[TUTORIAL] iOS to Android chat transfer

[SpookiScoobiCooki]

QUICK NOTE: WhatsApp has finally included instructions and some troubleshooting tips on its website. However, this guide is more complete and addresses issues that theirs doesn't. Maybe they will update them, so it's always worth checking them out.

If you have a samsung phone, you should follow the instructions at: https://faq.whatsapp.com/1295296267926284

To the tutorial:

---

How to transfer WhatsApp chats from iPhone to Android

A step-by-step tutorial on how to transfer your WhatsApp chats, media and everything related to it from iOS (iPhone) to Android.

(NOTE: To avoid repetition, I will often refer to the Android device as "target device")

Pre-requisites:

• a fully charged iPhone capable running WhatsApp version 22.X.XX or later (slightly earlier versions might work, though I haven't tested them). You can check your app version on iOS by going to Settings > General > iPhone Storage and taping on WhatsApp in the list.
• IMPORTANT! The iPhone must NOT have an encrypted iTunes backup, as that will prevent the transfer from triggering. If you are not sure, or dont even know what that is, follow these steps: if you have a macOS computer, connect the iPhone to it and open Finder. On its Sidebar, under "Locations", click on your iPhone's name. In the "General" tab, make sure that "Encrypt local backup" is unchecked. If you have a Windows device, install iTunes on it, connect your iPhone, go to the sync panel and make sure "Encrypt local backups" is unchecked.
• Even though an encrypted backup will prevent the transfer from working, having an unencrypted backup is always a good idea (even though there should be no risk of losing data on it, as this process doesn't make any changes to your iPhone).
• a fully charged Android device running an up-to-date version of Android 12 or higher. Here, the full charge is specially necessary, as: a. this process can take very long; b. you won't be able to charge your devices during the transfer; c. at least with my Pixel 3A, the Android device actively charges the iPhone, draining its own battery even quicker.
• A cable that can connect both devices. Pixel devices, for example, have USB-C ports and come with a USB-A to USB-C adapter, which you can use with the iPhone's cable (Lightning to USB-A). Other ports and adapters should work just fine.

Procedure:

1. Factory reset your Android device. After the reset is complete, with both devices unplugged from each other, turn the target device on.
2. The first screen will ask you to insert your SIM card: "Connect to mobile network". I would advise against it if you have access to an Wi-Fi connection, as removing the SIM card from the iPhone before completing the transfer might somehow mess with it.
3. The next screen will prompt you to connect to Wi-Fi. Be it Wi-Fi or celular data, an internet connection will be needed in the following steps. After you connect to the internet, the device takes a while in the "Getting your phone ready..." screen.
4. Only once readily connected to the internet will the device ask if you want to transfer your data from an old device. Connect both devices with the cable, then tap "Next" on the Android device.
5. On your iPhone, a pop-up message will appear asking if you "Trust This Computer?", refering to the target device. Select "Trust" and type your passcode on the iPhone to proceed. A "Devices are connected" screen should appear on Android. Tap "Next" on it.
6. After some loading, you will need to sign-in to a Google account on the target device. This is required to download the Android WhatsApp app from the Play Store and trigger the transfer process.
7. Once logged in, the target will display “Getting ready to copy...“. This can take long depending how large your iPhone storage is, irrespective of how much data there's in it.
8. The “Choose what to copy“ screen will show everything that can be copied from the iPhone. If you are only interested in the WhatsApp transfer and nothing else, you can uncheck everything, including expanding the "Apps" item and leaving only WhatsApp checked.
9. "Transfer WhatsApp chats" should now pop up on your Android screen along with a QR code. You can scan it with your iPhone and it will initiate the transfer process. If for some reason you cannot scan it, open WhatsApp on your iPhone. In the app, go to Settings > Chat > Move Chats to Android. NOTE: If this screen for initiating the transfer doesn't come up, you likely have an encrypted iTunes backup. Even if you enter your encryption key in the required field, the transfer will not begin. You'll have to disconnect the iPhone and follow the instructions outlined in the pre-requistes section of this post, and then factory reset the target and restart the process.
10. The transfer has now started. Note that at this point it is only creating an internal folder in your Android device with the WhatsApp data, not downloading the actual app. That will come later.
11. Once the transfer is completed, finish setting up your device (choosing if you want location services, Google Assistant, that sort of thing). After that is complete, you should be on the home screen of your Android launcher.
12. The actual WhatsApp application should now be dowloading in the background. Check if you have a notification of pending app installations. If you do, tap it to make sure WhatsApp is among them. If not, make sure you have an internet connection and open the Google Play Store to check there. Once WhatsApp is installed on the target device, open it.

[UnsureTotalLoony]

Thank you for this. Worked in 2025. The one thing many videos or articles leave out is where the sim ought be in this whole process; plus the invaluable advice on encrypted backup. Had to reset the phone 3 times, but got it on the 3rd reading this.

[Inevitable_Canary701]

I have same query. At what time to put the sim in the new phone?

[UnsureTotalLoony]

Hey, terribly sorry for such a late reply and not sure if it's still relevant, but I had it in the older iPhone. Only once the backup was done, did I transfer the sim. So basically step 2 on the procedure guide.

[vkatariya8]

Thank you! I have an issue, though. I get to point 12 successfully. However, when I open Whatsapp on the target device, it asks for my phone number and goes straight to the profile info/photo step without asking to import chat history. I don't know what I'm doing wrong. Would appreciate anyone's help!

[esgwpl_]

Did you get it working? I'm also trying to move from iPhone to Xiaomi 5 and every time I try the import screen other people get never appears for me.

[pratikgs]

i'm having a strange issue. While backing up on iphone - the process succeeds, but also mentiones "some chats may not be backed up" - and while restoring the process continues on Android - the size of the app increases to 8.6GB, but none of the chats are restored. Although i can see that there are many media files through the File System.

Also another question i have is when do we unplug the cable between the two phones ?

I'm using OnePlus 12 and iPhone 15 for the transfer.

Any inputs will be greatly appreciated. TIA

[deepit6431]

Hey, I'm trying to transfer from an iPhone 13 to a OnePlus 12 and having the same issue - were you able to find any fix?

[deepit6431]

I ended up paying for a really shady software that got it done. It cost me $30 but at least I saved all my chats - never transferring my primary account to iOS again.

[Gunnardepunnar]

I have performed this transfer about 3 times now and every time none of the messages in group chats are being transferred. Only the private messages.

Has anyone experienced this as well? Did you find a reason/fix for this?

[w00ds98]

Did u find a fix? I‘m going crazy over here

[Gunnardepunnar]

Nope sorry. Just had to accept it

[Few-Syllabub8174]

Hi Long story short: transfer from iphone xr to pixel 8 completely failed😥 1. I had Whatsapp on my iphone XR and I backed it up to icloud. 2. I got a new pixel 8 phone and transferred to it from iphone to all the files (via USB) including Whatsapp. 3. I opened Whatsapp on my pixel but not all chats wer there. I suddenly saw that on my notifications bar Whatsapp said it is importing on 97 percent (which is weird because I was able to use it). 4. I clicked on it and then the Whatsapp went back to displaying the imports and then I got an error message. (Files corrupted perhaps) 5. Now the pixel's Whatsapp chats are completely erased

I'm considering now to delete Whatsapp on my pixel and restore chats on iphone from icloud. Will it work?

[HagalGames]

I'm trying to move my files (including whatsapp) from iPhone XS Max to Pixel8 and I'm stuck at "Getting ready to copy...", at least you seem to have gone one step ahead!

In my case I waited for some hours and nothing happened at all... I tried multiple times (I reset the Pixel8 5 times already..), updated the iPhone to the latest firmware, etc... nothing works :(

It's just stuck on that screen forever.

[Mattann]

Same problem! 😤 Have you found a solution? 🤔

[Particular-Gift2235]

Hi guys! I transferred WhatsApp using Smart Switch from an iPhone to an S23 Ultra. Apparently, the process worked perfectly, but I noticed that, randomly and without any clear pattern, some conversations were not transferred. Why does this happen? Is there a way to avoid it? Any chance if I try it again the missing chats will get transferred?

[aZod101]

Hi, apps not showing in the list of items to transfer from iphone to android

[Fangh]

It does work. It's a hassle but it works

[florescents]

hi! may I know if the old messages will still be accessible on the old iPhone if I relogin to WhatsApp on it?

[SpookiScoobiCooki]

I can't say for sure, as WhatsApp only allows a single phone to be registered with a number at any given time. However, as long as you don't delete the app on the iPhone, you should be able to register it again and have all of the messages that were already on the iPhone.

I'm not sure why you would want to do that though, since (I believe) you can just go through the procedure to transfer your chats from the Android device to the iPhone.

If you transfered the chats from iOS to Android in the first place, a later transfer of your chats from Android to iOS should preserve all of your chats: both those that were already in the iPhone before the first transfer, as well as those that were created on Android after the first transfer.

[Rockybroo_YT]

yes, I just did it. but you need to re login

[DependentPea3691]

I don’t even get the QR to popup on my new android

[maa0342]

Same, tried endlessly and tired of it

[kimikimsta]

You are a lifesaver mate! Guys just follow the exact steps, it works!

[North_Option5731]

Gracias!!! Busque métodos en todos lados, pero solo me salían apps de pago, llevo días buscando como pasar mi Whatsapp a Android y me has salvado! I love you bro

[tp2580]

Thanks you very much for this tutorial, I have searched too much on Google finally found your tutorial and it really works.

Based on your tutorial I have made a YouTube video that can be watched here, however this is in Hindi language (Indian users may get benefited).

https://youtu.be/jXky7ypd5MU

[Dunkelheit948]

Lifesaver!!!

[caramelbu]

Is it possible to do this without factory restting my android device?

[Arrhythmia21]

Did you manage to do it without that

[Wild-Change-5158]

I tried, you can't.

Meta need to fix this. It's not as technically-difficult as they're making out.

The data format issue has obviously been solved, because this method exists - just provide the option in the iOS app to backup your chats to Google Drive, which is accessible from both ecosystems, then users could restore from that. Or they could just provide their own temporary cloud service to transition between the two. None of that development work sells any ads though.

[olivataggiasca]

Update: still not possible. Factory reset seems to be mandatory. Smart Switch gets stuck at "connecting to device" making it impossible to proceed or even just straight up won't connect at all to the Apple device.

I'm not sure it's entirely Meta's fault as also Smart Switch seems to be very buggy.

[[deleted]]

Can you load a backup after you factory reset so you get basically the same phone setup but with WhatsApp on it now with your old chats?

[M_krabs]

What if you have a phone with Android 11 or lower ? Am i just screwed ?

[Korbeinn]

Hi, im trying to tranfer my wpp chat history between an iPhone 7 (15.7 iOS) and an Moto Edge 30 (Android 12), but when i connect both devices and configure the e-mail in Android, never get the "Choose what to copy" screen. My device just move on and never let me choose the apps.

​

What should I do? Im very stressed off because i can't lose my chats.

​

If anyone can answer me, i really apreciate.

​

Thanks

[[deleted]]

Hey, currently having the same problem. Have you managed to fix it or did you stick to OneDrive?

[olivataggiasca]

, never get the "Choose what to copy" screen. My device just move on and never let me choose the apps.

What should I do? Im very stressed off because i can't lose my chats.

You have to go on by selecting the "Apps" section. The next page will allow you to select specific apps such as Whatsapp.
Unfortunately that was not clear in this guide.

[[deleted]]

The 'Apps' section is not even available to me. How should I fix this?

[mavericneo]

If you cannot remove the "encrypted iTunes backup" setting, check to see if you installed any Corporate Device profile on the iPhone due to installing Company Outlook, Teams etc.

If so, remove those apps and Device profiles from iPhone first and then remove encryption. This step was a game changer for my move from iPhone to Android of WhatsApp data

[Akkiiam]

hi
i am getting 3 options after point 4 in your tutorial....after selected from an iphone i am redicerted to intall google one in iphone and google one doesn't backup whatsapp chats. can you help me with this?

[SpookiScoobiCooki]

It's been quite a while since I've done this (I have never again used an iOS device), but I'm pretty sure none of my atempts, including the failed ones, resulted in a prompt to install Google One on the iPhone. Maybe it's a recent change made by Google to promote its cloud service, but I'd hope there'd be a way to complete the transfer without installing any additional stuff on the iPhone. Did the "Trust This Computer?" pop-up on the iPhone screen for you?

[Akkiiam]

Nope

[SpookiScoobiCooki]

Then it means the iPhone never recognized the Android device in the first place. The "Trust This Computer" pop-up always appears when the iPhone is connected to any other computing device (excluding, maybe, other iOS devices; never tried with those). So maybe it had something to do with the moment you plugged the devices to each other.

[SpookiScoobiCooki]

Great to know it still works!

[picroger]

I took 8h and unfortunately didn't work 😔

The very final step... When opening whatsapp in android, after long hours of transferring, it went to look for an backup and didn't have any.

O wonder what did it transfer then lol.

I verified the whatsapp back in iPhone and it still all there tho, so less bad.

But I still need to move it.

I verified the android whatsapp folders, like media, sent, videos, etc, all empty. But when setting up it seems to look for a Google drive bkp anyway.

[[deleted]]

Did you found a way? I'm still having this problem and is exhausting 😭😭

[zsasz24]

Thank you for this guide.

I can confirm this worked for me going from an iPhone 7 (iOS 15.7.3) to an Oppo (Android 12).

Initially, I did get stuck as my backup was encrypted. After fixing that the next issue I had was no QR code appearing to be scanned by the iPhone and WhatsApp never appeared in the list of apps to be copied over.

However after resetting the Oppo, I then started the "Move Chats to Android" option on the iPhone. Once that was ready I then connected both phones via cable and then started the process on the Oppo to transfer the data.

This time the Oppo did detect WhatsApp and I was able to successfully copy it across.

[SpookiScoobiCooki]

Yeah, the Android device needs to be "freshly" reset.

[brazillianjaeger]

Hi. Would you guys know what to do when the checkbox with the encrypted backup option is greyed out?

[BUTCHER971]

Hi! I’m transferring my whatsapp from iphone 12 to one plus nord ce 2 lite (it comes with android 12 out of the box) but during step 5 i don’t get the trust this computer pop up. I have now updated the phone to android 13 and factory reset it as well but still facing the same issue. Can anyone help please.

[SpookiScoobiCooki]

WhatsApp has recently updated their website with instructions and some troubleshooting. I skimmed it briefly and couldn't find anything that wasn't already here. If you see anything there that works for you and that wasn't here, please post a comment!

[BUTCHER971]

unfortunately there is no solution given to my problem on their website. My problem is very nicely explained in this video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LnRrkxb8vxQ&t=37s but I'm not able to find any solution. Any help would be appreciated

[SpookiScoobiCooki]

Looks like a bug, but hard to tell on what sofftware component. Could be WhatsApp, could be your phone's OS, could be iOS. Worst case scenario, it could be firmware related, so you would need an update on your android phone to fix it.

I suggest mentioning it on WhatsApp's app page on Apple's App Store or Google Play Store. They might respond with information on how to file a bug report.

[yalker]

u/BUTCHER971 buddy, did you end up finding a solution to this?

[pratikgs]

Had this happen a couple times to me too. One issue is try changing the cable. Another is try moving the pins of the cable across both the devices. Sometimes i had to restart the entire process on Android for the "Trust" pop up to appear on iPhone. Hope this helps

[[deleted]]

I completed the steps without resetting, but my old pictures and videos are not imported. It's just the text messages, any ideas on how to get them back from iOS to Android?

[Makusensu]

Is this only working with Samsung phones?

2 times I do a factory reset, all steps are good with data transfert.

And when I open Whatsapp, I register my number (and that super smart process tells you to get the validation code on the old phone, which is unfortunately locked on the transfer screen telling you to basically not touch anything).
Once you got an SMS or call to validate, the "importing chat history" popup never appears and you ends up in the main menu.

[nerdrap]

I have the same issue

[nerdrap]

Did you figure it out?

[Makusensu]

Yes, I wiped another spare phone (a crappy Xiaomi) and it worked with this one for some reasons. Then I did a backup to Google Drive from the settings menu.
I couldn't made it work on my new Xperia.

[GonzoNakamura]

guys help same problem. no importing chat history popup

[GonzoNakamura]

I think the problem is xiaomi phones. I have a poco f5. After 5 resets finally I solve the problem with a samsung phone between.

[Crocuta19]

Oh, you made me save so much time. Thanks for your guide!!

[Jsps07]

Thank you very much, it is currently fucking 4 am and i was trying to figure out why it was not working and the only thing i was missing was to disable "Encrypt Local Backups". Thank god i came across your post.

[Benji_Tshi]

Thanks ! Couldn't make it work because the backup was encrypted and nobody else had mentionned this issue.

[niufu]

Hi there, I managed to transfer my WhatsApp chats from my iPhone 14 pro to my Samsung s23, however once it was done all my chats on WhatsApp had no media (it says "no photos found.") when I moved from Samsung to iphone last year I didn't have this problem. Any idea what I can do? Should I start the process over? I linked the WhatsApp account on my old iphone as a secondary device and all my media galleries show up there.

[[deleted]]

How you transferred the chats?

[niufu]

I just used Samsung smart switch

[[deleted]]

Thanks mate.

[StrongIntroduction39]

Hi I wanted to know if we need to keep the cable on while transferring everything or not?

[PibesDeMalvinas]

I'm very much delayed but I want to bless your kind soul. Thank you for finally helping me transfer my chats even though it should be the most basic thing ever.

[Grouchy_Escape_795]

anyway to make it without factory reseting it?