Contents

Can You Retrieve Deleted iMessages on iPhone/iPad?
Method 1. Check Recently Deleted Folder
Method 2. Recover from iCloud Backup
Method 3. Retrieve from iTunes/Finder Backup
Method 4. Recover via Third-party Software (No Backup)
FAQs on How to Recover Deleted iMessages from iPhone/iPad

5 Proven Ways to Recover Deleted iMessages from Your iPhone and iPad

September 04, 2026Louisa White

iMessage serves as a convenient and economical way to communicate with Apple users. Like Facebook, X, and other social apps, it lets you send or receive text messages, stickers, audio, videos, photos, and more.

However, you may delete one or more critical iMessage conversations by mistake or lose them due to other reasons. Don’t panic. It is a common issue when managing multiple chats, and there are solutions to retrieve missing iMessages. Keep following this guide to recover deleted iMessages from your iPhone or iPad with ease.

Recover Deleted iMessages from iPhone iPad iPod

Can You Retrieve Deleted iMessages on iPhone/iPad?
Method 1. Check Recently Deleted Folder
Method 2. Recover from iCloud Backup
Method 3. Retrieve from iTunes/Finder Backup
Method 4. Recover via Third-party Software (No Backup)
FAQs on How to Recover Deleted iMessages from iPhone/iPad

Can You Retrieve Deleted iMessages on iPhone/iPad?

Yes, you can retrieve deleted iMessages on your iPhone or iPad.

Apple has built a “Recently Deleted” feature into iOS devices for you to restore your deleted messages easily. It acts as a safety net for mistakenly deleted files.

What’s more, you can restore deleted iMessages from iCloud or iTunes/Finder backups. Even if you don’t have a suitable backup, and your messages seem to be permanently erased, there are dedicated iOS data recovery tools for you to rescue these lost files from your iPhone or iPad.

Methods	Backup Required	Data Loss Risk	Selective Recovery	Best For
Recently Deleted Folder	No	No	Yes	Messages deleted within 30 days
iCloud Backup	Yes	High	No	Users with a suitable iCloud backup
iTunes/Finder Backup	Yes	High	No	Users with a computer backup
Aiseesoft Data Recovery	No	No	Yes	Recovering messages without a backup

Method 1. Check Recently Deleted Folder

If you have a relatively new iPhone or iPad running iOS 16 or iPadOS 16.1 or later, you can use the Recently Deleted folder for iMessage recovery. You are allowed to directly restore iMessages, standard text messages, and conversations that you deleted within 30 days.

Step 1.

Open the Messages app on your iPhone or iPad, and tap Edit in the top-left corner or Filter in the upper-right corner to display the “Recently Deleted” option.

Step 2.

Tap Recently Deleted to access your deleted messages. Choose the conversations containing the messages you want to retrieve and tap Recover. Tap the Recover Message button to confirm your action.

Restore iPhone Imessages From Recently Deleted Folder

Method 2. Recover from iCloud Backup

If you often back up your iOS data to iCloud, you can restore deleted iMessages from a suitable backup file.

Note that this method requires you to perform a factory reset first. Moreover, the operation may cause you to lose any data created since the backup was made.

Step 1.

Go to Settings > General > Transfer or Reset iPhone > Erase All Content and Settings and follow prompts to complete the reset process.

Step 2.

After the iPhone or iPad restarts, proceed with the setup steps until you access the Apps & Data screen. Choose Restore from iCloud Backup. Sign in to your account, then choose the relevant backup that contains your deleted iMessages.

Restore From iCloud Backup to Retrieve Deleted Messages

Method 3. Retrieve from iTunes/Finder Backup

Except for iCloud backup, if you have a suitable iTunes Backup (Windows) or Finder (Mac) backup on your computer, you can also perform a recovery through Restore Backup. However, you need to note that, like iCloud restoration, this method will restore your entire device state at the backup time point.

Using iTunes on Windows

Step 1.

Open iTunes, connect your iOS device to the Windows PC using your lightning cable.

Step 2.

You can see your iPhone's name in the upper-left corner when the iPhone is successfully connected. Click it to access the device summary page.

Step 3.

Then, click the Restore Backup option in the backup section, and a list of available backups will appear. Select the backup that contains the iMessages you want to restore.

Step 4.

Finally, click Restore button and wait for the process. When it is complete, your iPhone will automatically restart, and then you can check the iMessage App to find the restored messages easily.

Using Finder on Mac

Step 1.

Connect your iPhone to the Mac with a data cable and open Finder.

Step 2.

Click on your iPhone on the left, then click on Trust this computer on your iPhone, and enter the lock screen password.

Step 3.

Then you will enter the device management interface, click on Restore Backup on the General page, and select a backup that includes the iMessages you want to recover.

Step 4.

Finally, wait for the process to complete (without disconnecting the device). The iPhone will restart and restore to the backup state.

Method 4. Recover via Third-party Software (No Backup)

If you can’t find target iMessages from the Recently Deleted folder, and you don’t have backups to restore, turn to the reputable Aiseesoft iPhone Data Recovery. It offers the highest success rate for recovering deleted and erased iOS files, even permanently deleted ones. Aiseesoft supports various commonly used data types, including messages, photos, videos, notes, contacts, call history, and reminders.

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Step 1.

Once you notice that some crucial iMessages have been deleted, download Aiseesoft iPhone Data Recovery on your computer. In the meantime, avoid downloading new files and apps to your iPhone or iPad.

Launch this iMessage recovery tool and connect your iOS device to the computer. As you can see, the software allows you to restore data from the device itself, iTunes backups, and iCloud backups.

Step 2.

Tap Trust on your iPhone (for example) and enter your passcode to authorize the connection. Click the Start Scan button when the device is detected.

Connect iPhone-13 Pro MAX Start Scan Data

Step 3.

The first scan will take a relatively long time to finish. Once scanned, all your iPhone data will be displayed by file type. To access and recover deleted iMessages from your iPhone, click Messages on the left.

Step 4.

Aiseesoft iPhone Data Recovery lets you click each message to check details. Select all the iMessages you want to restore, and then click the Recover button.

As mentioned above, you can retrieve other iOS files, such as pictures, videos, Safari bookmarks and history, and more. Select the useful ones and perform the recovery.

FAQs on How to Recover Deleted iMessages from iPhone/iPad

Question 1. Where is iMessage history stored?

If you never delete iMessages on your iPhone or iPad, you can open the Messages app and view all the iMessage history. If you want to view the specific iMessages you have deleted before, use Aiseesoft iPhone Data Recovery, which we recommended above, to retrieve them. If you have a suitable backup, you can also restore your iOS device from the backup to find lost messages.

Question 2. Do deleted iPhone messages stay on my iPad?

By default, your messages are synced across your devices when Messages is turned on in iCloud. So, if you deleted iMessages, they are also removed from linked Apple devices, including your iPad. Surely, these synced messages won’t be directly removed from the iPad once you delete them on your iPhone. You may still find them if you act quickly.

Question 3. Will restoring an iCloud backup overwrite existing data?

Yes, it will. The present data on your iOS device will be overwritten by the version of the chosen iCloud backup. So, if you don’t want to lose the latest files, you’d better back up before starting iCloud backup restore. Or, you can choose another recovery method, like Aiseesoft Data Recovery, which can selectively recover your iMessages.

Conclusion

In this article, you can learn four different ways to recover deleted iMessages from your iPhone and iPad. A professional data recovery tool, Aiseesoft iPhone Data Recovery, is recommended to help you rescue these lost iMessage conversations. It lets you preview and select specific messages to recover. When you fail to find deleted iMessages in the Recently Deleted folder or don’t have backups, this tool is often the better choice.