How to delete messages in iMessage

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• iPhone
• Mac
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iMessage is a great instant messaging solution for iOS users, built into iOS and Mac devices. It also has more features compared to other built-in messaging apps, making it one of the most common messaging apps on iOS.

If you use iMessage a lot, you may need to trim some messages to improve navigation and free up some iCloud space.

In this article, we will guide you to delete unwanted iMessages. We’ll also show you how to recover messages if you accidentally delete them. Keep reading to know more.

How to delete iMessages on a Mac

To delete iMessage messages on a Mac, follow these steps:

1. Launch the Messages app.
   
2. Open the conversation that has the iMessage text you want to delete.
   
3. Select and right-click the specific message you want to delete.
   
4. From the options, choose “Delete.”
   
5. In the confirmation window, press the “Delete” button to finish.
   

Alternatively, you can use the menu to delete a message. To do so, follow these steps:

1. Open Messages.
   
2. Open the chat that has the message you want to delete.
   
3. Select the specific message you want to delete.
   
4. Navigate to the menu and select “Edit.”
   
5. From the options, select “Delete.” Alternatively, you can press the “Delete” key on your keyboard.
   

How to delete an entire iMessage conversation on a Mac

Sometimes you may want to delete an entire conversation and not just an iMessage. To do so, follow these steps:

1. On your Mac, launch the Messages app.
   
2. Select the conversation you want to delete.
   
3. Right-click on the specific iMessage you want to get rid of.
   
4. In the options widget, select “Delete conversation.”
   

How to automatically delete iMessages on a Mac

The Messages app also allows you to automatically delete messages after a predetermined time. Therefore, you don’t have to worry about messages taking up unnecessary space on your iCloud. Here’s how to automatically delete iMessages on a Mac:

1. Launch the Messages app.
   
2. Go to the menu and click “Messages.”
   
3. Open the “Preferences” menu.
   
4. Expand the drop-down menu next to “Keep Messages.”
   
5. Select how long you want to keep messages on your computer.
   

The default option is forever, but you can choose to delete messages older than a month or a year.

With the above settings, your messages should now be automatically deleted once the specified time period has passed. Deleting messages from a single device will not delete them from iCloud unless they are synced.

How to Permanently Delete iMessages on a Mac

All of the above steps simply delete messages temporarily. You’ll always find your messages somewhere else because your iMessages are backed up to iCloud by default. If you want to delete iMessages permanently, follow these steps:

1. On your Mac, close Messages.
2. Press “Command + Shift + G” to open the “Go to Folder” widget.
   
3. Guy “~/Library/Messages” in the “Go to Folder” text field and click the “Go” button.
   
4. Eliminate “chat.db-wal”“chat.db,” and “chat.db-shm”folders.
   
5. Restart your Mac, then go to messages and verify that all messages have been deleted.
   

Unfortunately, the above process only deletes the messages, not the attachments sent along with them. To also remove attachments, follow these additional steps:

1. Press “Command + Shift + G” to open “Go to Folder.”
   
2. Write the “~/Library/Messages” command inside the “Go to Folder” text field and press the “Enter” key.
   
3. Select the files you want to get rid of and delete them like any other file.
4. Restart your Mac for the changes to take effect.
   

How to delete iMessages on an iPhone

In this section, we’ll look at how you can delete a single iMessage, multiple iMessages, or an entire conversation on an iPhone.

To delete one or more iMessages from the same conversation, follow these steps:

1. Open Messages.
   
2. Open the chat with the iMessage you want to delete.
   
3. Find and hold the specific iMessage you want to delete.
   
4. From the options, tap “More…”
   
5. You can now tap any additional messages you want to delete. Each selected message will be marked.
   
6. Once all messages are selected, tap the trash can in the lower left corner of the screen.
   
7. Click “Delete Message” (the pop-up window shows a number for multiple messages) in the pop-up window to confirm the action.
   

How to Delete an iMessage for Everyone on an iPhone

The steps above show you how to delete an iMessage just for you. If you want to delete the message for the other person (effectively undo it), follow these steps:

1. Open the chat with the iMessage you want to delete.
   
2. Press and hold the iMessage you want to unsend.
   
3. From the options, select “Undo Send.”
   

Please note that for the message to be deleted on both sides, both the sender and the receiver must have their Apple devices running the latest version of the operating system: iOS 16. If the receiver is still using an older version of iOS, Continue viewing the message even if it is deleted from your side.

Plus, you only have two minutes to delete a message for everyone once it’s been sent.

How to Delete a Single iMessage Chat on an iPhone

To delete a single iMessage conversation, follow these steps:

1. On your iPhone, open the Messages app.
   
2. Scroll down to the conversation you want to delete.
3. Swipe left on your screen.
   
4. From the options, select “Delete.”
   

How to delete multiple chats on an iPhone

The Messages app also allows you to delete multiple conversations at once. Here’s how to do the process on an iPhone:

1. Go to Messages.
   
2. Tap “Edit” at the top of the screen.
   
3. From the options, select “Select Messages” to select the chats you want to delete.
   
4. Tap “Delete” in the lower right corner of the screen.
   

How to recover deleted iMessages on an iPhone

Sometimes you may want to recover a message that you accidentally deleted. Fortunately, doing so is easy, as long as you have the messages option enabled in iCloud backup. These are the steps to follow to recover deleted messages on an iPhone:

1. Go to settings.”
   
2. Tap your profile.
   
3. Open the iCloud menu.
   
4. Tap the “Messages” option.
   
5. Select “Turn off and download messages.”
   
6. Wait a few seconds, open your messages app and confirm that the messages have been restored.

Note that this only works if your iCloud has synced messages beforehand. If synchronization has been disabled for the “Messages” option, deleted messages will be lost.

How to delete iMessages on an iPad

If you want to delete an iMessage on an iPad, follow the steps below:

1. Go to Messages.
   
2. Open the conversation that has the message you want to delete.
   
3. Find and hold the specific message you want to delete.
   
4. In the pop-up window that appears, choose “More.”
   
5. Press the trash can in the lower left corner of the screen. In the confirmation window, select “Delete” to finish.
   

If you’re using an iPad and want to delete an iMessage for everyone, follow these steps:

1. Navigate to Messages.
   
2. Open the chat that has the message you want to unsend.
   
3. Press and hold the message you want to unsend.
   
4. From the options, tap “Undo Send.”
   
5. Now the message should be deleted for the other person.

Please note that for the above process to work, both your device and the recipient’s device must be running iOS 16. The message must also have been sent within the last two minutes. Otherwise, the message will still be available to the other person.

How to delete all messages at once on an iPhone or iPad

To delete all iMessages at once, follow these steps:

1. Open configuration.”
   
2. Scroll down to “Messages.”
   
3. Go to the “Message History” section and tap “Save Messages.”
   
4. From the options, select “1 year.”
   
5. Press the “Delete” key to continue.
   

Alternatively, you can follow these steps:

1. Open the Messages application.
   
2. Tap “Edit” in the upper left corner of the screen.
   
3. Once all messages are selected, tap “Delete.”
   

Additional FAQs

Are iMessages available on Android?

No, unfortunately, iMessage is only available for iOS users. Additionally, you can only use it to exchange messages with other iOS users.

How do you prevent iMessages that are on a Mac from appearing on your iPhone?

To prevent your Mac messages from appearing on your phone, follow these steps:

1.Open Messages on your Mac.

2. Select “Messages” in the upper left corner of the window.

3. Go to “Preferences” and navigate to “iMessages.”

4. Uncheck the “Enable Messages in iCloud” option.

Please note that the above settings will not affect previously synced messages.

What is the difference between an iMessage and a normal text message?

Let’s start with the apparent contrast factor: color. iMessages are distinguished by a blue bubble, while regular text messages are wrapped in a green bubble.

Another difference between an iMessage and a regular text message is that iMessages are exchanged between two iOS users only.

The last difference is that for normal text messages, you have to pay the SMS cost for each SMS to be delivered. However, for iMessages, all you need to deliver your iMessages is an active internet connection. Data charges may apply in case you are using a carrier plan instead of Wi-Fi.

Get rid of clutter

Deleting iMessages can be a great way to free up space on your computer. Fortunately, the process is relatively long and should in no way cause a headache. Additionally, iOS 16 has added some solid features that give the app more flexibility. For example, you can now undo recently sent messages and also recover deleted messages.

Anyway, we hope that you can now delete your iMessages regardless of the device you are using the app with.

Have you tried deleting iMessage messages on any of your Apple devices? How about getting them back? Let us know in the comments section below.