Quick Answer
The WhatsApp media folder contains all of your chat media like photos, videos, voice messages, etc. that are sent and received in WhatsApp chats. The location of this folder depends on your device:
| Device | Media Folder Location |
|---|---|
| iPhone | Internal Storage > WhatsApp > Media |
| Android | Internal Storage > WhatsApp > Media |
| Windows Phone | SD Card > WhatsApp > Media |
So in summary, the WhatsApp media folder is inside the WhatsApp app folder on your device’s internal storage for iPhone and Android. For Windows phones, it is located on the SD card.
What is the WhatsApp Media Folder?
The WhatsApp media folder, sometimes also called the WhatsApp media library, contains all the media files like photos, videos, voice messages, animations, etc. that are exchanged between you and your contacts over WhatsApp chats.
Whenever you send or receive any media files over WhatsApp, they get saved to this folder automatically. So this folder contains the entire collection of media that has been shared with you on WhatsApp.
Some key things to note about the WhatsApp media folder:
- It contains media sent and received by you in various WhatsApp chats
- The media includes photos, videos, voice notes, GIFs, documents, animations, etc.
- Media that you download and save from WhatsApp also goes to this folder
- On Android and iPhone, it is inside the WhatsApp/Media folder
- On Windows phones, it is on the SD card in WhatsApp/Media
- The media is organized by date and chat
Having all your WhatsApp media in one centralized folder makes it easy to find and manage all the files exchanged over chats.
Where is the WhatsApp Media Folder Located?
The exact location of your WhatsApp media folder depends on the device and platform you are using WhatsApp on. Here are the locations for different devices:
iPhone
On iPhones, the WhatsApp media folder is located in the internal storage at:
Internal Storage > WhatsApp > Media
So you need to open up the Files app on your iPhone and go to the WhatsApp folder. Inside that is the Media folder where all your photos, videos, documents etc. shared on WhatsApp chats are saved.
Android Phones
For Android phones, the WhatsApp media folder location is:
Internal Storage > WhatsApp > Media
You can access it using any file manager app on your Android phone. Go to the internal storage, then open the WhatsApp folder, and finally the Media folder inside it.
Some Android smartphone brands like Samsung, Xiaomi, Vivo, etc. also have their own respective file manager apps that you can use.
Windows Phones
On Windows phones, the WhatsApp media folder is saved on the external SD card at:
SD Card > WhatsApp > Media
So open the File Explorer on your Windows phone, go to the SD card folder, then open WhatsApp and you will find the Media folder inside it containing your WhatsApp media.
WhatsApp Web/Desktop App
If you use WhatsApp Web accessed through a browser or the desktop app on your PC, then your WhatsApp media gets saved at this location on your computer:
C:\Users\[UserName]\AppData\Roaming\WhatsApp\Media
Here [UserName] is your Windows user account name.
So the WhatsApp media folder location may vary across devices but it is always inside the WhatsApp -> Media folder.
Different Types of Media Saved in the WhatsApp Media Folder
The WhatsApp media folder contains all the different types of media files that you can send and receive on WhatsApp. This includes:
- Photos – All photos sent and received on WhatsApp chats are saved here.
- Videos – Any videos exchanged on WhatsApp will be available in this folder.
- Voice messages – All voice messages are saved as audio files (.ogg) in the media folder.
- Documents – Word, PDF or other documents sent on WhatsApp are stored here.
- GIFs and animations – WhatsApp GIFs and video animations are also saved here.
- Wallpapers – Any chat wallpapers you download from WhatsApp also go to the media folder.
- WhatsApp Status photos/videos – Media files saved from status updates also appear here.
Apart from the above, any other media sent and received on WhatsApp will be found in the media folder for easy access.
Viewing and Managing Your WhatsApp Media
Once you know the location of the WhatsApp media folder on your phone, you can easily access it to view, manage and use the media files saved there:
- Open the folder location and browse through all your WhatsApp media like photos, videos, etc.
- Check media files exchanged with a particular chat by navigating to their chat folder.
- Search for a particular media file by date or filename.
- Save media files like photos or videos to your device gallery.
- Delete old media that you don’t need anymore to free up space.
- Copy media files to a computer or export them for backup.
- Check how much storage space is occupied by WhatsApp media.
The great thing is that all your WhatsApp media is neatly organized and available in one place for quick and easy access.
You can also manage your WhatsApp media folder space by:
- Deleting old, unwanted media
- Backing up media to a computer to free up space
- Changing WhatsApp settings to save less media to this folder
- Using a memory card on Android phones to store WhatsApp media
Backing up Your WhatsApp Media
As the WhatsApp media folder contains all your important photos, videos and files exchanged on WhatsApp, it is essential to back it up regularly.
Here are some ways to backup your WhatsApp media:
Google Drive Backup (Android only)
– WhatsApp has an inbuilt Google Drive backup option on Android phones.
– It can backup your WhatsApp media folder along with chats to Google Drive.
– Enable it in WhatsApp Settings > Chats > Chat Backup.
Local Backup
– You can manually copy the WhatsApp Media folder to your computer or an external hard drive via USB cable or memory card.
– This will save a local backup of your media library that you can restore later.
iCloud Backup (iPhone only)
– On iPhones, you can enable iCloud backups in iOS Settings to backup your WhatsApp media.
– WhatsApp media will get included in the iCloud backup of your iPhone storage.
Third-party apps
– Apps like iTransor, Dr. Fone, PhoneTrans, iSkysoft Toolbox can backup WhatsApp media from iPhone and Android phones.
Restoring WhatsApp Media from Backup
If you lose your WhatsApp media due to uninstalling the app, switching phones, etc. you can restore it from the backups:
- For Google Drive backup – uninstall and reinstall WhatsApp on your Android phone and restore chats.
- For local backup – simply copy back the WhatsApp Media folder to your device’s internal storage from the computer.
- For iCloud backup – restore your iPhone from the iCloud backup during phone setup or via Settings.
- For 3rd party apps – use the restore feature in those apps to get back your WhatsApp media.
This way you can get back your lost WhatsApp photos, videos, documents, etc. quite easily using the backups.
Frequently Asked Questions
Q1. Can I view WhatsApp media files on my computer?
Yes, you can view and download WhatsApp media files from your phone to a computer using WhatsApp Web by linking your phone to it or using third-party phone data transfer software.
Q2. Is my WhatsApp media folder backed up on Google Drive or iCloud?
WhatsApp media folder is backed up to Google Drive on Android if you have chat backup enabled. For iPhones, it gets backed up on iCloud along with the rest of your phone data.
Q3. Can I find deleted WhatsApp media in the folder?
No, any media files deleted within WhatsApp chats do not remain saved in the WhatsApp media folder. Only existing and not deleted files appear.
Q4. How do I make space if my WhatsApp media folder is too large?
You can delete unwanted media, export files to computer, use external SD card storage on Android or manage space from WhatsApp Settings > Storage Usage.
Q5. Is my WhatsApp media folder encrypted?
Yes, the WhatsApp media folder is encrypted using end-to-end encryption for chats. The encryption key is only available on your device.
Conclusion
The WhatsApp media folder is a centralized location that stores all your WhatsApp media files like photos, videos, voice messages, documents etc. that are exchanged on chats. It is present inside the WhatsApp/Media folder on your device storage. Knowing its location allows you to easily access your WhatsApp media library to view, export, backup or delete files. Remember to backup your important media from this folder regularly to avoid losing your WhatsApp memories. Manage your WhatsApp media wisely by deleting old unwanted files, exporting to a computer and enabling backups. This will ensure your media folder doesn’t take up too much space while keeping your media safe.