Finally! As of 17 Mar 2025, Signal just released a new update on App Store, you can finally “transfer” your chat history to another device. Which is very comparable to a traditional backup, and I’m satisfied with it as a workaround. At the very least, I can keep all my chat record on my MacBook.
Previous limitations on iOS devices with Signal backups
No cross-platform backup and sync
Signal didn’t provide a method to back up and transfer between platform because of it’s highly encrypted nature. However, with this new transfer update, you might just can, though I haven’t tried it yet.
Only iPhone to iPhone, not iPad to iPhone
While Android has more flexibility in backing up the chats locally and can be restored on any Android devices, iPhone had been very strict on this. E.g. You can only transfer your account from one iPhone to another iPhone, not even an iPhone to an iPad, because iPad is treated differently, etc.
On iPhone, you were able to sync the chats if you have multiple linked devices. But it can only sync the chats from the time the devices are since logged in. In other words, you can’t transfer chats that’s already on the iPhone to a new linked iPad.
No iCloud backup
Yes, because Signal works locally to provide security and privacy to your chats. So, no iCloud backup. Though it makes sense, it is still a let-down to some of us who wants to keep the memories.
Inconvenient backup method
However, there’s still a way to backup and restore all the messages. It can be done by backing up your whole iPhone and restore it locally with a MacBook. It has to be local because it can retain all the data in the apps you’ve installed. Say you bought a new iPhone and you want to transfer everything, you can create a local backup from the old iPhone, and restore using that backup to a new iPhone.
Step-by-step guide on how to transfer your messages on Signal
What you need
- The iOS device with the chats you want to keep
- A desktop, iPad or another iPhone
Method
- Get your iPhone and another device ready. – One with all the messages, another with a clean new download.
On your iPhone where the messages are kept, Go to Settings > Linked Devices. If you have linked the device before, swipe to unlink it.
On the second device, if you have used Signal client on it before (e.g. iPad, Desktop), not your iPhone where the messages are, go into the Settings > Privacy > Delete application data. Remember, this is the device that’s NOT your iPhone or where the messages are located.
We are doing this just to make sure all remaining data on the device you want to copy to is cleared, so when we restart the updated Signal app, it will run in a clean state, prompting you to transfer messages.- Update both of the Signal apps to the latest version.
- Now, restart both of the apps on the two devices.
- On your iPhone or the device where your messages are kept, go to Settings > Linked devices > Link a New Device.
- Now, scan the code on your desktop/iPad.
Now, in the latest version of the Signal app, you will see that you have an option to transfer message history from one device to another.
After it finishes syncing, you’ll see all your chats history appears in the app.
Pros and Cons
Pros
- It doesn’t delete from the original iPhone and then transfer your account to another iPhone like it used to. It copies.
- It can also copy from iPhone to macOS/iPad. So, if you switch to Android phone but wants to keep your messages, this is a good method.
Cons
- As you can see from the screenshot, you can only transfer the last 45 days of media.
Author’s Note
I can’t verify if iPhone to Android works, as I don’t have an Android with me. I can think of maybe from iPhone to macOS, then macOS to Android phone, not sure if it works though.
But I’m glad that I can finally have my chat history copied to my laptop.
Couldn’t find what you’re looking for?
For some specific guides on how to backup from a certain type of device to another, check out this official documentation. However, there’s no backup method for dummy.
