Facebook Messenger allows you to have conversations with friends, family, coworkers, and more. It can be frustrating when you accidentally delete a chat that you wanted to keep. The good news is that there are a few different methods you can try to recover deleted Facebook Messenger chats.
Can You Recover Deleted Facebook Messenger Chats?
Yes, it is possible to recover deleted Facebook Messenger chats in many cases. However, it depends on a few factors:
- How long ago the messages were deleted
- If you have chat history enabled in your Facebook account settings
- If you previously connected your Facebook account to another app that stores chat history
Facebook Messenger does not have a built-in feature to recover deleted chats. So you need to use third party apps or your device’s backup to restore chats. The sooner you try to recover deleted messages, the better chance you have of getting them back.
Method 1: Use a Chat History App
One of the easiest ways to recover deleted Facebook messages is by using a chat history app. These apps connect to your Facebook account and automatically create backups of your conversations. Here are some top apps to restore deleted Messenger chats:
WAMR
WAMR is a highly rated app available for iOS and Android. When you install it, WAMR will backup all your existing and future Messenger conversations. To recover deleted chats, simply install WAMR again and login to your Facebook account. WAMR will sync and restore any deleted messages from its cloud backup.
Messenger Backup & Restore
Messenger Backup & Restore is a free Android app with over 100 million downloads. After installing it, you can backup Messenger chats daily, weekly or monthly. It also automatically saves your media. If you delete chats, just reinstall the app to recover them from the backup.
Backuptrans
Backuptrans is popular software for backing up and restoring Messenger chats on your computer. It works for both Windows and Mac. Connect your Facebook account to backup chats. Then you can easily restore any accidentally deleted messages by retrieving the backup.
Method 2: Use Your Device’s Backup
If you regularly backup your device, you may be able to recover deleted Facebook Messenger chats from the backup. Here’s how for iPhone and Android:
iPhone Backup
Connect your iPhone to your computer and open iTunes. Go to Preferences > Devices and select your device. Click to create a backup. After the backup completes, you can use free software like iMazing to extract a Messenger chat archive from the backup files and restore chats.
Android Backup
On Android, your chats may be included in your Google account backup or other services like Samsung Cloud. Connect to these backups from your phone to see if you can find archived Messenger data. Third party apps like SyncMate can also pull Messenger chats from an Android backup.
Method 3: Retrieve From Facebook Data
Facebook allows you to download an archive of your Facebook data. This includes your posts, photos, videos, and more. It may also contain some of your deleted Messenger chats.
To download your Facebook data archive:
- Go to Facebook Settings
- Click on Your Facebook Information in the left sidebar
- Select Download Your Information
- Click on Deleted Messages in the Available Information section
- Click Create File to have Facebook email you a download link when ready
Once downloaded, search through the JSON files for any recoverable Messenger chat data.
Method 4: Ask the Person You Chatted With
If you deleted a chat with an important person, you can try asking them if they still have the conversation. They may have chat history enabled or use an app to backup Messenger. Ask them to send you screenshots or forward you the chat if they can recover it.
How to Prevent Accidental Chat Deletions
To avoid having to recover deleted Facebook chats, there are some precautions you can take:
- Enable chat history in Facebook settings so your messages sync to the cloud
- Regularly backup your device and Messenger chats
- Use a third party app to automatically backup new messages
- Be more careful about which chats you delete
- Turn on Messenger chat heads to keep conversations handy
What If I Can’t Recover a Chat?
If you’ve exhausted all options and still can’t recover a deleted Messenger conversation, here are some last resort ideas:
- Contact Facebook support to see if they can help restore chats. But they likely won’t have access to your deleted messages.
- Try data recovery software to scan your hard drive. This costs money and may not work.
- Accept the chat is gone, but ask the person to resend important info or media.
Conclusion
As you can see, it is possible to recover deleted Facebook Messenger chats in many cases if you act quickly enough and have backups. Enable chat history, connect with a third party app, and regularly backup your device to make sure your conversations stay safe. With so much important communication happening on Messenger, restoring your chats can save you from lost memories and important information.