How to Recover Facebook Messenger Messages on iOS Devices

Daisy Raines

Jul 12, 2024 • Filed to: Data Recovery Solutions • Proven solutions

Facebook, over the years, has grown into a great platform for users to connect with their loved ones far away and has become a source of memory. Reading old conversations with them is sure to make you happy or emotional, but what if, due to any unforeseen circumstances, the messages get deleted? But don’t fret, as in this guide, you’ll learn how to recover deleted Messenger messages on your iPhone.

how to recover facebook messenger messages on ios devices

That’s not it. Even if the messages aren’t deleted, finding them from a massive cluster by scrolling through can be a struggle. Here, you’ll also learn how to find them in a jiffy. So, without further ado, let’s dig in!

How to Recover Deleted Facebook Messages
Recover Old Facebook Messenger Messages that You Have Deleted on iOS Devices
How to Read Old Messages on Facebook.com Faster

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How to Recover Deleted Facebook Messages

If you mistakenly deleted Facebook messages, don’t worry; there are many simple yet effective ways to retrieve them. Continue reading to find out:

Method 1: Check Archived Conversations

In your Facebook Messenger, an “Archived Message” section is hidden in the inbox and isn’t permanently deleted. There’s a chance that you possibly selected Archive instead of Delete. It is an easy mistake to make, and recovering the archived messages on Messenger is pretty straightforward. Just follow the steps in order:

Step 1: Launch the Facebook Messenger on your iOS and tap on the “three-bar” icon in the top left corner.

tap the three-bar icon on the messenger

Step 2: From the appearing menu, tap on “Archive.”

tap on the archive option

Step 3: The new window shows the list of messages that you chose to archive. If the one that you lost is present there, then press and hold on to the one that is for a few seconds, and select “Unarchive” from the pop-up menu. You should see your lost messages back on the chat screen.

unarchive the chats

Method 2: Download Your Facebook Information

Your Messenger messages get saved on the Facebook server so that you can request a copy of them at any time. With this, you can recover deleted messages in Messenger on iPhone, iPad, or any other iOS platforms available. Follow the steps to download the messages from your Facebook Messenger:

Step 1: Launch Messenger on your iPhone and tap on the line icon in its top-left corner.

Step 2: Tap on the Gear or “Settings” icon, scroll down, and tap on the “See more in Accounts Center” tab.

access the settings tab

Step 3: On the new window, tap on “Your information and permissions,” followed by “Download your information” and “Download or transfer information.”

navigate to download or transfer information

Step 4: If you have multiple accounts (Facebook/Instagram), select one that has messages to recover, then tap on “Next.”

select the account

Step 5: Then select Specific types of information > Messages > Next.

select messages as information type

Step 6: The app then requires you to select the location where you want to save the messages and tap on “Next.” You can download the information directly from the desired location on your device or upload it directly to Dropbox or Google Drive.

select the download location

Step 7: Select the date range up to which you wish to retrieve deleted Messenger messages on your iPhone and tap on “Create Files.”

create download files

Step 8: The data will take some time to retrieve, and once it does, you’ll receive a notification. Tap on the “download” option to receive it. Open the archive folder using the abovementioned steps, select the messages to recover, and move them back to the chat window.

Method 3: Ask Your Contact

Even if following the methods didn’t retrieve the messages you need, your contact might still have a copy of the chat. Ask them to send you a screenshot of the conversation or the messages to you.

Recover Old Facebook Messenger Messages that You Have Deleted on iOS Devices

Wondershare Dr. Fone is probably one of the best platforms to back up and recover deleted Messenger messages on iPhones with an easy-to-use interface. With this toolkit, you can seamlessly and effectively retrieve any data, irrespective of what led to its loss, be it any technical error, accidental deletion, or opt into the “Vanish mode” feature of Messenger.

But you can be cautious with it and preemptively back up your data at regular intervals, and Dr. Fone serves as an efficient and dependable solution for both Android and iOS users. And just not the messages, you can use Dr. Fone to backup and restore almost everything, including videos, photos, SMS, contacts, and Whatsapp messages, among others. This ensures a thorough approach to restoring data. Follow the solutions in order to backup and recover deleted messages in Messenger on iPhone:

Solution 1: Manually Back Up the Data

Step 1: Download the Wondershare Dr. Fone app on your Mac/Windows PC, launch it, connect your iPhone to the computer, and provide access to connect data.

Step 2: To start with the backup process, tap on the “My Backup” tab on the side panel followed by “Back Up Now.” You can selectively backup the Applications (as you need your Facebook messages to stay safe) from the data types and then tap on the backup now option.

start a manual backup

Step 3: Wait for the platform to automatically detect and backup the files available on your iPhone. It takes a few seconds to several minutes, depending on the amount of data available on your device. If you don’t want to, tap on cancel at any time.

backup in progress

Step 4: Once the backup concludes, the new window displays the backup details. Click on “view backups” to access the files backed up by Dr. Fone.

view backups

Then, access “My Backups” and restore them by simply clicking on “Restore to Device,” and your Facebook data is nowhere gone.

Solution 2: Automatically Backup the Data

Step 1: If you don’t want to go through backing up your Facebook messages and other data over and over again, you can avoid it by setting an automatic backup on Dr. Fone. To do so, access “My backup > Backup preferences” to open a pop-up window.

start auto backup

Step 2: Toggle the auto-backup option to set up a backup plan to weekly/daily/monthly, and preferred time. Make sure to keep your iDevice and computer connected to the same WiFi during this time.

set up a scheduled backup plan

Step 3: You can access the “Backup History” to check the data that is backed up automatically and restore it at any time needed.

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How to Read Old Messages on Facebook.com Faster

Facebook messaging is an excellent way to keep in touch with your loved ones who are far away. But, as days go by, the old messages on your Messenger get piled up with the new messages, and finding any particular conversation you had in the past can get tricky. Of course, you can scroll up to find the message, but it can be time-consuming. But fret not; follow the methods to see your old messages without scrolling:

Method 1: Make Use of Keywords

Step 1: Launch the messenger and select the certain conversation whose message you’re searching for.

Step 2: Navigate to the magnifying glass icon on the top right corner to open the “search bar.”

Step 3: Then, type in a keyword to access your message history on Facebook.

Method 2: Adjust the URL

Step 1: You can follow this method on your Android and Windows/Mac computers. All you need is a web browser, where you can search “Facebook.com” and press Enter. Then, input the user credentials to log in, and as it displays the homepage, navigate to the message page and open the conversation. Now, note down the URL at the top of the browser.

Step 2: Scroll down, right-click on “see older messages,” and select “open in a new tab.”

Step 3: The URL should be something like this:

https://m.facebook.com/messages/read/?tid=id.???&start=6&pagination_direction=1&refid=12

In the URL, you’ll see the “start=6” text, where 6 indicates the hierarchy of the conversed messages. If the conversation has more messages, change the number to jump into the old messages. Although this might sound tiring, it is much faster and easier than scrolling through thousands of data.

Conclusion

You see how simple it is to recover deleted Messenger messages on your iPhone, even when you aren’t in possession of your device. Just follow the simple aforementioned steps, and there’s no way you can’t get your messages back.

But if you wish to keep Facebook and other app’s data safe, back it up by using one of the best platforms out there, Wondershare Dr. Fone. Through this, you can back up any type of data and restore it at any time in the future in case you lose or misplace it. So why wait? Download the Dr. Fone app, and keep your precious Facebook messages safe.

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