How to Delete Messages from Archive

Have you ever scrolled through archived messages and realized it's time for a little cleanup? Whether you're looking to declutter or remove specific conversations for privacy reasons, deleting archived messages can be straightforward. This guide will show you how to delete messages from archive to keep your messaging space tidy and organized.

How to Delete Archived Messages on Your Phone

If you are someone who texts a lot, we are sure you use the messages app on your phone as well. So, if you want to delete those text messages, we are sharing a separate guide for Android and iPhone users.

Android Messages

1. Open the Google Messages app.

2. At the bottom of the main screen, you'll usually find a section for "Archived conversations." Tap on it.

3. In the archived conversations list, long-press on one conversation to select it.

4. Tap "Select all."

5. Tap the trash can icon.

iPhone Messages

Unlike some other platforms, iPhones don't have a traditional message archive feature. However, you can still manage your messages effectively using different methods:

Deleting Individual or Entire Messages:

To delete a specific message:

1. Open the Messages app.

2. Find the conversation containing the message.

3. Tap and hold the message you want to delete.

4. Select "More."

5. Tap the trash can icon to delete it.

To delete an entire conversation:

1. Swipe left on the conversation in the Messages app.

2. Tap "Delete."

Using iCloud for Backups:

1. Go to Settings on your iPhone.

2. Tap [Your Name] at the top of the screen.

3. Select "iCloud."

4. Tap "iCloud Backup."

5. Ensure that your iPhone is set to back up automatically.

6. Then go back to the Messages app and delete the messages.

Using Third-Party Apps for iMessage Archiving:

1. Choose a third-party app like iMazing or iExplorer.

2. Install the app on your computer.

3. Follow the app's instructions to connect your iPhone and export your messages for archiving.

How to Delete Archived Messages on Third-Party Apps

In addition to native messaging apps, people use a lot of third-party apps to communicate, such as WhatsApp, Telegram, and Facebook Messenger. Here, we are sharing how you can delete archived messages from these three different apps.

Archiving on WhatsApp doesn’t delete messages or media from your phone. It just moves them out of your main view, so they’re easy to find when needed. And if you receive new messages in an archived chat, the conversation will automatically unarchive.

1. Open WhatsApp and go to the "Chats" screen.

2. Scroll to the top and pull down to reveal the "Archived" section.

3. Tap on "Archived" to see all archived chats.

4. Swipe left on the chat you want to delete, then tap "Delete."

5. If you only want to remove the chat from your list but keep it backed up, choose "Delete Chat" to clear the conversation.

Telegram's archive feature is a little different from WhatsApp's, but it works just as well to keep your main chat list organized. When you archive a chat in Telegram, it moves to the "Archived Chats" folder, keeping your main feed clean. If you want to delete those archived messages entirely, here's how:

1. Open Telegram and go to your main chat list.

2. Pull down to reveal the "Archived Chats" section.

3. Tap "Archived Chats" to view all conversations you've hidden.

4. Swipe left on the chat (iPhone) or tap and hold (Android) on the conversation you want to delete.

5. Select "Delete Chat" to permanently remove the conversation from your app.

Facebook Messenger

Like WhatsApp and Telegram, Messenger doesn't automatically unarchive a conversation if you get a new message in it. So if you’ve archived a chat and want to keep it hidden, it will stay that way until you unarchive it manually.

1. Open the Messenger app and tap on your profile picture in the top left corner.

2. Tap "Archived Chats" to view all your archived conversations.

3. Find the conversation you want to delete.

4. Swipe left (iPhone) or tap and hold (Android) on the chat.

5. Tap "Delete" to permanently remove it from your list.

Extra Tips for Deleting Archived Emails

Besides deleting archived messages on your phone, you can also remove archived emails. In this section, we'll cover how to delete archived emails in Gmail, Outlook, and other email services.

Gmail

In Gmail, archived emails are stored in the "All Mail" folder, which can fill up quickly. Archiving simply moves emails out of your inbox but keeps them stored, so they can pile up over time.

1. Go to the "All Mail" folder in Gmail, either through the left-hand menu or by searching for "All Mail" in the search bar.

2. Find the specific email(s) you want to delete.

3. Select the checkbox next to the email(s).

4. Click the "Delete" button.

Note: When you archive emails in Gmail, they’re not deleted; they’re simply moved out of the inbox. If you want to bring an archived email back to the inbox, you can search for it and move it back manually.

Outlook

Outlook's Archive folder helps keep your inbox tidy by storing emails that you want to keep but don't need in the main view.

Also, Outlook's Auto Archive feature can automatically move older emails to the Archive folder. You can configure settings to delete emails after a certain period of time (for example, every 6 months or so) to help manage old archived messages.

1. Open the "Archive" folder.

2. Use the search bar to find specific emails (such as by sender, recipient, and subject).

3. Select the checkbox on the emails you want to delete.

4. Press the "Delete" key.

Other Email Providers (Yahoo, Apple Mail, etc.)

Other email services, like Yahoo Mail, and Apple Mail, also offer archive features, but they store archived emails in different ways.

Yahoo Main

Archived emails are stored in the All Mail folder, just like Gmail.

To delete archived emails manually: Go to More > All Mail and select the emails you want to delete. Then, click the Trash icon to delete them.

Bulk Deletion Tip: Yahoo doesn't have a bulk delete option directly in the interface, so you’ll need to manually select multiple emails or search for a specific date range to delete older archived emails.

Apple Mail

Archived emails are stored in the Archive folder.

To delete archived emails manually: Simply go to the Archive folder, select the emails you want to delete, and press Delete or move them to the Trash.

Smart Mailboxes Tip: Use Smart Mailboxes to filter archived emails by specific criteria, like date or sender, to delete multiple emails at once.

Bonus: Manage Archived Messages in a Privacy-First Way

Simply deleting archived messages might feel like a quick fix, but if you're truly concerned about keeping your information private, it might not be enough. Here are some important steps you can take to make sure your messages are fully secure, even after archiving or deleting them.

Enable End-to-End Encryption on Messaging Apps

End-to-end encryption is one of the best ways to keep your messages safe, both during transit and when stored. With this encryption, only you and the person you're communicating with can read your messages. This is especially important if you're using messaging apps like WhatsApp or Telegram.

WhatsApp:

WhatsApp uses end-to-end encryption by default, meaning all your messages are encrypted from the moment they leave your phone until they reach the recipient. This includes archived messages. So even if they are stored in the cloud or on your device, they remain secure as long as the person you're talking to is also using WhatsApp. WhatsApp encryption is enabled by default. It's built into every message, including those you archive.

Telegram:

Telegram also offers encryption, but it's important to note that end-to-end encryption is only available in Secret Chats. Regular chats on Telegram are encrypted during transit, but they’re stored on Telegram's servers, meaning they aren't protected by end-to-end encryption.

To enable Secret Chats:

1. Open the Telegram app and tap the pencil icon to start a new message.

2. Select New Secret Chat and choose a contact.

3. From that point, your chat is fully encrypted, and it stays secure even if you archive it.

Deleting Archived Messages Doesn't Always Fully Remove Them

Here's something many people overlook: just deleting archived messages doesn't necessarily remove them from your device’s storage or cloud backups. In fact, those deleted messages can still exist in backups or be recoverable from your phone’s internal storage.

Check Cloud Backups

Many people rely on cloud backups like Google Drive or iCloud to save their messages. However, deleted messages might still be stored there even after you’ve removed them from your app. To truly protect your privacy, you need to ensure these backups are also cleared.

Resetting Your Device

If you're selling or giving away your phone, a factory reset is necessary to ensure that all messages—archived or not—are wiped from your device. But here's the thing: simply deleting messages from your app doesn’t mean they’re completely gone from your phone. They could still be recoverable from your device's storage.

Final Words

It's very important to keep yourself secure if you have personal and sensitive chats on your devices. In addition, we recommend that you don't keep anything private on shared devices, so they are away from the eyes of other people. Last but not least, if these archived chats have any important information, don't forget to create a backup before you delete them. So, are you ready to secure yourself now?