WhatsApp is one of the most popular messaging apps, with over 2 billion users worldwide. It allows you to easily communicate with friends, family, coworkers, and more through end-to-end encrypted messages, calls, videos, photos, documents, and voice messages.
One handy feature in WhatsApp is the ability to delete chats. This can help you clear old conversations and messages that you no longer need or want. But what exactly happens when you delete a WhatsApp chat? Here, we’ll explain what deleting a chat does, as well as how to delete chats on both iPhone and Android.
Does Deleting a WhatsApp Chat Delete it For Everyone?
When you delete a WhatsApp chat, it is deleted from your device only. The chat is not deleted or removed from the phones of any other participants in the conversation. So deleting a chat only deletes it locally on your device – it does not delete the chat history or messages for anyone else you were chatting with.
Here are some key things to know about deleting WhatsApp chats:
- Deleting a chat removes it from your phone’s storage and WhatsApp interface. The messages will no longer be accessible to you.
- The chat will still exist on the phones of all other chat participants. They will still have access to the full message history.
- If you delete a chat and then re-add the contact later, the chat history will not reappear. The delete is permanent on your device.
- You cannot restore deleted WhatsApp chats on your device once they are deleted. The only way to access the messages again is if another chat participant sends you the messages.
- Deleting a chat does not notify other participants that you deleted the chat on your device.
So in summary, deleting a WhatsApp chat only deletes it from your device, and has no impact on the chat history or message availability for other participants in the conversation. It simply removes your local copy of the chat.
Does Deleting WhatsApp Chat Delete Media?
When you delete a WhatsApp chat, any media or files exchanged in that chat will also be deleted from your device storage. This includes:
- Photos
- Videos
- Documents
- Audio messages
- GIFs/stickers
If the chat contained any shared media, deleting the chat will remove the local copies of those media files from your device storage and WhatsApp media. However, the deletion only affects your local copies – other participants in the chat will still have the media you exchanged saved on their devices.
So if you want to delete shared photos, videos, or other files from your device, then deleting the WhatsApp chat is an effective way to remove all associated media. But keep in mind that other chat participants will still have access to those files if they saved them.
Does Deleting WhatsApp Chat Affect Chat Backups?
WhatsApp gives you the option to create local and cloud backups of your chats. This can be useful if you ever need to restore your chat history and messages.
If you delete a WhatsApp chat, it will be permanently deleted from any future local backups created on your device. So the chat will be removed from any local WhatsApp backups going forward.
However, your remote cloud backups are unaffected. If the deleted chat had already been backed up to your Google Drive or iCloud prior to deletion, then a copy of the chat may still exist in your cloud backups. The chat will remain recoverable from the cloud even after being deleted from your device.
To fully purge a chat from all backups, you would need to not only delete the chat, but also go into your cloud backup settings and delete the associated backup. This would prevent you from ever restoring that chat through your cloud backup.
How to Delete WhatsApp Chats on iPhone
Here are the steps to delete WhatsApp chats on an iPhone:
- Open the WhatsApp app and go to the Chats tab.
- Swipe right on the chat you want to delete.
- Tap Delete.
- Confirm the deletion by tapping Delete again.
The chat will now be removed from your iPhone’s WhatsApp storage. Repeat these steps for any other chats you want to delete.
Delete Chats Using WhatsApp Menu
You can also delete chats using the WhatsApp menu:
- Open WhatsApp and tap the Settings tab.
- Go to Chats > Delete All Chats.
- Tap the chats you want to delete so a checkmark appears.
- Tap Delete to confirm.
Delete Media to Free Up Space
If you want to bulk delete media like photos and videos, go to Settings > Data and Storage Usage > Storage Usage. Here you can review large files and delete them to free up space.
How to Delete WhatsApp Chats on Android
Here is how to delete WhatsApp chats on an Android device:
- Open WhatsApp and go to Chats.
- Tap and hold the chat you want to delete.
- Tap the trash icon at the top of the screen.
- Confirm the deletion by tapping Delete.
This will remove the chat from your Android device. Repeat these steps to delete additional chats as needed.
Delete Chats Using Menu
You can also delete WhatsApp chats using the menu:
- Open WhatsApp and tap the 3-dot menu.
- Go to Settings > Chats > Delete all chats.
- Select the chats to delete.
- Tap Delete and confirm.
Clear Media Storage
To clear cached media files, go to Settings > Data and Storage Usage > Storage Usage. Tap items to delete them and free up space.
Conclusion
Deleting WhatsApp chats removes the messages and media from your local device storage only. The chat history still exists for other participants you messaged. Important things to remember include:
- Deleted chats cannot be recovered on your device.
- Chats are deleted from your future local backups.
- Cloud backups retain the deleted chats until removed.
- Media such as photos and videos are deleted when you delete chats.
- You can free up space by deleting large media files.
Overall, deleting WhatsApp chats provides a way to manage your storage and remove conversations you no longer need quick access to. But keep in mind the chat history is not deleted for recipients. Delete chats carefully as they cannot be retrieved on your device once removed.