WhatsApp to allow chat history transfers between Android and iOS

WhatsApp is to allow users to transfer their chat history between operating systems for the first time – including voice notes, photos and conversations.

The update will mean that for the first time, WhatsApp users will be able to take their entire app history with them should they switch between Apple’s iOS and Google’s Android mobile operating systems.

The Facebook-owned messaging service said the feature had been one of the most requested from its userbase and will be first rolled out on Android to Samsung’s new Galaxy Z Fold3 and Flip3.

Currently, people who use WhatsApp’s cloud backup feature have their chat history stored in iCloud on iOS and Google Drive on Android, meaning a user’s history can only be transferred to a new phone if they stay on the same operating system.

WhatsApp said that following the launch on the new foldables, the feature would become available to wider Samsung devices that run Android 10 or higher in the coming weeks.

“Your WhatsApp messages belong to you. That’s why they are stored on your phone by default, and not accessible in the cloud like many other messaging services,” WhatsApp product manager Sandeep Paruchuri said.

“We’re excited for the first time to make it easy for people to securely transfer their WhatsApp history from one operating system to another.

“This has been one of our most requested features from users for years and we worked together with operating systems and device manufacturers to solve it.”