WhatsApp has become one of the most popular messaging apps, with over 2 billion users worldwide. It offers end-to-end encryption for messages, calls, photos, videos, documents, and voice messages between users. One of WhatsApp’s useful features is the ability to back up and restore chat history and media to services like iCloud. This can be invaluable if you ever lose, break or switch phones.
If you have an iPhone and use iCloud to back up WhatsApp, you can restore your messages if needed. But how long does this process take? The time varies depending on factors like your iCloud storage plan, Internet connection speed and the size of your WhatsApp backup.
WhatsApp Backup Size
The size of your WhatsApp backup can have a major impact on how long it takes to restore. Backups consist of your messages, media and other data. The more conversations, photos, videos and files you have, the larger the backup will be.
Some key stats on WhatsApp backup sizes:
– The average user’s backup is around 100MB.
– Backups max out at 12GB for users with a lot of media and chats.
– Text requires very little space, most of the size comes from media files.
– Video and photos take up the most space.
– Voice messages, documents and other files also contribute to size.
So if your backup is small, say under 500MB, it will restore faster than someone with 10+ GB of WhatsApp data.
iCloud Storage Plan
Your iCloud storage plan also affects restore time. iCloud offers these storage tiers:
| iCloud Plan | Storage Amount |
|---|---|
| Free | 5GB |
| 50GB | 50GB |
| 200GB | 200GB |
| 2TB | 2TB |
The free 5GB tier will have slower restore speeds than paid plans with 50GB, 200GB or 2TB of space. With more storage bandwidth, your WhatsApp backup can download faster to your device.
Internet Connection Speed
Your Internet connection speed has a major impact on WhatsApp restore time. Restoring requires downloading the backup file from iCloud to your phone.
Faster Internet connections like broadband, fiber and 5G will result in much quicker WhatsApp restores than slow connections. Some Internet speed benchmarks:
| Connection Type | Download Speed |
|---|---|
| Dial-up | Max 56Kbps |
| DSL | Max 15Mbps |
| Cable | Max 150Mbps |
| Fiber | Max 1Gbps |
| 5G | Max 10Gbps |
As you can see, DSL will be much slower than fiber. And 5G is incredibly fast if available in your area. The slower your speed, the longer WhatsApp restores will take.
WhatsApp Restore Process
Now that we’ve looked at factors that affect restore time, let’s go through the process to restore WhatsApp chats from an iCloud backup:
Step 1: Back Up WhatsApp to iCloud
First make sure you have a recent WhatsApp backup saved in iCloud:
– Open WhatsApp and go to Settings > Chats > Chat Backup.
– Select the option to back up to iCloud.
– Tap “Back Up Now” to manually create a new backup.
This makes sure your latest WhatsApp data is saved in iCloud before restoring.
Step 2: Erase or Get New iPhone
To test a restore, you’ll need to either erase your current iPhone or get a new one.
– If erasing, backup your iPhone to iCloud then choose the “Erase All Content and Settings” option.
– If switching to a new iPhone, simply set up the device as new without transferring any data.
This wipes the previous WhatsApp installation with no chat history.
Step 3: Install WhatsApp on iPhone
Download and install the latest version of WhatsApp from the App Store. WhatsApp should be installed on the blank/erased iPhone.
Step 4: Restore Chats from iCloud Backup
Now we can restore chats and media from the iCloud backup:
– Open WhatsApp and agree to the terms of service.
– On the screen asking how to restore existing chats, select “Restore from iCloud Backup”.
– Choose the desired backup from the list of dates.
– Tap Next and wait for the restore process to complete.
WhatsApp will download the iCloud backup and restore your messages, media, settings and more.
Step 5: Verify Restored Data
Once the restore finishes, open your WhatsApp chats and confirm your messages, photos, videos and files are back on your device.
Everything should look identical to before you erased the iPhone or switched devices. Now you know the process works and have restored your WhatsApp data.
WhatsApp Restore Times
So how long does the entire restore process take? Here are some estimates based on backup size and Internet speeds:
| Backup Size | 50KB/s Internet | 10MB/s Internet | 100MB/s Internet |
|---|---|---|---|
| 100MB | 30 minutes | 2 minutes | 10 seconds |
| 500MB | 2 hours | 10 minutes | 50 seconds |
| 1GB | 4 hours | 20 minutes | 1 minute 40 seconds |
| 2GB | 8 hours | 40 minutes | 3 minutes 20 seconds |
| 5GB | 21 hours | 1 hour 40 minutes | 8 minutes 20 seconds |
As you can see, Internet speeds above 10Mbps restore WhatsApp in minutes even for larger multi-GB backups. But slow 50KB/s Internet can take hours for just a 100MB backup.
Speeding Up Restores
Here are some tips to reduce WhatsApp restore times from iCloud:
Use Fast Wi-Fi or Mobile Data
Connect to the fastest Internet available for restoring. Wi-Fi is generally quicker than cellular if you have fast broadband. But 5G mobile data can reach gigabit speeds in ideal conditions.
Temporarily Pause Other Downloads
Pause any other large downloads or streaming during the restore process. This allows maximum bandwidth for restoring WhatsApp from iCloud.
Update to Latest iOS Version
Make sure your iPhone is updated to the newest iOS version before restoring. Apple improves restore speeds and reliability in software updates.
Use a Paid iCloud Storage Plan
Upgrading from the free 5GB iCloud plan to 50GB or higher tiers provides more bandwidth for faster restores.
Delete Unneeded Chats & Media
Prune old chats, unneeded media and other cruft from WhatsApp to decrease backup size. This also speeds up future backups and restores.
Conclusion
Restoring your WhatsApp messages from an iCloud backup can take just minutes or several hours depending on the backup size, your Internet speeds and other factors. To recap:
– Backup sizes affect restore time, videos and media increase size.
– Faster Internet connections dramatically speed up restores.
– Follow the step-by-step process to restore chats via iCloud.
– With fast Wi-Fi or 5G, you can restore up to 5GB in under 10 minutes.
– Use paid iCloud storage plans and delete unneeded data for quicker restores.
By understanding the restore process, Internet speeds and backup sizes, you can get a sense for how long it will take to get your WhatsApp chats and media back up and running on a new or erased iPhone from an iCloud backup.