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How to restore exported WhatsApp chat on Android from iPhone?

WhatsApp is one of the most popular messaging apps, with over 2 billion users worldwide. It allows easy communication between Android and iOS devices. However, when switching between operating systems, restoring your chat history can be tricky. In this article, we will provide a step-by-step guide on how to restore your exported WhatsApp chats from an iPhone backup to an Android device.

Requirements

To restore your WhatsApp chats from iPhone to Android, you will need:

– Your iPhone with the WhatsApp backup
– An Android device
– A Lightning to USB cable to connect your iPhone to a computer
– A computer with iTunes installed
– Google Drive desktop app (for Mac/Windows)

Backing Up WhatsApp Chats on iPhone

Before beginning the transfer process, you need to back up your iPhone’s WhatsApp data. Here are the steps:

Using iCloud Backup

1. Open WhatsApp on your iPhone
2. Go to Settings > Chats > Chat Backup > Back Up Now
3. This will back up your most recent WhatsApp chats and media to iCloud

Using iTunes on Computer

1. Connect your iPhone to your computer using a Lightning cable
2. Open iTunes on the computer
3. Under Backups, select “This Computer”
4. Click Back Up Now to backup your iPhone data, including WhatsApp, to your computer

Once you’ve backed up your WhatsApp chats, you can move on to restoring them on your Android device.

Preparing Your Android Device

Before restoring WhatsApp chats on your Android phone, follow these pre-requisites:

– Make sure your Android phone meets WhatsApp’s system requirements
– Download and install the latest version of WhatsApp from the Play Store
– Make sure your Android device has enough storage space for the WhatsApp backup
– Your phone should be connected to Wi-Fi for a smooth restore process
– Insert the SIM card you used with your iPhone into your Android device
– Backup any existing WhatsApp chats on your Android phone to Google Drive to avoid overwrite issues

With these steps completed, you can now move on to the restore process.

Restoring from iCloud Backup

To restore WhatsApp chats from an iCloud backup:

1. Install the Google Drive app on your iPhone
2. Open Google Drive and sign-in with the Google account you want to restore your backup to
3. Tap the menu button and select Settings
4. Enable the option to “Backup and sync iOS WhatsApp chats”
5. A popup will appear asking you to confirm the Google account to sync the chats with. Tap Continue.
6. WhatsApp chats and media will begin syncing from iCloud to your Google Drive account. This may take some time depending on the size of your backup.
7. Once sync is complete, install WhatsApp on your Android device
8. When prompted, enter the same Google account you used for Drive sync
9. WhatsApp will notify you that it found a backup and ask if you want to restore. Tap Restore to complete the process.
10. All your chats, messages, and media will be restored on your device.

Restoring from iTunes Backup

To import WhatsApp chats from an iTunes backup:

1. Connect your iPhone to your computer and open iTunes
2. Select your device and go to File Sharing > WhatsApp > Save to…
3. Save the WhatsApp database file (ending .crypt12) to your computer
4. Download the Google Drive app for desktop and sign-in to your Google account
5. Go to the WhatsApp folder and upload the .crypt12 file
6. Install WhatsApp on your Android phone and sign-in using the same Google account
7. When prompted, tap Restore to transfer your chats and media from the Google Drive backup.

Verifying Restored Chats

Once the restore process is complete, open WhatsApp on your Android device to verify your chats have been transferred successfully:

– Check your message threads, media attachments, and chat history
– Confirm names and profile pictures of your contacts
– Verify group names, members, and chat history
– Send a test message to confirm sending/receiving works
– Check settings to ensure all preferences carried over

If any data seems out of date, incomplete, or missing, you may need to restore again from your iPhone backup.

Troubleshooting Tips

Here are some troubleshooting tips if you encounter problems restoring your WhatsApp chats:

Issue Solution
Chats not restoring
  • Make sure you completed the backup process on your iPhone before restoring
  • Check that you are restoring using the same Apple ID or Google account used for backup
  • Force close WhatsApp and try restoring again
  • Clear WhatsApp data on your Android and re-attempt restore
Restored chats out of order
  • This is expected behavior as WhatsApp restores recent chats first
  • Give it some time to complete restoring all chat history in background
Media files not transferring
  • Ensure you have enough storage space on your Android device
  • Check that media backup was enabled in WhatsApp iOS settings
  • For large files, connect to WiFi for faster transfers
Missing chat history
  • Verify WhatsApp chats were properly backed up on your iPhone
  • Restore again using same Apple ID or Google account
  • Your chat history may be outdated if backup was very old

Additional Troubleshooting Tips

– Update WhatsApp to the latest version on both devices
– Free up storage space if phone memory is full
– Reboot both devices and try restoring again
– Clear app data/cache for WhatsApp and sync apps like Google Drive
– Switch to a stable WiFi or cellular data connection
– Use a different cable, computer port, or USB drive
– Contact WhatsApp support if issues persist after multiple restore attempts

FAQs

Is my chat history still retained on iPhone after transferring to Android?

Yes, restoring your WhatsApp chat history from an iPhone to Android device only copies the data to your new phone. Your chat history still remains available on your old iPhone unless you manually delete it.

Can I transfer WhatsApp chats directly from iPhone to Android?

Unfortunately, there is no way to directly transfer WhatsApp chats between an iPhone and Android phone. You need to first create a backup on your iPhone, then restore that backup to your Android device.

Will my WhatsApp call history transfer from iPhone to Android?

Your WhatsApp call history, including audio and video calls, will also get transferred from an iPhone backup to your Android device during the restore process.

Do I need to keep my iPhone after transferring WhatsApp to Android?

No, you don’t need to keep your iPhone after successfully transferring your WhatsApp data to Android. The chat history is safely extracted from the iPhone backup during the restore process.

Will my WhatsApp groups, media, and settings transfer too?

Yes, when restoring WhatsApp chat history from an iPhone to Android, your WhatsApp groups, all media files, and chat settings will also be transferred to your new Android phone.

Conclusion

Migrating WhatsApp chats from iPhone to Android can seem daunting, but is quite straightforward if you follow the right backup and restore steps. The key things to remember are:

– Create an iCloud or iTunes backup of WhatsApp chats on your iPhone before switching phones
– Use Google Drive to transfer this backup to your Android device
– Restore chats within WhatsApp on your Android using the same Google account
– Verify all your chats, messages, groups and media transferred successfully
– Troubleshoot any issues with incomplete restores by trying again

By following this guide, you can seamlessly transfer your WhatsApp data from iPhone to Android and enjoy continuous messaging across platforms. Don’t let switching smartphones disrupt your chat history – use these tips to take WhatsApp chats from iOS to Android in a few easy steps.