How To Retrieve Deleted Messages On Snapchat Iphone

One of the features that have endeared social media users to Snapchat is the automatic deletion of messages. By design, all messages sent via the platform are deleted as soon as the sender and receiver leave the chat. This significantly eases privacy concerns and can help you let your friends in on your most private moments without leaving behind much of a digital footprint.

How To Recover Deleted Messages from a Snapchat Account [iPhone & Android]

However, there are times when you may want to retrieve those old messages. It could be a memorable chat with a loved one, contact details for a client, or even information that could be useful in legal matters.

So, how can you get those old messages back? In this guide, we'll show you how to recover deleted messages on Snapchat.

Why is Recovering Messages in Snapchat More Difficult?

Snapchat has been at the forefront in giving social media users more control over the content they send out, including text, photos, and videos. The platform is one of the few social media platforms that use ephemeral messaging. But what's that?

Ephemeral messaging is a type of chat or conversation that self-destructs. Messages automatically delete after the receiver has opened and viewed them.

With ephemeral messaging, you can control how long a message will last in someone's inbox, a feature that's hardly afforded by ordinary text or chat programs. It allows you to send thoughts you would otherwise keep to yourself if you knew they might stay around longer and, quite possibly, come back to haunt you.

Additionally, sending messages that self-destruct means you're able to save storage space on your device. You won't have to delete some items manually every few days to free up space and keep your device running optimally.

On the downside, Snapchat's ephemeral messaging means you can lose valuable data as quickly as you receive it. There may be messages you'll want to hold on to for longer. It can be anything, from memorable photos, catchy text to work progress reports.

Although the Snapchat app doesn't offer a way to retrieve these messages from within your chats, you can easily get your hands on any message you've ever sent, thanks to a few workarounds.

Let's dive in and see how you can recover deleted messages depending on the type of device you're using.

How To Recover Deleted Snapchat Messages from an Android Phone

If you own an Android device, you can easily recover deleted Snapchat messages in several ways:

Method 1: Opening Your Device's Cache

Before trying anything complex, you may want to use your Android's built-in recovery tools.

Whenever you close Snapchat or any other app on your phone, Android devices are programmed to discard recent memory immediately, and you'll have to reload the app to run it once more. This can be time-consuming if your data connection isn't strong and could cause delays, screen freezes, crashes, power problems, and more. To avoid these problems, your phone caches some content for quick access.

Android cache memory retains recently used or "hot" data that would otherwise require a slow retrieval from an over-crowded storage medium. It also stores infrequently accessed information close to the CPU, where it is more readily available for immediate access. Most importantly, your Snapchat messages are temporarily cached soon after they've been deleted in your chats.

Here's how to recover deleted messages from your device's cache memory:

Connect your Android device to a PC using a USB cable.
Once your PC has recognized your device, open your device's settings folder and navigate to "Android."
Click on "Data."
Look for a file named "com.Snapchat.android"
Open the cache folder and select the messages you'd like to retrieve.
Click on "Recover."

After taking these steps, you'll be able to recover your messages and view them without the usual restrictions. However, you can only recover the most recent messages using this method. Older cached data is discarded as time goes by.

Method 2: Using File Manager

If you don't have a PC, you can still retrieve deleted messages from your phone's internal memory. Here's how:

Open File Manager on your device. If you don't have File Manager installed on your device, you can easily get a copy on Google Play.
Navigate to "Android."
Click on "Data."
Open the file named "com.snapchat.android."
Rename all files with the ".nomedia" extension.
After renaming all the files, you should be able to open any file you want and view your messages.

Method 3: Lodging a Data Request With Snapchat

Snapchat understands you may want to view some of your messages after they've auto-deleted. Therefore, they've set up a data recovery page where you can conveniently retrieve all types of data exchanged through your account, including photos, text, and videos.

Here's how to use the Snapchat data recovery too to recover your messages:

Visit the Snapchat My Data page and enter your credentials.
After signing in, you should be automatically redirected to the "My Data" page, where you'll be presented with a list of data items that can be recovered. Select the items you'd like to retrieve.
Tap on "Submit Request."
After lodging a data request, Snapchat admins will immediately dive into your archives to fetch the data you've requested. You'll then receive the data via email, usually in zipped format.
Once you've received the zip file, tap and hold on it and then select "Extract."
Navigate to the folder holding the extracted files and open a file named "Mydata."
Tap on the "index.html" file. You'll now be able to view all your deleted Snapchat messages.

Method 4: Using Dedicated Third-Party Recovery Tools

If you don't want to recover your Snapchat messages using the manual methods we've discussed, you'll be pleased to learn that there are third-party apps that can do all the work for you. Although there are several options to choose from, Android Data Recovery Tool is widely recommended. Here's how to use it:

Download and install Android Data Recovery on your PC.
Launch the software and click on "Data Recovery."
Connect your Android device to your PC.
After the software detects your Android device, you should be able to see a list of the types of data you'd like to recover displayed on the screen.
Check the box next to "Messages" and click on "Next."
Click on "Recover all files" and click on "Next."
At this point, the software will scan your device for all deleted messages and then display all the recoverable data. All you need to do is click on the "Recover" button next to an item to recover it and save it on your computer.

Recover Deleted Messages Snapchat on an iPhone

If you own an iPhone or any other device in the larger iOS family, you can easily recover deleted snaps thanks to third-party tools. Although there are several alternatives, we'll look at two of the most popular apps: FoneLab and iBeesoft iPhone Data Recovery.

Method 1: Using FoneLab

FoneLab was first launched to help iPhone users recover their data from a dead or malfunctioning handset. It now offers a wider range of different services, including device repair, file backup services, and anything related to Apple devices.

Here's how to use this tool to recover lost Snapchat messages:

Download and install FoneLab on your PC.
Connect your iPhone to your PC using a USB cable.
Once the software detects your device, a "Start Scan" button will appear on your iPhone's screen. Tap on it to initiate the recovery process.
Once the scan is complete, all recoverable items will be displayed on your screen. Select "Snapchat Messages."
Select the messages you'd like to recover and then tap on "Recover."
Choose the destination folder and then wait as the software retrieves your messages.

Method 2: Using iBeesoft iPhone Data Recovery

iBeesoft iPhone Data Recovery is professional iOS data recovery software for all Apple mobile devices. It offers quick retrieving of photos, messages, contacts, text notes, videos, and more. Here's how to use the software to recover your snaps:

Download and install the software on your PC.
Connect your iPhone to your PC using a USB cable.
Once the software detects your device, a "Recover From iOS Device" button will appear on your PC's screen. Click on it to initiate the recovery process.
Click on "Scan" to confirm.
Once the scan is complete, all recoverable items will be sorted into categories and displayed on your screen.
Select "Snapchat Messages" and then click on "Recover."
One of the best things about the iBeesoft iPhone Data Recovery app is that you can also recover data from your iTunes or iCloud backups. You just have to select the desired source while initiating the recovery process. For example, to recover items from your iTunes backups, simply click on "Recover from iTunes" in step three above.

Recover Your Messages Safely and Securely

If you have deleted a message on Snapchat and want it back, both built-in and third-party tools can help. That said, it's important to pick a trusted tool that won't corrupt your messages or even damage the rest of the data on your device.

Have you tried recovering your Snapchat messages using any of the methods discussed in this article? We'd love to hear about it. Please share your experience in the comments section below.