Tech Reference

How to save an entire text conversation on your iPhone

Written by Steven John
Read in app

It's a bit surprising, really, that it's not easier to export and save entire iPhone text message conversations or at least large portions of a chat. 

With a quick workaround, however, you can indeed save entire text conversations had on your iPhone, and you can then forward them as an iMessage or even email them to yourself.

Check out the products mentioned in this article:

iPhone 11 (From $699.99 at Best Buy)

How to save an entire text conversation on your iPhone

1. Open the text chain you wish to preserve and hold a finger down on one of the texts in the conversation.

2. Tap the "More…" option when it appears, then tap the circle to the left of each text and image you want to save.

How to save entire text conversation iPhone
You can send an email from your Messages app to get the written content of a text exchange, though images may not come through.  Steven John/Business Insider

3. Tap on the curved arrow at the bottom right corner of the screen, then enter the phone number or email address  that you wish to send the text the conversation to.

How to save entire text conversation iPhone
Select the messages you'd like to export and tap the arrow at the bottom of the screen.  Steven John/Business Insider

4. You can also hold a finger down on the new text message and tap "Copy" to copy it for pasting elsewhere on your iPhone, such as into an email or a note.

How to save entire text conversation iPhone
Text message formatting will change during the export process, but all of the content should remain the same.  Steven John/Business Insider

Related coverage from How To Do Everything: Tech:

Insider Inc. receives a commission when you buy through our links.

Read next

极速168赛车官方网站图片

Business Insider tells the innovative stories you want to know

极速168赛车官方网站图片

Business Insider tells the innovative stories you want to know

极速168赛车官方网站图片

Business Insider tells the innovative stories you want to know

极速168赛车官方网站图片

Business Insider tells the innovative stories you want to know

Headshot of Steven John
Steven John
Steven John has been a freelance writer for more than a dozen years and has been a regular contributor to Business Insider since 2017. His work includes a focus on the tech world, covering companies including Apple, Microsoft, Meta, Google, and others. He also reviews restaurants, shares how-to cooking articles, and writes general interest pieces.Steven also writes for publications including Architectural Digest, The Daily Beast, Forbes, and more. In the past, he also wrote for New York Magazine, Mashed, U.S. News & World Report and other outlets. He runs his own outdoor lifestyle site, Dad Gear Review, and co-hosts the Fact Trekkers podcast with his son. He has had two novels published, Three A.M. and Outrider. He graduated from Emerson College with a degree in communications focused on filmmaking.He is an avid outdoorsman and can be frequently found in a kayak or on a mountain trail, often with his family along for the adventure.Expertise:Tech industryTech hardwareOutdoorsCookingRestaurantsDIYPopular articles:Microsoft: A history of the software giant co-founded by Bill Gates, its products and services, jobs, layoffs, and moreYouTube is a major entertainment force. Here's the platform's history, plus how to create a channel and upload videos.Inside the life and career of Bill Gates, the Microsoft co-founder, billionaire, and philanthropistTim Cook net worth: How the Apple leader earns and spends his moneyBecoming an Amazon seller is a simple process. Here's what's involved, plus how you make money and get paid.