WhatsApp has become one of the most popular messaging apps, with over 2 billion users worldwide. It’s incredibly useful for staying in touch with friends and family. However, we’ve all sent messages we regret at some point or messages intended for someone else.
Thankfully, WhatsApp gives you the ability to delete sent messages before the recipient has a chance to see them. Here’s a comprehensive guide on how to delete a message on WhatsApp once you’ve sent it, across both iOS and Android devices.
Can You Delete a WhatsApp Message After Sending?
Yes, WhatsApp gives you a short window to delete messages after they are sent. However, this only works if the recipient has not already seen the message.
As soon as the message is delivered to the recipient’s device, they are able to view it in the chat. Once opened, deleting it from your device will not remove it from their chat screen.
However, if the message has been delivered but not yet read, deleting it will ensure the recipient never gets to view it.
How Long Do You Have to Delete a WhatsApp Message?
For both iOS and Android devices, you have approximately 1 hour, 8 minutes and 16 seconds to delete a WhatsApp message after sending it.
The exact time window depends on when the message status changes from “Sent” to “Delivered” on the recipient’s device. This triggers the countdown.
On average it takes under 2 minutes for a WhatsApp message to be delivered. So you can expect to have just over an hour to delete a message once you’ve sent it.
Can the Recipient Still See the Message if You Delete It Before They Read It?
No, if you delete a WhatsApp message before the recipient opens it, they will never see that message appear in the chat.
It will be as if you never sent it. The message is permanently deleted from their chat window.
How to Delete a Message on WhatsApp (iPhone)
If you need to remove a message you’ve sent from a WhatsApp chat on an iPhone, here is how to delete it:
- Open the WhatsApp chat the message was sent in
- Tap and hold the message you want to delete
- Tap the trash icon to delete the message
- Tap Delete message in the pop-up
The message will instantly disappear from your chat window. As long as the recipient hasn’t already viewed it, it will be deleted from their end as well.
Delete Multiple WhatsApp Messages on iPhone
You can also delete multiple WhatsApp messages in a chat at once on an iPhone. To do this:
- Open the WhatsApp chat
- Tap and hold the first message you want to delete until you see the trash icon
- Without lifting your finger, drag over all the messages you want to delete
- Lift your finger once the trash icon appears on all highlighted messages
- Tap Delete to confirm deleting the messages
How to Delete WhatsApp Messages on Android
Android also allows you to delete sent WhatsApp messages easily. Just follow these steps:
- Open the WhatsApp chat
- Long press the message to delete
- Tap the trash can icon
- Confirm deleting the message by tapping Delete
That’s all there is to it! The message will be removed from your chat window instantly.
Delete Multiple WhatsApp Messages on Android
You can delete multiple messages at once in WhatsApp for Android as well:
- Open the WhatsApp chat
- Long press the first message you want to delete
- Tap Select message
- Tap each additional message to delete so they become highlighted
- Tap the trash icon to delete all selected messages
- Confirm deleting by tapping Delete
How to Delete WhatsApp Messages for Everyone
What if you need to delete a message that the recipient has already seen? While you can delete it from your chat window, doing so won’t remove it on their end.
Thankfully, WhatsApp has a handy “Delete for Everyone” feature. This deletes sent messages for all participants in the chat.
However, there is a short time limit to use this feature after sending a message:
- Android: You have just over 1 hour after sending the message to delete it for everyone.
- iPhone: You only have roughly 10 minutes to delete the message for all chat members.
Delete WhatsApp Message for Everyone on iPhone
If you need to delete a sent WhatsApp message that the recipient has already seen from an iPhone, follow these steps:
- Open the WhatsApp chat
- Tap and hold the message you want to delete
- Tap the Delete for everyone option
- Confirm deleting the message by tapping Delete for everyone
The message will disappear from both your chat screen and the recipient’s screen.
Delete WhatsApp Message for Everyone on Android
Likewise, you can delete a previously seen WhatsApp message for all chat members on Android:
- Open the WhatsApp chat
- Long press the message you want to delete
- Tap Delete for everyone
- Confirm deleting the message by tapping Delete for everyone
This will instantly remove the message for all people in the chat.
Does WhatsApp Notify When You Delete a Message?
WhatsApp does not directly notify users when a message is deleted from a chat.
However, on both iOS and Android, a helpful indicator will show when a message has been removed:
- “This message was deleted” appears where the deleted message used to be.
- On group chats, it shows “This message was deleted by [sender’s name]”.
So while WhatsApp doesn’t directly alert users about deleted messages, the chat window does make it obvious when content has been removed.
Can You Recover Deleted WhatsApp Messages?
Unfortunately, when you delete a WhatsApp message, there is no built-in way to recover it. The app does not store or backup deleted messages.
However, there are a couple of ways you may be able to retrieve deleted WhatsApp messages:
- If you have a recent backup of your WhatsApp chats in Google Drive or iCloud, you can restore it to access deleted messages.
- There are some third-party apps available for Android devices that can recover deleted WhatsApp messages, provided you had the app installed before the message was deleted.
But there is no guarantee you can retrieve deleted messages from WhatsApp directly. The safest approach is to be careful when deleting messages and avoid removing anything important.
Can You Stop Others from Deleting WhatsApp Messages You Sent?
There is no way to prevent someone else from deleting WhatsApp messages you sent them. Since deleting for everyone removes the message entirely, that person has full control to delete your messages.
Your best options are:
- Use another messaging app like Signal or Telegram that does not allow deleting sent messages.
- Take screenshots to save important chat messages the other person may delete.
- Enable chat backups so you have a copy of deleted messages.
But ultimately, whether on iOS or Android, you cannot restrict someone else’s ability to delete your sent WhatsApp messages using the “Delete for everyone” option.
Can You Delete WhatsApp Messages On a Desktop?
Yes, you can also delete WhatsApp messages from a desktop computer by using WhatsApp Web or the desktop app.
The process of deleting messages on desktop is the same as on mobile:
- Open the chat window
- Hover over the message and click the trash icon to delete it
- Confirm deleting the message
This will instantly remove the message from your desktop chat window. As long as the recipient has not viewed it, it will also be deleted from their mobile devices.
You can also use the “Delete for everyone” option on desktop within 7 minutes of sending a message.
Conclusion
WhatsApp provides useful options for deleting sent messages before they are seen, as well as deleting them for all users if the content needs removing.
While the time limits to delete messages can be short, especially the 10 minute window to “Delete for Everyone” on iPhones, paying close attention allows you to remove regrettable or accidental messages.
Be mindful not to delete important chats as they cannot be recovered! But otherwise, judiciously using WhatsApp’s delete message features helps keep your communications tidy and mistake-free.