The standard WhatsApp delete feature only allows you to delete messages for everyone within 7 minutes of sending them. However, there is a workaround that can allow you to delete messages up to one week old:
- Turn on Airplane mode on your device. This disconnects you from the internet.
- Open WhatsApp, go to the chat with the message you want to delete and delete it using the standard “Delete for everyone” feature.
- The message will show as “deleted” but since you have no internet connection, it won’t actually be deleted from the recipient’s phone yet.
- Wait for up to one week, while keeping your phone on Airplane mode the entire time.
- After a week, turn Airplane mode off and reconnect to the internet. The message deletion should now sync and the message will be deleted from the recipient’s phone.
Limitations: This only works for text messages, not media. It also only works if the recipient doesn’t restart their phone in the meantime, as that would clear the pending delete action.
Recalling Already Read WhatsApp Messages
If a recipient has already read a message you want to delete, recalling it is more difficult. The message content cannot be unseen, but you can remove the message from view using these steps:
- Long press on the message and delete it for everyone. This leaves a “message deleted” placeholder.
- Block the recipient who read the message. This removes the entire chat history from their phone.
- Unblock the recipient later on to restore chatting capabilities if desired.
The recipient will know a message was deleted but won’t be able to retrieve the content. This method only works if the message has been read but not yet marked as “seen” by two blue checkmarks.
I hope this gives you a better understanding of how to delete and recall WhatsApp messages in different scenarios! Let me know if you need any clarification or have additional questions.
