Deleting old text messages on your iPhone is a good way to manage its performance. Large apps can take up a considerable amount of space on a phone’s hard drive; left unchecked, text conversations can rival the same amount of space, especially if you’re using video and photos. Deleting text messages is easy, and should be performed regularly to keep your phone running smoothly. But what if disaster strikes and you need to restore a deleted iPhone text? Is it possible?  

The short answer is yes. While the world may feel like it’s about to end, the truth is that recovering a deleted text message is not impossible, nor is it as difficult as you might think. In fact, there are three ways to accomplish this task:

Restore with iTunes 

The easiest way to ensure you don’t have a brain aneurysm if you accidentally delete an iPhone text, or need to recover old messages, is with regular backups to iTunes. You can easily recover deleted SMS messages simply by plugging your iPhone in to a computer. 

Once you’re connected to iTunes, click on your phone icon in the upper left corner. Once selected, choose ‘Restore Backup,’ and all of the previously backed-up settings, apps, text messages and so on will replace the current data on your phone. This shouldn’t take more than a few minutes. 

It’s important to note, however, that this method can only replace data from the most recent backup. There’s no way to recover material you backed-up three ‘backups’ ago using the iTunes recovery method. 

Recover from iCloud 

Apple’s iCloud is a great option for retrieving lost/deleted text messages, provided that your service area is within a territory that backs up SMS messages automatically.  

First, log in to iCloud using your Apple ID and password. Look to see if ‘Text Messages” is available. If it isn’t, you’re not in a covered territory. If it is, you’re in luck.  

Next, search through the messages and find what you’re looking for. Using your iPhone, navigate to the settings menu and turn on iCloud. Also in the settings menu, turn off Text Messages. A pop-up will appear. Click ‘Keep on My iPhone.’ 

Now you can turn your Text Messages back on in the settings menu. Click ‘Merge,’ and in a few minutes, the messages you selected from the iCloud will appear in your phone. 

Third-Party Apps

Finally, if all else fails, there are a couple third-party apps that come highly recommended for recovering deleted iPhone data. Some apps cost money, which is less ideal than just recovering a backup from iTunes. But when doom is imminent, one must do whatever it takes. 

WonderSahre is an iPhone data recovery software the runs the gamut. This app works on several devices and recovers just about everything, from lost photos and videos to voicemails and text messages. Another highly recommended recovery system is Tenorshare, which works in all the same ways and offers a free trail. 

Hopefully, your world won’t come to a screeching halt because of deleted or lost text messages. The takeaway here is that deleting your text messages should be a normal part of your iPhone’s maintenance, but so should backing up the phone regularly so you can get data back if you need it.