WhatsApp is finally adding the ability to transfer your chat history from Android to iPhone.
If your WhatsApp conversations were holding you back from switching to an iPhone, that should no longer be a cause for concern.
Move your WhatsApp chat history freely across platforms now
WhatsApp only offered a way to migrate chat data between Android devices and from iPhone to Android until now. You could not transfer your chat history from an Android device to an iPhone. That’s finally changing as a tool to migrate chat history from Android to iPhone is rolling out.
“We’re adding to WhatsApp the ability to securely switch between phones and transfer your chat history, photos, videos, and voice messages between Android and iPhone while maintaining end-to-end encryption,” said Mark Zuckerberg in a Facebook post.
Unlike Messenger, Telegram and other messaging services, WhatsApp stores chat data locally. So your chat history is not automatically synced to a new device when you log into WhatsApp on it. Instead, you must first backup your WhatsApp chat data on Google Drive (if you are using an Android phone) or iCloud (for iPhone users). You then restore this backup on your new device.
Over two billion users worldwide use WhatsApp daily to send billions of messages. In Asian countries, business transactions, online classes, etc., are carried out over the messaging service. So, the inability to freely transfer chat history across iPhone and Android was a major limitation for many looking to switch ecosystems.
Use the Move to iOS app to import your WhatsApp chat history from Android
You must use the Move to iOS app on your Android device to import WhatsApp’s chat history. The tool works on iPhones running iOS 15.5 and Android 5.0+ or newer devices. Use a USB-C to Lightning cable to connect both devices as the transfer process does not work wirelessly.
If you have already set up WhatsApp on your iPhone, you cannot import your chat history from your old Android device. This process will only work while setting up your new iPhone. You must also use the same phone number for WhatsApp as your old device.
WhatsApp is seemingly working on a Catalyst Mac and iPad app. Once that lands, it should make using the messaging service even more convenient.
