStore.db.crypt12
Download this database file, decrypt it, and open in SQLite browser to view deleted WhatsApp messages recovered from Google Drive.
Export WhatsApp Chats to Documents Before Deleting
To avoid ever losing WhatsApp data, regularly export important chats to your computer for safe keeping. Here’s how:
- Open the particular chat in WhatsApp
- Tap More > Export Chat > Without Media
- Select a destination folder on your computer
- The chat history saves as a text file
You can also email chats to yourself or transfer them to document apps like Google Docs. Having these exports prevents total data loss.
Conclusion
While accidental WhatsApp message deletion can be frustrating, there are ways to recover and restore conversations that are not backed up on iCloud. Saving chat exports manually provides protection for the future. In the meantime, specialized iOS data recovery software, local backups, friends, and Google Drive can help retrieve your lost WhatsApp history. With some effort, you can often recover at least portions of deleted WhatsApp data from an iPhone.