WhatsApp statuses are saved in the internal storage of your Android phone, inside the WhatsApp folder. The exact location is Android/media/com.whatsapp/WhatsApp/Media/.Statuses. This location remains the same even in the latest Android 12 update.
Understanding WhatsApp Status
The WhatsApp status feature allows users to share photos, videos and GIFs that disappear after 24 hours. It’s similar to Stories on other social media platforms. Once you post a status, your WhatsApp contacts can view it in the Status tab of the app. They can also reply to your status privately.
Statuses are end-to-end encrypted, which means the content is not stored on WhatsApp’s servers. Instead, statuses are saved locally on your device. When you share a status, it’s uploaded from your phone’s storage to the phones of your WhatsApp contacts.
WhatsApp Status Storage Location on Android
On Android devices, WhatsApp statuses are stored in the internal storage or phone memory. They are not saved on your SD card, even if you have one inserted.
The exact path to the WhatsApp status folder is:
Android/media/com.whatsapp/WhatsApp/Media/.Statuses
This location remains unchanged even if you upgrade your Android version to the latest Android 12.
Breaking Down the Status Save Location
Let’s break down that file path to understand what each folder represents:
- Android – This is the top level folder for all files stored internally on your Android phone.
- media – Contains all media files like images, videos, audio etc.
- com.whatsapp – The WhatsApp app folder, named after the app’s package name.
- WhatsApp – The main WhatsApp folder containing app data and files.
- Media – Contains all media exchanged through WhatsApp like photos, videos, documents etc.
- .Statuses – This dedicated folder stores only WhatsApp statuses.
Viewing WhatsApp Statuses on Android
Since WhatsApp statuses are stored locally, you can view them directly from your phone’s file manager app even after their 24 hour expiry.
To view stored statuses:
- Open your Android device’s File Manager app.
- Navigate to the WhatsApp status folder path outlined above.
- Open the folder and you will see statuses stored as image and video files.
- Tap any file to view the status.
This allows you to view expired statuses as long as they exist on your phone’s storage. But note that statuses are automatically deleted after 30 days to save space.
Find Media Storage Settings
In WhatsApp Settings, you can find information about media storage location under Data and Storage Usage.
To find media storage location on WhatsApp:
- Open WhatsApp and tap the 3 dot menu in top right.
- Go to Settings > Data and Storage Usage.
- Under Media Auto Download, tap Storage Usage.
- You will see the storage location for different types of media.
This shows the full path where your WhatsApp media including statuses are stored. As outlined earlier, it will be the .Statuses folder under Internal Storage.
Manage Space Used by WhatsApp Statuses
Over time, old statuses occupying space on your phone can build up. Here are some tips to manage WhatsApp status storage on Android:
- Regularly delete old statuses you no longer need from the .Statuses folder using your phone’s file manager.
- Use a file manager with scan and cleanup features to find and delete large or duplicate status files.
- Install and use dedicated cache and junk cleaning apps to find and delete redundant status files.
- Turn on auto-delete in WhatsApp Settings to automatically remove old statuses after 30 days.
- Set statuses you want to keep permanently as your WhatsApp profile photo or in a chat.
- Back up important statuses you want to retain to cloud storage or your computer.
- Rooted devices can directly delete the .Statuses folder to remove all statuses.
WhatsApp Status Limit
WhatsApp has a limit on how many statuses you can store on your device. The limit is based on storage space used, not number of files.
- For Android 8 and lower – Status storage limit is 140 MB
- For Android 9 and higher – Status storage limit is 150 MB
Once this limit is reached, you cannot save new statuses until older ones are deleted to free up space. The app will alert you that the limit is reached.
Status Storage in Android Versions Below 8
On Android versions lower than 8 Oreo, statuses were not saved in the .Statuses folder. Older Android versions saved statuses in:
Android/media/com.whatsapp/WhatsApp/Media/WhatsApp Statuses
So if you are on a very old Android OS, look for statuses in this location instead. But most devices today run Android 8 or higher.
Location of Other WhatsApp Media
Apart from statuses, all other media exchanged on WhatsApp is stored together in one folder, unlike statuses which get their own dedicated folder.
The location for WhatsApp media like photos, videos, documents, audio clips, etc. is:
Android/media/com.whatsapp/WhatsApp/Media/WhatsApp Images
Voice notes sent and received on WhatsApp are stored separately at:
Android/media/com.whatsapp/WhatsApp/Media/WhatsApp Voice Notes
iPhone Status Storage Location
On iPhones, the WhatsApp status storage location is different from Android. Here is where iPhone statuses are saved:
Internal Storage/Filesharing/WhatsApp/Media/.statuses
The Filesharing folder contains data from all apps. The Media folder inside WhatsApp folder stores all files exchanged on WhatsApp.
Status Storage on Windows Phone
For Windows phones, the WhatsApp status location is:
Storage/ProgramData/UserData/WhatsApp/Media/Statuses
So the path varies across platforms like Android, iOS and Windows. But it remains consistent on the same platform.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why are my WhatsApp statuses taking up so much space?
Statuses can build up over time and occupy a lot of space on your phone. This happens if you don’t delete old statuses regularly. Enable auto-delete in WhatsApp Settings to remove statuses after 30 days automatically.
Can I save statuses to my SD card?
No, WhatsApp does not allow saving statuses on external SD card. Statuses are always saved in your phone’s internal storage for privacy and security reasons.
How do I recover deleted statuses?
Unfortunately, you cannot recover deleted WhatsApp statuses. Since they are stored locally, once deleted they are gone. However, you can use backup apps to regularly back up your status folder.
Why can’t I save new statuses?
If you see a “status limit reached” alert in WhatsApp, it means your phone’s status storage is full. Delete old statuses or enable auto-delete to free up space for new statuses.
Do WhatsApp statuses reduce phone storage?
Yes, statuses occupy storage space on your phone. Over time, many statuses can slowly eat up your phone’s storage capacity. It’s best to delete old statuses regularly to free up space.