Following the recent controversy created around the WhatsApp privacy policy change, a great deal of users have opted to cut ties with the messaging app and use alternatives like Telegram and Signal.
Actually, moving to Telegram is quite a painless affair, especially since it’s possible to transfer your WhatsApp chats, as well as videos and documents to the app by following a few quick steps.
If you’ve been considering jumping ship yourself but felt hesitant so far, this article shows you how you can easily migrate to Telegram while taking all your data with you so that you don’t lose anything.
How to Quickly Move Your Chats from WhatsApp to Telegram
You can export your WhatsApp chats only from the mobile app. For the time being, this functionality is not available in the web version. Telegram also has a web client, and by the time you’ve finished this tutorial, the imported chats will become visible in the desktop version of the app, as well as the mobile.
Open WhatsApp on your Android device.
Navigate to the chat you want to export and tap on the three-dot menu in the upper-right corner. Select More from the options.
Select “Export chat.”
WhatsApp will ask you whether you want your export to include all the media you’ve shared back and forth with that contact. If you decide to go for this option, keep in mind that the media will increase the size of the chat export.
Select the app which you want to transfer the data to.
Tap on the chat in Telegram where you want all the data to go.
A pop-up window will appear asking you if you want to proceed with the import. Press “Import” to start the operation.
An import animation will show up on the screen showing a progress bar.
When everything is completed, press Done.
The imports will start showing up in your chat box.
Messages are imported into the current day but will include their original timestamps. All chat participants (whether you’re in a group or a one-on-one chat) will be able to view the newly imported messages.
The messages and media you move won’t occupy extra space on your device. Older apps used to store all your data on the handset in use, but Telegram takes next to no storage space while still letting you access messages, photos, and videos whenever needed.
All media stays in the Telegram cloud and can be re-downloaded on demand. If you own an Android with a SD card, you can also store Telegram data there.
To ensure you’re saving space, go to “Settings -> Data and Storage Usage -> Storage Usage” and set “Keep Media” to regularly remove unused items.
You can import chats from others apps into Telegram. If you’re on Line or KakaoTalk, the steps to get your data into your new chat app are quite similar.
Telegram is a solid WhatsApp replacement but is by no means the only one out there. Discover other options by diving into our list of the four best alternatives to WhatsApp that actually respect your privacy or educate yourself regarding the key differences between WhatsApp, Telegram and Signal.
Alexandra is passionate about mobile tech and can be often found fiddling with a smartphone from some obscure company. She kick-started her career in tech journalism in 2013, after working a few years as a middle-school teacher. Constantly driven by curiosity, Alexandra likes to know how things work and to share that knowledge with everyone.
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