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View your Chat history in the chat or by downloading your data
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One of the reasons Snapchat is so popular is that messages you send and receive will quickly disappear, but sometimes, you might want to see a conversation you previously had with someone. Unfortunately, you cannot see messages that you have not saved in chat or screenshotted, but there are a couple of different ways to see saved messages. This wikiHow article will teach you how to see messages you have saved in your conversations on Snapchat.

Viewing Snapchat History

You cannot view messages that haven’t been saved in the chat. However, if the messages have been saved, you can view them in the chat, or you can download your data.

Method 1
Method 1 of 3:

Scroll through Saved Messages

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  1. 1
    Open Snapchat and swipe to the right. This will display a list of your chats.
  2. To open a conversation, tap the name of your friend.
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  3. Saved messages will be highlighted in grey and have a colored bar to the side.
    • To save a message , tap and hold the message you want to save. Then tap Save in chat . Tapping the message again will unsave the message.
    • Messages can also be screenshotted , but they will still disappear from the chat, and the other person will receive a notification that you screenshotted the conversation.
    • By default, unsaved messages will be deleted after all chat participants view the message, but you can change this in the chat settings.
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Method 2
Method 2 of 3:

Download Your Snapchat Data

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  1. To open your profile, tap your avatar or silhouette in the top left of the camera screen. [1]
  2. The gear-shaped icon is located in the top right of the screen.
  3. This button is at the bottom of the page in the “Account Actions” category. [2]
    • For security purposes, you may have to log in to your Snapchat account again. [3] Type in your username or email and password, complete the robot check, and tap the yellow Log In button.
  4. 4
    Select what you want to download and tap Next . Ensure that “Chat History” is selected. If you want to export your Memories, Chat Media, and Stories, tap the toggle switch at the top of the page. Then tap Next at the bottom of the screen.
  5. 5
    Select if you want to export your data from a specific date range and tap Submit . You can use the calendar to select a specific date range for which you want to save your data. You can also tap Yesterday , Last Week , Last Month , Last Year , 2 Years , or All Time . If you don’t want to export data from a specific date range, tap the toggle switch next to “Do you want to export data from a specific date range?” Then tap Submit at the bottom of the screen. This submits your request for data.
  6. Once your data is ready, Snapchat will send you an email containing a link to download it. [4]
  7. The sender of the email will be “no_reply@snapchat.com”.
    • It will likely take a few minutes for Snapchat to process your request. Allow up to 1 to 3 business days to retrieve your data from Snapchat.
  8. The link text will say Click here in blue.
    • You will likely have to log into your Snapchat account once again to verify your identity.
  9. The zip file can be downloaded from the linked text saying something like mydata~(list of numbers).zip . It is simpler to use a computer for this step, but you can also use your phone.
    • For iPhone, tap the download icon on your address bar, then tap the zip file to open it in the Files app. Lastly, tap the zip file once more to unzip it into a folder containing your data.
    • For Android, click the Tap to view button that appears after the file has downloaded, then tap the zip file in “Storage” to unzip the folder with your data. [5]
  10. As with the download link, the folder should be called something like mydata~(list of numbers) .
  11. This folder contains HTML files for many different Snapchat datasets from your account.
  12. You will see the name of your friend or group chat and the message content under “From”, either “TEXT” or “MEDIA” under “Media Type”, and the time and date the Snap was sent under “Created”.
    • Be aware that message content will only be displayed for saved text chat messages, not saved media, unless you select to export your media.
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Method 3
Method 3 of 3:

Changing How Long Snaps are Saved

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  1. 1
    Open Snapchat and swipe to the right. This will display a list of your chats. You can change how long viewed messages stay in the chat in the chat settings. [6]
  2. 2
    Tap the chat you want to save. This will open the chat conversation.
  3. 3
    Tap the name of the chat. It’s at the top of the page. This opens the chat menu.
  4. 4
    Tap the More icon ••• . It’s the icon with three dots in the upper-right corner. This displays the Settings menu.
  5. 5
    Tap Chat and Notifications Settings . It’s the third option in the menu.
  6. 6
    Tap the toggle switch next to “Keep Snaps in Chat.” This keeps snaps in the chat for 24 hours after they have been viewed by all participants.
  7. 7
    Tap Delete Chats . This option allows you to select when snaps are deleted after they are viewed.
  8. 8
    Select an option. Your options are as follows:
    • After Viewing: This option deletes snaps immediately after they have been viewed by all chat participants.
    • 24 Hours after Viewing: This option keeps snaps in the chat for 24 hours after they have been viewed by all chat participants.
    • 7 Days After Viewing: This option deeps snaps in the chat for 7 days after they’ve been viewed by all chat participants.
  9. 9
    Return to the chat. When you return to the chat, snaps will be saved for a longer period of time, allowing you to view them later, even after they’ve been viewed.
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      About This Article

      Article Summary X

      1. Open Snapchat, then open a conversation with a friend.
      2. Scroll through your saved messages.
      3. Alternatively, open your profile, then bring up the Settings menu.
      4. Tap My Data and choose Submit Request on the page that appears.
      5. Open the link sent to your email, then download your zipped data.
      6. Unzip your data and choose chat_history.html from the html folder.

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