Is your WhatsApp export missing old messages or voice notes?
How to check what's in your export.
By Chantal, founder of EM -
A WhatsApp export doesn't always hold the whole conversation. A long chat can begin later than you expect, and an export with media only includes the most recent media. The only way to know is to open the file and look. It takes about five minutes, and I'll show you how below.
Imagine exporting a WhatsApp chat you've kept for years, only to find that the exported messages don't begin from the same period as the actual conversation on your phone. Or you want to keep a voice note that you would love to hear again, but it isn't among the files exported.
That's the last thing you want with a chat from someone important to you. So it's worth checking what WhatsApp actually exported, and doing it every now and then, not only when you need it.
I always assumed that if I exported a WhatsApp chat, with or without media, it would export everything. Then I came across an article quoting limits of around 40,000 recent messages without media and 10,000 with media. After some searching, I found those same figures reported across quite a few independent articles and blogs.
Interestingly, though, WhatsApp doesn't publish those limits itself. What its Help Center does say is that an export with media attaches 'the most recent media sent'. It doesn't say that every photo, video or voice note from the full life of the conversation will be included.
So the exact numbers are vague, and they could change. But the bottom line is that there's no guarantee you'll get all of your messages, voice notes or images either. The one thing that does seem consistent is that an export without media reaches further back than one with media.
This means that any messages from before the first date in your export are still in WhatsApp, but only there, and are at risk of being lost if they aren't backed up. So it's worth checking that your WhatsApp backup is switched on.
Why it's worth exporting more than once
An export reaches back from today, so the oldest messages slowly move out of reach, and an export you make this year can hold messages that next year's export could no longer include.
That's why I'd suggest exporting the conversations that matter to you regularly, and keeping the older files. Together they cover more than any single one.
After exporting your chat, open the zipped folder on a computer. (It is possible on a phone, but searching the text file is much harder.)
- Open the export. An export with media usually saves as a zip file. Unzip it and look for the text file, which holds the chat history. The photos, videos and voice notes will all be in the same folder.
- Check how far back it goes. Open the text file and read the very first line. That date is where your export begins. Is it as far back as you expected?
- See which voice notes came with it. Search the text file for '.opus', which is the file type WhatsApp uses for voice notes. The first result is the oldest voice note in the export.
Tip: On iPhone the text file is called '_chat.txt'. On Android it's called 'WhatsApp Chat with …' (followed by the person's name).
Tip: If you exported the chat without media, you will see 'Media omitted' or 'audio omitted', which is WhatsApp's way of indicating that something was sent here that this export doesn't include.
This is the part that confused me most. When you open the zipped folder, the voice notes are just a long list of files with names like a serial number. Nothing tells you which one is the one you're looking for.
That serial number actually links each voice note to its exact place in the text file, where you will see who sent it and the name of the file. It will look something like this:
Android
15/03/2024, 09:41 - Sam: PTT-20240315-WA0003.opus (file attached)iPhone
[15/03/2024, 09:41:22] Sam: <attached: 00000123-AUDIO-2024-03-15-09-41-22.opus>So you find the moment first, and the file second:
- Search the text file for the date you remember, or for a few words from the messages around it.
- Read the conversation until you reach the voice note's line. The messages before and after it will help you recognise it.
- Note the file name on that line, then open the folder with the .opus files and look for that name.
Tip: The date is in the file name too, so if you only remember the day, you can sort the folder by name and go straight to it, or listen to all the voice notes from that day.
How EM helps you keep more of your chats together
What EM can do is help you keep and return to the messages and audio you do have, instead of leaving them scattered across export files and folders. EM lets you upload both versions of the same WhatsApp chat and merges the overlapping messages, so that there are no duplicates, as long as both files keep the chat's name as WhatsApp gave it. This way, you don't have to choose between exporting a chat of 40,000 recent messages without media or 10,000 with media. You can export both from WhatsApp, upload both into EM and see them as one conversation. As time goes by you can re-upload your latest history to keep it up to date, and doing this will keep your accessible message history well above the reported 40,000 message limit.
With EM, you don't need to unzip anything or try to match file names either. EM does all of that work for you. You simply upload the zip file exactly as WhatsApp gave it to you. Keeping and playing back voice notes is part of EM Premium.
Does a WhatsApp export include all my messages?
Not always. Long chats can be cut off at the oldest end, so the export begins later than the conversation did. Open the text file and check the date on the first line.
How many messages can WhatsApp export?
WhatsApp doesn't publish a number. The figures most often reported are around 40,000 messages without media and around 10,000 with media, but treat them as estimates and check your own file.
Why is my WhatsApp export missing voice notes?
Either the chat was exported without media, or the voice note is older than the media WhatsApp included. An export with media only attaches the most recent media.
How do I find a specific voice note in a WhatsApp export?
Find the moment in the text file. The voice note's line shows the name of its audio file. Then open the file with that name in the export folder.
Does exporting a chat delete anything from WhatsApp?
No. An export is a copy. Your messages and media stay in WhatsApp.
Can EM recover a voice note that isn't in my export?
No. EM can only keep what is in the files you upload. It can bring several exports of the same chat together, so you keep everything those files hold.
WhatsApp's export behaviour and limits may change at any time, and the contents of an export can vary. Always check your own files before assuming they hold a complete conversation. EM is an independent app and is not affiliated with WhatsApp.