WhatsApp is one of the most popular messaging apps in the world, with over 2 billion active users. It allows you to send messages, photos, videos, documents and voice messages to individuals or groups. WhatsApp uses your phone’s internet connection, so you can avoid SMS costs.
One handy feature of WhatsApp is the ability to email conversations from the app. This allows you to save chat histories, share conversations with non-WhatsApp users, or have a record of important discussions.
But how do you actually email a WhatsApp chat? There are a few steps involved, which we’ll cover below.
Preparing to Email WhatsApp Conversations
Before emailing your WhatsApp chats, there are a couple things you need to check:
Check Your Email Settings
First, make sure you have an email address set up in your WhatsApp account settings. This is required to be able to email chats.
To check your email address in WhatsApp:
– Open WhatsApp
– Tap the 3 dot menu icon
– Select Settings
– Tap Account
– Check you have an email address listed under ‘Email’
If there’s no email configured here, you’ll need to add one before proceeding.
Check Your Chat Settings
You’ll also want to verify your chat history settings. WhatsApp gives you control over whether your chat history is backed up to Google Drive or iCloud.
Enabling backups allows you to restore chat history when changing devices. It also makes emailing chats simpler, as your chat data will be available even after uninstalling WhatsApp.
To check your backup settings:
– Open WhatsApp Settings
– Select Chats
– Enable the setting for ‘Backup to Google Drive’ (Android) or ‘Backup to iCloud’ (iPhone)
With backups enabled, you’re ready to start emailing your WhatsApp chats.
Emailing Individual WhatsApp Chats
WhatsApp provides an easy way to email individual conversations right from the app. Here’s how:
On Android
1. Open the WhatsApp chat you want to email
2. Tap the 3 dot menu icon
3. Choose More
4. Select Export chat
5. Choose Email chat
6. A draft email will open with the chat attached as a .txt file
7. Enter the recipient’s email address and send
On iPhone
1. Open the WhatsApp chat you want to email
2. Tap the contact’s name at the top of the screen
3. Scroll down and tap Export Chat
4. Choose Email Chat
5. A draft email will open with the chat attached as a .txt file
6. Enter the recipient’s email and send
That’s all there is to it! The chat will be emailed as a text file attachment that the recipient can open on any device, without needing WhatsApp.
Emailing Multiple WhatsApp Chats
If you want to export and email multiple WhatsApp conversations at once, you can do so from WhatsApp’s chat history export.
Here’s how to export and email all your WhatsApp chats:
On Android
1. Open WhatsApp Settings
2. Tap Chats
3. Tap Export Chat
4. Select Export Without Media
5. WhatsApp will export your chats without media to a .txt file
6. Find the file in your device’s file manager – usually in Internal Storage > WhatsApp > Databases
7. Attach the .txt file to an email and send to the recipient
On iPhone
1. Open WhatsApp Settings
2. Tap Chats
3. Tap Export Chat
4. Choose Export Without Media
5. Tap Export to generate a file with your chats
6. Go to Files > WhatsApp and find the .txt file
7. Attach it to an email and send to the recipient
The recipient will receive a .txt file with the full history of your WhatsApp chats. This can be a great way to preserve your chat history if you’re moving between devices or uninstalling WhatsApp.
Emailing WhatsApp Chats From Google Drive or iCloud
If you have WhatsApp chat backups enabled in Google Drive or iCloud, you can also email chats directly from there.
Here’s how:
From Google Drive (Android)
1. Open the Google Drive app or log in to Google Drive on your computer
2. Locate the WhatsApp chat backup folder
3. Open the Databases folder
4. Select the chat history .txt file you want to email
5. Click the Share button (3 dots icon)
6. Choose Email to send the file via email
From iCloud (iPhone)
1. Log in to iCloud.com
2. Go to Settings > Advanced > Restore Files
3. Select WhatsApp under Apps
4. Choose the chat history file to email
5. Click Email to generate an email with the file attached
6. Enter the recipient’s email address and send
This is handy if you want to email archived WhatsApp chats from Google Drive or iCloud storage.
Emailing WhatsApp Chats on Computer
Aside from mobile devices, you can also email WhatsApp chats directly from WhatsApp Web or Desktop:
1. Open web.whatsapp.com or WhatsApp Desktop
2. Open the chat you want to email
3. Click More Options > Email Chat
4. A draft email will open with the chat attached as a .txt file
5. Enter the recipient’s email address and send the email
This method allows emailing chats without having to transfer files from your phone.
Tips for Emailing WhatsApp Chats
Here are some tips when emailing your WhatsApp conversations:
– Media files (photos, videos, audio) are not included when emailing chats. Only the text content is emailed.
– Very long chats may be split into multiple emails due to file size limits.
– To include media files, you’ll need to export chats with media and then manually attach the files to an email.
– Turn off chat previews in the email app if you want to keep the chats private.
– Always check the recipient’s email address before sending, especially when emailing sensitive chats.
– The emailed chat history will include all messages – you can’t selectively email parts of a conversation.
– The emailed file contains basic formatting like line breaks but no other styling info like font colors.
Troubleshooting Emailing Chats
If you can’t email your WhatsApp chats, try these troubleshooting tips:
| Problem | Solution |
|---|---|
| No email address configured in WhatsApp | Go to WhatsApp Settings > Account to add an email |
| Backups disabled | Enable backups in WhatsApp Settings > Chats |
| File size too big | Export without media or email chats in smaller batches |
| Can’t find exported file | Check Internal Storage > WhatsApp > Databases on Android or Files > WhatsApp on iPhone |
Conclusion
Emailing your WhatsApp chats is easy whether you’re on Android, iPhone, or desktop. With just a few taps in the app, you can export conversations as .txt files and email them to non-WhatsApp users.
Key things to remember are enabling backups, checking your email address, and finding the exported files on your device. Stick to text-only chats if you want complete conversations – media files won’t be included.
So next time you need to email or backup your WhatsApp messages, you’ll know exactly how to extract chats from the app and send them to any email address.