How to Delete Archived Chats in WhatsApp

As a popular chat app, WhatsApp has been on top of the market for quite some time now. Knowing your way around the app is pretty much essential. As simple as the app appears, however, it still hides certain features that you might not know about.

Here’s how to navigate smooth waters of WhatsApp and how to make the most out of it. Here are some essential WhatsApp tips and tricks that you should learn.

Archiving a Chat

If you’ve ever tried deleting a chat, you’ve noticed that the “delete” option doesn’t exist. Well, not in the conversation list screen. To archive a chat, go to the chats tab and either swipe left if you have an iOS device or hold the chat if you are an Android user. Then, select Archive. You’ll notice that this has removed the conversation from the list.

However, the deleted chat still exists. It’s in the Archived Chats section. To access this location on Android and iOS devices, it is located at the top of the list.

If you want to return the chat to the regular conversation list, select Unarchive. If you want to delete it/leave the conversation, hold the chat and select the Trash icon at the top and then Delete.

With group chats that you didn’t create but were a part of, you need to exit on the group first before you can delete the chat. To do this, hold the chat and tap the More option(three-dotted icon) at the top right then select Exit group. Once again, tap and hold the chat to select. You will notice that the delete option is now available. Select the Trash icon to permanently delete the chat.

Quoting

It’s easy to get lost inside a conversation, especially if we’re talking about a group chat. Instead of quoting and referring to a point in the chat, you can automatically “quote” the selected message. When a user taps this quote, it will take them to the exact location in the conversation.

To quote a message, swipe right or tap and hold the desired entry. Tap the left-facing arrow and type in your message. Then, tap the send arrow to the right.

Stop Media Auto-Download

WhatsApp comes with a smart option to automatically download every picture sent to you in your conversations. This neat feature, however, can turn into quite a nightmare, logistically. Also, it will take up space on your device, which is something that you’ll want to avoid. By default, this feature is on. Luckily, you can turn it off.

Go to Settings within the app and navigate to Storage and data. Then, you can select which files you want automatically downloaded and in under what conditions. That goes for Photo, Audio, Video, and Document files. With each of these, you can select whether you want them auto-downloaded while on Wi-Fi and Cellular data, while only on Wi-Fi, and Never.

You can also turn the auto-download on and off for individual chats. Just go to any conversation, select the chat name, navigate to Media visibility, and turn the feature on or off.

Add Someone to the Home Screen

If there is someone in your life who you talk to often via WhatsApp, you can speed things up by adding a quick-use shortcut on the Home screen. To do this, open the mentioned contact/group and either swipe left if you’re on iOS or tap and hold the chat if you’re on Android. Then, select More and then Add chat shortcut. The icon will appear on your device’s desktop.

Navigating WhatsApp

These useful tips will help you make the most out of your WhatsApp experience. They aren’t fancy and complicated, but they can help you navigate the popular chat app.

What tip did you find the most helpful? Do you have any other cool tricks for WhatsApp users? Feel free to share them or ask any questions in the comment section below.