How to Retrieve Deleted Text Messages from Another Phone (2024)

Text messages have reduced in popularity among mobile devices' most used means of communication. Chat apps, social media platforms, and calls are often preferred over text messages. However, they are not extinct. Mobile device users believe there is more privacy in their SMS than in other modes of digital conversation. To assert the secrecy of text messages, some users delete their SMS.

Often, the chats they have deleted contain vital information they would like to use at a later time. Hence, they need a solution like how to retrieve deleted text messages from another phone. The importance, methods, and important actions that make this solution seamless are further discussed in this article.

Reasons to Retrieve Deleted Text Messages from Another Phone

There are many reasons to retrieve deleted text messages from another phone. In this section, we have identified the three most rampant reasons. These reasons give particular regard to how they can be solved with the methods provided in the next section.

Recover Important Information and Text Format

If a piece of critical information was shared via text but has been deleted, getting it through another phone is a good solution. Also, if there is a prescribed format for sending a particular SMS, you need to retrieve a previously sent text message with that format. Therefore, if you can get that SMS from another phone, you can use the proper format to send the message. There are other forms of vital information that retrieving deleted text messages from another phone gives you.

Find out Who Your Kid Has Been Chatting With

Kids may intend to prove smart by deleting their text messages. However, if you can recover deleted text messages from another phone, e.g., your phone, you can see with whom they are chatting. Whom they are chatting with can expose them to sexual abuse, scam, cyberbullying, etc. But when you retrieve their deleted messages, you can prevent them from any harm the person they are chatting with might be posing.

Fish out Employees Sharing Vital Company Data

If you have a spy or an unfaithful employee working with your company, you need to recover deleted text messages from another phone. Their recovered SMS will show you how they have been trading inside information or sharing vital company data with individuals outside the company.

How to Retrieve Deleted Text Messages from Another Phone

This article has identified four methods to retrieve deleted text messages from another phone to achieve the three reasons discussed in the section above.

Method 1. Restore Old Phone Backup to Another Phone

Most text message recoveries are gotten from backup on the device. Hence, you can recover deleted text messages from another phone by accessing the backup of your old phone. Hence, it would help if you backed up your phone before using this method.

iCloud (iPhone)

iPhone users are allowed to back up their text messages automatically through iCloud. Therefore, you can see the deleted text messages of your iPhone when you recover your iCloud backup. Here is how to get iCloud back up.

iTunes or Finder (iPhone)

If you cannot access your iCloud backup using the steps above, you can use another method. iTunes allows iPhone users to restore their backup using their computers manually. Here is how to use this method.

For Android

Google Drive is one simple and effective way to recover deleted text messages on Android without a computer. But you can only recover via Google Drive if you have taken the time to back up your data in Google drive, including your text messages.

Suppose you do not want to use the Factory data reset option. In that case, you can get another Android mobile phone (different from the one you wish to recover the text messages from) and follow the following steps;

If you don't mind losing other kinds of data, the following steps will help you recover your backed-up text messages from Google Drive.

Method 2. Read Deleted Text Messages from Another Phone

There are apps designed to monitor another phone in real time. For instance, you can see your kids or employees texting someone. These apps can retain incoming texts in their notification even after they have been deleted on the target Android phone. All you need do is sync your phone to the other phone with the app. An app that allows you to sync two phones in real-time is AirDroid Parental Control.

Unlike other third-party apps, AirDroid Parental Control does not require rooting or jailbreaking your device. It is a tracking app that allows you to see what, where, and when something is going on the target phone. You can use it without the assistance of an expert. It has various other features that help see deleted SMS on another phone.

How to Use AirDroid Parental Control to See Deleted Text Messages

Step 1. Download and Install AirDroid Parental Control App on your device.

Step 2. Launch AirDroid Parental Control on your device, create an account, and log in.

Step 3. Download AirDroid Kids on the target phone.

Step 4. After installation, launch AirDroid Kids and set up the necessary settings on the phone.

Step 5. Enter your pairing code to bind the two devices. Now, you can start see incoming text messages in Notification.

Method 3. Retrieve Deleted Text Messages with the Text Messages Recovery Tool

SMS recovery tools are straightforward tools that help you retrieve deleted text messages from another phone. They access the text message backup on the target phone and retrieve it to another phone. Often, these tools retrieve deleted messages to the computer and another phone. For instance, you can use DroidKit to retrieve deleted text messages.

DroidKit retrieves your deleted data from the SD card, backup, or target phone directly to your device. The benefit of this tool is that it solves other operating system issues. The downside of the app is that you have to root the target device to get its data. The steps below show how to use it.

Step 1. Download and install the DroidKit app on your computer.

Step 2. Launch the app and connect your phone to the computer.

Step 3. There are various solutions on the app's front page; pick Recover Lost Data.

Step 4. Navigate to the third option on your selection and tap Deep Recovery from Device.

Step 5. Follow the steps on the screen to root your device.

Step 6. Scan the device for text messages, review the available text, and choose the deleted messages you want to retrieve.

Method 4. Check the Carrier App

Carriers keep your SMS after you have deleted it. Hence, you can contact them for a copy of your deleted text messages. The range for which these carriers keep this data varies. For instance, AT&T keeps deleted text messages for up to 72 hours while Verizon keeps deleted SMS for about 10 days. Also, carriers do not give direct access to deleted text messages. Instead, they give you access to their backup software to get deleted SMS. In most cases, you must get a court order before you can get the text message.

Take Action

This section addresses the vital actions you can take to prevent not being able to recover deleted text messages from another phone. Also, these actions allow you to pick the simplest methods to retrieve your deleted messages from another phone.

Act Fast to Avoid Overwriting the Deleted Text Messages

As noted above, Google will erase the data on your phone if you do not use the phone for 57 days or if you turn off your Android backup. However, another way you can permanently lose the text messages (and other data) you wish to recover is through overwriting, which may occur when you introduce new data, such as a download, new picture, or video, to your device. Overwriting old data occurs especially when a device has limited storage space, hence the need to replace old data with new ones.

So to avoid the danger of overwriting the old deleted text messages that you want to recover, you are often advised not to introduce any space-hugging data to your phone before attempting the recovery process. One way to achieve this is by switching to airplane mode. Remember that overwritten text messages that you did not back up will no longer be possible to recover. So it would be best if you acted fast to avoid overwriting the deleted text messages meant to be recovered.

Avoid Rebooting Your Phone

Deleted text messages are sometimes stored in your phone's cache memory. They may thus be wiped off permanently if you reboot your device before recovery. Because of this possibility, be sure not to reboot or restart your phone before you commence the recovery process to have a greater chance of successfully recovering your deleted text messages.

Ensure Frequent Backups of Your Device Data

You can back up your text message data depending on the device's OS, such as Android or iOS. Your backup will be the reference point for any recovery method you want. Hence, it would help if you always backed up your phone, especially your message. iPhone automatically backs up data, but you must ensure the feature is active and has not been disabled for SMS. Here is how to quickly check and set up a backup for iPhone and Android.

For iPhone

1. Launch the Settings app.
2. Click on the Apple ID icon.
3. Select the iCloud button.
4. Pick the Manage Storage option.
5. Select Backups.

For Android

Back up Your Data Automatically

Note : Backing up on Google One can take as much as 24 hours. When you've succeeded in saving all your data, you notice the letter On under the list of data types you selected to save. To protect your backed-up data, activating a PIN, pattern, or password screen lock is important rather than a swipe or Smart Lock.

Back up Your Data Manually

Note : If the above steps do not match the settings of your Android phone, try to search for backup with your phone's peculiar settings app or seek your device manufacturer's assistance if you find things difficult.

Monitoring Your Teen's Text Messages

AirDroid Parental Control is also a text message monitoring app. If you have installed the app and paired your kid's Android phone to yours, you can still see the incoming text messages of the target phone even if they are deleted from kid's phone. You can also quickly track the location of your kids and family, check location history, receive instant alerts, set geofences, review children's daily device usage, and schedule screen time and application usage.

The AirDroid Parental Control App also comes with some exclusive features for parental monitoring, such as:

In a nutshell, the AirDroid Parental Control App is the best comprehensive parental control app on the market today. As a parent, it will help you protect your child's digital life by safeguarding their activities over the internet as well as helping to teach children good digital habits.

Subscribe to the AirDroid Parental Control App by Sand Studio for the most optimal digital experience for you and your kids! You can try it for free before subscribing. AirDroid Parental Control is available for both Android and iOS devices.

How to Use the AirDroid Parental Control App

If you are a parent, using AirDroid involves the following three simple steps:

In Summary

Text messages, like every other means of digital communication, carry sensitive information. If you have mistakenly deleted these data, you must know how to retrieve deleted text messages from another phone. Hence, this article has identified three reasons and four methods for recovering deleted text messages from another phone. You can prevent malicious third-party apps from infuriating your device by performing two key actions. You should always back up your device and use the AirDroid Parental Control app to see deleted SMS.