WhatsApp has become one of the most popular messaging apps, with over 2 billion users worldwide. It allows users to send messages, photos, videos, documents and voice messages to individuals or groups. When media files like photos and videos are sent and received on WhatsApp, they get saved in the phone’s internal storage. But where exactly are these WhatsApp media files stored and how can you access them directly from your phone’s gallery?
Where are WhatsApp media files stored?
When you receive a photo, video or other media file on WhatsApp, it gets saved in your phone’s internal storage in the WhatsApp folder. The location of this folder varies slightly depending on your phone’s model and operating system:
- On Android phones, WhatsApp files are usually saved in the folder Internal Storage > WhatsApp > Media.
- On iPhones, WhatsApp files are stored in Internal Storage > WhatsApp > Media > WhatsApp Images.
Within these WhatsApp media folders, files are organized into sub-folders based on their type. For example, photos are stored in the WhatsApp Images or Photos folder, videos in the WhatsApp Video folder, documents in the WhatsApp Documents folder, etc.
Why don’t WhatsApp files show up directly in my phone’s gallery?
Even though WhatsApp files are saved in your phone’s internal storage, they don’t automatically show up in your default phone gallery or photos app. This is because apps like WhatsApp store files in their own internal folders which are separate from your phone’s media storage. Your phone’s gallery is designed to show media files saved in certain public folders only.
For instance, on Android phones the gallery or photos app only displays photos/videos saved in folders like DCIM, Pictures, Camera or Screenshots. Since WhatsApp stores files privately in its own folder, they are not visible directly in the gallery unless you access the WhatsApp media folders directly.
How to view WhatsApp media files in phone gallery
If you want WhatsApp photos, videos and other media to show up in your default phone gallery or photos app, you will need to move them from the WhatsApp media folders to the public folders.
Here are the steps to view WhatsApp files in your phone’s gallery:
On Android
- Open the WhatsApp media folder – Go to File Manager > Internal Storage > WhatsApp > Media.
- Open the type of media you want to view – For example, WhatsApp Images for photos and WhatsApp Video for videos.
- Select the files you want to move to your gallery.
- Tap and hold any file, then tap on the share icon.
- Choose the option to Move to Folder or Copy to Folder.
- Select a public folder like Pictures or DCIM to move copies of your WhatsApp media.
Once moved, the selected WhatsApp media files will be visible in your phone’s default Gallery or Photos app.
On iPhone
- Open the Files app and go to On My iPhone > WhatsApp > Media > WhatsApp Images/Video.
- Tap Select and choose the WhatsApp files you want to move to your photos.
- Tap the share icon at the bottom and select Save to Photos.
The selected WhatsApp files will now show up in your iPhone’s Photos app alongside your other photos and videos.
How to set WhatsApp media visibility in gallery
Moving WhatsApp files manually each time can be a tedious process if you share media frequently. A simpler option is to set your WhatsApp media folders as visible in the phone gallery directly. This way new media gets automatically visible.
On Android
- Install a file manager app like Files by Google.
- Open the app settings and turn on Show hidden files.
- Go to Storage > WhatsApp > Media.
- Long press each folder like WhatsApp Images and select Add to Gallery.
This will make your WhatsApp media folders visible in the gallery automatically.
On iPhone
Unfortunately, there is no direct way to make WhatsApp media files show up in your iPhone’s photos app automatically. You will need to use the Save to Photos option each time you want to view WhatsApp media in your camera roll.
Some third party apps like Watusi and SaveGram can automate this process by automatically saving your WhatsApp media to the camera roll. But they require jailbreaking your iPhone.
How to download WhatsApp media files
If you want to download WhatsApp photos, videos or other media files to your device storage or computer, here are some easy ways to do it:
Download WhatsApp media on your phone
- Open WhatsApp and go to the chat containing the media file you want to download.
- Tap and hold the media file to open the context menu.
- Select the Download option.
- The file will be downloaded to your phone’s Downloads folder.
Download WhatsApp media on computer
There are a couple of ways to download WhatsApp media files from your phone to a computer:
- Attach phone to computer via USB and transfer files directly from WhatsApp folders using file explorer.
- Enable WhatsApp Web on computer, visit web.whatsapp.com and scan QR code with your phone to link. You can then download files sent to you on WhatsApp Web.
- Use third party apps like WazzapMigrator or PhoneTrans to export WhatsApp chats and media from phone to computer.
How to find old WhatsApp media files
Over time, the amount of photos, videos and other media files saved by WhatsApp can really add up. Sometimes you may want to dig up an old WhatsApp photo or video that you had shared or received a long time ago. Here are some tips to find old WhatsApp media files:
- Use your phone’s file manager or explorer app to browse the WhatsApp Media folders and sort files by date modified or created.
- If you have set up WhatsApp media visibility in your phone gallery, open gallery and use the search option to search for keywords or filter by date.
- Install a dedicated media files searcher app like Files by Google that indexes your files and lets you search for images, videos, documents etc.
- Open WhatsApp, tap More Options > Settings > Data and Storage Usage > Storage Usage. Review largest files to see old media.
- Back up your WhatsApp data to Google Drive or local backup. You can then restore the backup on another device and search for the old media files.
How to free up WhatsApp storage space
Since all WhatsApp media gets saved on your phone’s storage, the app can take up a lot of space over time. Here are some useful tips to free up storage space occupied by WhatsApp:
- Open WhatsApp, tap Settings > Storage and Data > Manage Storage to see which chats and media are taking up the most space. Delete large files or media you no longer need.
- Turn on auto-download only on Wi-Fi in WhatsApp settings. This will prevent large media from downloading automatically on mobile data.
- Delete old chats that you don’t need anymore.
- Frequently move WhatsApp media files like photos and videos to other folders or your computer to delete them from WhatsApp storage.
- Create a backup of your WhatsApp data and then delete and reinstall WhatsApp to free up all associated storage.
- Expand total phone storage with a memory card if available.
Conclusion
While WhatsApp stores your media files like photos, videos and documents in a separate folder, you can view them in your phone’s gallery by moving them to public folders. Automating this process requires using third party apps on Android. On iPhone there is no default way to auto-show WhatsApp files in your camera roll. You can also free up WhatsApp storage space by deleting old chats and media, turning off auto-downloads and backing up your data.