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Yes. Telegram can import an exported WhatsApp conversation, including its message history and, in supported cases, media. You do it one chat at a time using WhatsApp’s Export Chat option, then share the export to Telegram. This creates an imported copy—not a full WhatsApp-account migration or a live sync—and the original WhatsApp chat is not automatically deleted. Before importing to a Telegram group, check who can see it: every member of the destination chat can view the imported history.
What Telegram’s WhatsApp import does
Telegram announced its chat-history import feature on January 28, 2021, and its current API documentation still describes importing messages and media from other chat apps. Telegram’s feature supports exported private conversations and groups. The process starts in WhatsApp: export a chat, then share that export to Telegram. It is not a one-step transfer of your whole WhatsApp account, and each conversation you want to bring over generally needs its own export.
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Think of the result as a snapshot. New WhatsApp messages sent after you make the export will not appear in Telegram automatically. Importing also does not delete the WhatsApp source chat; keep it until you have checked the result.
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Before you start
- Update WhatsApp and Telegram, and make sure your device has enough free storage and a reliable connection—especially if the chat contains a lot of media.
- Decide whether you need photos, videos, and documents, or only text. WhatsApp may offer an option to export with or without media.
- Choose the Telegram destination carefully. Everyone in that chat will be able to see the imported messages. Do not import private history into a group unless its membership is appropriate.
- For a private conversation, Telegram may require the other person to be a mutual contact. For a group import, you may need the relevant administrator rights.
- Keep WhatsApp and any separate export until you have verified important messages and files in Telegram.
If you want the clearest archive, a new Telegram chat can be less confusing than inserting an old conversation into an active one. Telegram checks destination eligibility, so a particular destination may not be available for import.
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Import a WhatsApp chat on iPhone
- Open WhatsApp and open the individual or group conversation you want to export.
- Tap the contact’s name or the group name to open its information screen.
- Tap Export Chat. If WhatsApp asks, choose whether to include media.
- In the iOS share sheet, choose Telegram.
- Select the Telegram destination and confirm when Telegram asks to import the history.
- Wait for the import to finish. Open the destination and check both the messages and any important media before deleting or changing anything in WhatsApp.
The share-sheet layout can vary by iOS and app version. WhatsApp may also offer Export Chat from the conversation list—for example, through a conversation’s swipe or menu actions—so labels and access paths can differ.
Import a WhatsApp chat on Android
- Open WhatsApp and open the individual or group conversation.
- Tap â‹® in the upper-right corner, then tap More.
- Tap Export Chat, and choose whether to include media if prompted.
- Choose Telegram from Android’s share menu.
- Select the Telegram destination and confirm the import.
- For a large conversation, allow time for the transfer to process. Check representative messages and open important files in Telegram before relying on the import.
WhatsApp and Android manufacturer menus can change slightly between releases or languages; the usual path is ⋮ → More → Export Chat → Telegram.
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What transfers—and what may look different
| Content | What to expect |
|---|---|
| Text messages | Telegram supports importing the exported message history. |
| Original dates | Telegram retains message timestamps, but the imported block may appear at the current import point rather than being inserted neatly into older Telegram history. |
| Photos, videos, documents, and other media | Media can be included, but do not assume every item will transfer successfully. Check files that matter. |
| Sender identity | Imported names or numbers may appear as text rather than linking to Telegram profiles. Do not assume WhatsApp participants will be mapped to Telegram accounts. |
| Replies, reactions, stickers, polls, locations, and contact cards | Telegram does not promise a complete one-to-one conversion of every WhatsApp feature. Treat these as potentially different or absent. |
| Calls, read receipts, disappearing-message settings, and encryption state | These are not preserved as a live WhatsApp conversation experience by a chat-history import. |
| Messages sent after the export | They are not synchronized to Telegram. A later export is a separate import and may add clutter or duplicates. |
Telegram describes imported messages as foreign-app history and says imports arrive in the current day while retaining their original timestamps. In a new or lightly used destination, Telegram may place them in a more chronological position. In an existing large or complex conversation, they may instead appear together at the import point. A historical Telegram issue report described chronological merging in some existing private chats and smaller groups under 1,000 Telegram messages, but that is not a guaranteed current limit or universal rule.
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Telegram does not appear in the share menu
Update both apps and try again. Make a short test export to see whether the problem is the chat’s size or the handoff. Share the export directly to Telegram rather than renaming or recompressing it. Telegram’s import API can reject invalid or unrecognized export files. If the chat is large, try a text-only export to isolate whether media or file size is causing trouble.
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Text arrives but media is missing
Telegram supports media import, but missing-media cases have been reported; results can depend on the export, media volume, file handling, and app versions. Retry with WhatsApp’s include-media option enabled, check storage and network access, and test a small chat if possible. Open important photos, videos, and documents in Telegram before deleting the WhatsApp original. Keep a separate export if the files are irreplaceable.
The messages seem to be dated today
This can be expected: Telegram may place the imported history at the import point while preserving each message’s original timestamp. In an existing chat, consider pinning the last message before the import so the boundary is easier to find. A new destination chat may make the archive easier to navigate.
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Telegram will not import to a private chat or group
Telegram’s API lists USER_NOT_MUTUAL_CONTACT as a possible private-chat restriction and CHAT_ADMIN_REQUIRED as a possible group restriction. For a private chat, check whether the other person is a mutual Telegram contact. For a group, an administrator may need to perform the import. Do not use a group as a workaround without checking its members and visibility first.
You are unsure whether an import finished
Telegram can reject a new import while a previous import for the same chat is still active. Wait for the in-progress operation to complete before retrying, and inspect the destination to determine whether text, media, or both arrived. Repeating an import can create duplicate history.
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Should you delete WhatsApp after importing?
Not until you have confirmed that the right Telegram chat received the expected history, that important media opens, and that no unintended group members can see it. If the conversation is important for personal, work, or record-keeping reasons, retain the WhatsApp original or a separate export as a fallback. Telegram import is useful for bringing an archive into another app; it is not a guarantee of a perfect replica.
Quick Recap
When a different option makes more sense
- Keep WhatsApp as your archive if you need the original conversation experience and do not need the messages inside Telegram.
- Export a chat as a file if offline preservation or record-keeping matters more than browsing the history as a Telegram conversation.
- Use WhatsApp’s device-transfer tools if you are changing phones but intend to keep using WhatsApp. That is a device migration, not a Telegram import.
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