How to retrieve deleted text messages on iphone without icloud

In iOS 16, iPadOS 16.1, or later, you can recover conversations and messages you deleted in the Messages app.

Delete a single message

1. Within a conversation, touch and hold the message bubble to open an options menu.
2. Tap More
   
   .
3. Tap the Trash button
   
   , then tap Delete Message.

To keep your messages for a certain amount of time, go to Settings, tap Messages, then tap Keep Messages. Then select how long you want to keep your messages.

When you delete a message, the message only disappears from your Messages thread, not from your contacts' threads. To remove a message that you accidentally sent from everyone's threads, use undo send.

If you use Messages in iCloud and delete a message, photo, or conversation on one device, it’s removed from all of your devices.

Delete a conversation

1. Touch and hold the conversation to open an options menu.
2. Tap Delete
   
   .
3. Tap Delete once more to confirm.

As long as the conversation isn't pinned, you can also swipe left over the conversation, tap Delete, then tap Delete again to confirm.

To delete more than one conversation, open Messages and tap Edit in the upper-left corner. Tap Select Messages, then tap the circle next to the conversations and tap Delete in the bottom-right corner.

Retrieve a deleted message or conversation

1. In Messages, tap Edit.
2. Tap Show Recently Deleted
   
   .
3. Choose the conversations with the messages you want to restore, then tap Recover.
4. Tap Recover Message or Recover [Number] Messages.

You need iOS 16, iPadOS 16.1, or later to recover deleted messages and conversations. You can only recover messages and conversations that you deleted within the last 30 to 40 days.

iPadOS 16.1 coming in October

Published Date: September 12, 2022

To recover deleted text messages on iPhone without using a computer, you need to have iCloud backups enabled. You can either restore an iCloud backup with your texts or check another device of yours that has sync enabled. If these don’t work, you can also use third-party apps like PhoneRescue.

Texting is one of the primary methods we use to communicate. Our texts can contain everything: business transactions, personal information, and even cherished memories.

That’s why it’s pretty frustrating if we accidentally delete important text messages. But does that mean that you should give up hope of recovering your deleted messages? 

Luckily for you, there are several methods you can use.

In this tutorial, I’ll teach you the 5 best ways, including how to recover deleted text messages on iPhone without computer and one with computer.

Contents

• 1 The 5 Best Ways To Recover Deleted Text Messages On iPhone Without Computer (And With Computer)
  • 1.1 Recovering Deleted Text Messages With iCloud Backup
  • 1.2 Recovering Deleted Text Messages From Other Apple Devices
  • 1.3 Recovering Deleted Text Messages With PhoneRescue For Mac
  • 1.4 Recovering Deleted Text Messages Using Tenorshare UltData
  • 1.5 Recovering Deleted Text Messages Using mSpy’s SMS Tracking Feature
• 2 FAQs
  • 2.1 Is There A Way To Recover Texts On An iPhone Deleted Months Ago?
• 3 How To Recover Deleted Text Messages On iPhone Without Computer

The 5 Best Ways To Recover Deleted Text Messages On iPhone Without Computer (And With Computer)

First, let’s take a look at how to achieve that without a computer!

Recovering Deleted Text Messages With iCloud Backup

iCloud Backup is the iPhone’s native cloud backup service.

This software is integrated with your phone and is also available on iPads, iPods, and other iOS devices. As long as you have an Apple account, you can use the iCloud service for free, albeit with a limit on how much data you can store.

Because it’s practically built into your phone, backing up using iCloud is easy and seamless. However, one of its main disadvantages is that you only have free cloud storage of 5GB. If you want to store more than that, you will have to upgrade your storage plan for a recurring monthly fee.

iCloud Features

iCloud backup automatically makes a copy of your iPhone’s data and saves it to the cloud.

It saves everything you have on your iPhone including the purchase history of things you bought with Apple Services, such as iTunes music, apps, books, and TV shows, ringtones, and visual voicemail passwords, are also included. It can also save data from your Apple Watch if you have one synced.

iCloud can restore the data it saves to your iPhone. However, one caveat is that it only works by means of replacement. This means that the existing data on your phone will first be deleted before the backup data can be restored to your device.

Once you stop or disable the iCloud service, it will only keep the last backup for 180 days.

How To Turn On Automatic iCloud Backups

You can recover deleted text messages using the iCloud backup function, but first, you need to have a backup stored in the cloud.

In other words, to retrieve deleted text messages on iPhone, you need to turn on the backup beforehand.

Here’s how to enable automatic iCloud backups of your phone.

1. Go to Settings and tap your name at the very top of the options list.
   

2. Now, choose the iCloud tab.
   

3. From there, scroll down to iCloud Backup.
   

4. You should see a button that enables automatic iCloud backup. Make sure this feature is enabled. From now on, your iPhone will automatically back up your data to the cloud at regular intervals.
   

5. If you want to back up your data manually, you can also tap the Back Up Now button.
   

How To Recover Deleted Messages On Your iPhone Via iCloud Backup

Suppose you want to recover messages that you’re sure are included in a recent iCloud backup. In that case, you can restore deleted messages on your iPhone without a computer.

Once again, take note that restoring an iCloud backup will delete your existing data. If there’s anything new on your phone that wasn’t there before the backup was created, it will be deleted once you restore the iCloud backup. All other data will be replaced with the backup, as well.

One more thing before we continue – you can only restore an iCloud backup in the iOS setup screen. To get to the setup screen, you need to either factory reset your current phone or get a new phone.

If your phone is new, skip to Step 6. If your phone already has existing data on it, start at Step 1.

1. Go to Settings and click General.
2. Scroll down and pick Reset.
3. You’ll be presented with multiple options. Choose “Erase All Contents and Settings.” This will factory reset the contents of your iPhone and take you back to the setup screen.
4. Once you’re on the setup screen, you’ll be asked to set up your Apple account. Complete all the necessary procedures until you get to the Set Up iPhone Screen portion of the setup.
5. Tap the “Restore from an iCloud Backup” option instead of continuing with a clean slate.
6. You will then be asked to log in with your Apple account. Keep your device connected to the internet during the whole process so that it can pull up the backup from the cloud.
7. All the data you have backed up in this version will be included in the restoration, including any SMS you previously deleted.

Once again, keep in mind that if you restore a backup version where you already deleted the SMS, you still won’t be able to recover it because it doesn’t exist in the backup.

Therefore, make sure to pick a backup version that you are certain contains the messages you want to restore.

Check this video to see how it’s done:

But can you see deleted messages on iPhone without iCloud?

Recovering Deleted Text Messages From Other Apple Devices

iPhone has a feature that lets you sync your data across all your Apple devices via your iCloud account.

This is how to look at deleted messages on iPhone without iCloud.

How To Sync iPhone Messages With Other Devices

If your Apple devices are logged in using the same Apple ID and you have Messages in iCloud enabled, all your iMessages can be synced.

For example, if you have an iPhone and a Macbook, you’ll be able to see your messages on both devices just by logging in using your Apple ID and enabling Messages in iCloud.

However, this may not work for newer devices with updated iOS versions due to ever-changing Apple updates. Also, this method doesn’t work 100 percent of the time.

Sometimes, even if you sync your devices, the messages you want to recover will still not be there, perhaps because they’ve already been overwritten.

1. Open Settings and click on your name at the very top.
   

2. Tap on iCloud.
   

3. Scroll down until you see the Messages option. Tap to toggle it on.
   

4. Lastly, turn off auto iCloud backup to prevent automatic backups.
   

5. You have to do this for other Apple devices that you may have.

How To Recover Deleted Text Messages With Message Syncing Method

This is how to find deleted messages on iPhone without iCloud. By using this method, your messages will now be synced to your other devices where you are logged into the same account.

Check to see if your deleted messages are still on the other device. Unless they’ve been overwritten by new data – like can happen if you have auto iCloud backups on – they should still be there.

Recovering Deleted Text Messages With PhoneRescue For Mac

You don’t need a computer to recover deleted messages using the previous methods.

However, it’s hard to deny that the first method is only ideal for those who are setting up a new iPhone, while the second method is not effective at all times.

Using third-party apps on your computer is your best option if you want to recover deleted messages on your current phone without having to factory reset it. This third method is also a good alternative if message syncing doesn’t work for you.

While there is plenty of data recovery software on the market (check our list), PhoneRescue is one of the best, in my opinion.

PhoneRescue for Mac is an iPhone data management solution with various modules for the most common and pressing iPhone needs. With PhoneRescue, you can restore deleted messages on your iPhone without having much trouble, as long as your device version is supported.

Interested in learning more? You can read an in-depth review right here, or you can take a look at the short overview of its main features below.

Get PhoneRescue iOS for Mac

Features

PhoneRescue is specifically created to backup and restore data, including deleted Android and iOS messages, without having to erase or replace the device’s existing data.

Here are some of its best features:

• Message Recovery Through Backup: restore your accidentally deleted messages, regardless if you’re using iTunes or iCloud backups.
• Selective Backup Recovery: comb through your backup and recover only the information you need.
• Message Recovery Without Backup: sort through your phone’s deleted memory and restore messages that haven’t been overwritten yet. This allows you to restore recently deleted messages without an existing backup.
• Retrieve All Kinds Of Important Data: recover 31 types of data, such as call logs, videos, photos, documents, and contacts.

With PhoneRescue installed on your computer, you never have to worry about losing any important files ever again.

Get PhoneRescue iOS for Mac

Free Demo

PhoneRescue offers a free demo with limited capabilities.

With the demo, you can preview recoverable files to help you decide whether you should buy the paid version. If the messages you want to recover can’t be previewed on the demo version, that simply means they have already been overwritten and are no longer recoverable, even if you purchase a subscription.

If this all sounds good to you, click this link now to get PhoneRescue for Mac.

Get PhoneRescue iOS

How To Recover Deleted Text Messages On iPhone With PhoneRescue

With the free demo, you can only view recoverable files with it. In order to proceed with the restoration, make sure you subscribe to the paid version first.

There are two methods to recover deleted text messages with PhoneRescue: with backup or without backup.

Restoring Deleted iPhone Messages With Backup

Due to Apple’s recent updates, only older iOS versions are supported by PhoneRescue’s iCloud data recovery features.

For iPhones with Two-Factor Authentication turned on, only those that are iOS 10.3.3 and lower can use this method. For iPhones that don’t have Two-Factor Authentication turned on, however, this method will work, as long as the version is iOS 12.1 and older.

As long as you have a backup containing the message you want to retrieve and your device version is supported, then PhoneRescue can fetch it for you. Here’s how!

1. Launch PhoneRescue on your desktop and connect your iPhone to the computer using a USB cord.
2. From the PhoneRescue interface, choose from either ‘Recover from iCloud’ or ‘Recover from iTunes.’
3. You have to log in using your Apple email address and password to access your backups.
4. Once logged in, select the backup that contains your desired messages.
5. Next, you will choose the type of file you want to restore. By default, everything will be included in the restore process. However, since we only need messages, go ahead and uncheck everything except that file format.
6. You can then scan the backup file for any recoverable messages. This allows you to check if the messages you want to restore are actually in the backup.
7. In the next window, you will be given an option to either save the restored file to your computer or to your iPhone.

Restoring Deleted iPhone Messages Without Backup

You can also restore deleted iPhone messages even if you don’t have an iCloud or iTunes backup, as long as the data hasn’t been overwritten yet.

1. Like in the previous method, launch the PhoneRescue app on your desktop, and connect your iPhone to your computer using a USB cable.
2. From the interface, pick ‘Recover from iOS Device.’
3. In the next window, you will be able to pick the file that you want to restore. Just as before, make sure everything’s unchecked except for Messages.
4. PhoneRescue will then scan your iOS device for the indicated file type, allowing you to see all recoverable messages. Select those that you want to recover and click the recover button.
5. You can now export those messages either to your PC or to your iPhone as TXT files.

Recovering Deleted Text Messages Using Tenorshare UltData

Tenorshare UltData is a fantastic application for recovering recover deleted text messages on iPhone.

It doesn’t work without a computer or a laptop, but the process is easy enough that even non-tech-savvy people won’t have a problem getting it to work.

Using this app, not only can you recover your deleted text message, but you can also recover all sorts of data, including your photos, music, videos, and more.

There are multiple ways that you can use this to retrieve your deleted messages on iPhone.

The first one is to recover the messages from your iOS device. However, if the data is on an old backup, you can also use the iTunes Backup or the iCloud Backup options to bring it back.

Before you can do this, however, you need to purchase a subscription. It will cost you $45.95 for one month, $49.95 for a whole year, and $59.95 for lifetime access. This includes coverages for five iPhones or iPads and one PC.

Does this sound like something you’d need? Check out Tenorshare UltData for iPhone today! now! If you want to know more, you can also read my full review.

UltData for iPhone

How To Recover Deleted Text Messages From iPhone

As mentioned, the first step is buying a subscription online. Once this is done, you can begin the data recovery process.

For this tutorial, we’ll be recovering the deleted text messages from your iTunes backup. If you want to recover messages from your iOS device and iCloud backups, the process is pretty much the same.

1. After downloading the UltData app, install and open it.

1. Click Recover Data from iTunes Backup.

1. Next, you have to connect your iPhone to your PC so that UltData can recognize it.

1. You’ll see a list of all the kinds of data that you can recover from your phone. Since we’re trying to recover messages here, select Messages & Attachments and click Scan on the bottom right corner.

1. Once UltData is done scanning, you’ll see all your chosen data, including the deleted Messages. Click Recover to Device or Recover to PC in order to retrieve your chosen messages.

If you want to see it in action, here’s a video from Tenorshare.

See, recovering deleted text messages on iPhone isn’t difficult at all when you’re using an app like Tenorshare UltData. To subscribe, click here now!

UltData for iPhone

Recovering Deleted Text Messages Using mSpy’s SMS Tracking Feature

Another app that can help you recover deleted text messages on iPhone and Android is mSpy.

mSpy is a parental control app with features such as GPS location tracking, social media monitoring, and keylogging. More importantly, you can also use it to view deleted text messages on the target device.

If you have deleted text messages on your iPhone, mSpy will be able to read them, even if your phone is not jailbroken. However, if you have an Android phone, you’ll have to root your phone first to see the deleted text messages.

In order to view text messages, you just have to go to the mSpy dashboard on your web browserand you can do it from your phone. No need to use your computer!
Once you are in the dashboard, click the Text Messages button on the left sidebar.

All messages, whether they’re deleted or not, are found in this section. They will be in a threaded format and will include information such as the date and time, as well as the sender’s name and phone number.

For a more detailed review of mSpy, click here.

FAQs

Accidentally deleting your iPhone text messages can be scary and frustrating, especially if the missing text is essential. However, I’ve given you 5 easy ways to recover deleted text messages, even without using a computer.

If you use the iCloud backup restore function or regularly sync your messages with other Apple phones, you can recover iPhone messages without computer.

But how to find deleted text messages on iPhone without iCloud? You can use a reliable third-party solution, such as iMobie’s PhoneRescue to quickly recover your essential messages without hassle, even if you use a computer to do it.

Get PhoneRescue iOS for Mac

And if you need to recover other deleted data from your iPhone, check out our posts, for example, how to recover permanently deleted notes.

Do you have any questions? Let us know in the comments!

Can you recover deleted texts on iPhone without backup?

Can you recover deleted text messages that were not backed up?