Guide
How to export a WhatsApp chat to Excel
WhatsApp exports a chat as a text file. Here is how to get that file on an iPhone or an Android phone, and turn it into an Excel sheet with one row per message.
To export a WhatsApp chat to Excel, export the chat from your phone, then drop the file on a converter. On an iPhone: open the chat, tap its name, then Export chat. On Android: the three dots, More, Export chat. Choose Without media. Then drop the .zip or .txt on Circles' free WhatsApp chat to Excel converter, which writes an .xlsx and a .csv in your browser.
Updated
Export the chat on an iPhone
On an iPhone, open the chat
Open WhatsApp and the chat or group you want.
Tap the chat's name
At the top of the chat. Scroll down to Export chat.
Choose Without media
WhatsApp makes a .zip with the chat inside. Save it to Files, AirDrop it to your computer, or mail it to yourself.
Export the chat on an Android phone
On Android, open the chat
Open WhatsApp and the chat or group you want.
Tap the three dots
At the top right, then More and Export chat.
Choose Without media
WhatsApp makes a .txt file. Save it to your files or Google Drive, or send it to yourself by email.
The menu names change a little between WhatsApp versions; WhatsApp's own help page shows the current ones.
Turn the export into an Excel sheet
Open the converter
Open the WhatsApp chat to Excel converter on your computer or your phone.
Drop the file
Drop the .zip or the .txt on it, or tap it to choose the file. Your browser reads it, and nothing is uploaded.
Download
Download the .xlsx for Excel, or the .csv for anything else. Each message is one row.
Good to know
- Dates are real dates. Sort by them, filter a month, or count messages per day with a pivot table.
- Hebrew stays Hebrew. A Hebrew chat opens right to left, and the CSV carries the mark Excel needs to read it.
- Photos are named. Each photo or voice note has its row, with its type and file name; the files stay in the .zip.
- There is a limit. WhatsApp's own help says an export holds up to the latest 40,000 messages without media.
Questions and answers
Can WhatsApp export to Excel by itself?
No. WhatsApp exports a chat as a text file. A converter turns that file into a spreadsheet, with each message in its own row.
Can I export more than one chat at once?
No. WhatsApp exports one chat at a time. Export each chat, and convert each file.
Why do Hebrew letters show as question marks in my CSV?
Excel needs a mark at the start of a CSV to know it is UTF-8. The converter's CSV has it. The .xlsx needs nothing and keeps Hebrew as it is.
Convert your chat now
Free, in your browser, and the file stays on your device.
Open the chat to Excel converter
Next time, find it by asking your AI. Circles connects ChatGPT, Claude or Instinct to the WhatsApp chats you choose.