Deleting text messages from your iPhone removes them from the Messages app, but they may still exist in backups until those backups are replaced
When you delete a text message on iPhone, it disappears from the conversation thread when ready. However, the message remains in your iCloud backup or computer backup until that backup is overwritten — which can take weeks or months depending on how often your phone backs up. If you want a deleted message gone from everywhere, you need to delete it from the app first, then either disable backups temporarily or wait for new backups to replace the old ones.
The most direct approach is to delete the message in the Messages app, then create a new backup. This overwrites any backup containing the old message. If you use iCloud backup, you can turn off Messages in your iCloud settings, back up your phone, then turn Messages back on — this creates a backup without message data. For computer backups through a Mac or Windows PC, you can delete the backup file itself after deleting the message.
Key Takeaways
- Deleting a message in the Messages app removes it from your phone when ready, but it stays in your iCloud or computer backup until that backup is replaced.
- To remove a message from iCloud, turn off Messages in iCloud Settings, back up your phone, then turn Messages back on — this creates a backup without the old message.
- If you back up to a Mac or Windows PC, you can delete the backup file directly from your computer after deleting the message from your phone.
- Turning off automatic backups and backing up manually gives you more control over when backups happen and what they contain.
How to delete a single text message or conversation
Open the Messages app and find the conversation containing the message you want to delete. If you want to delete just one message, press and hold that message until a menu appears, then tap More. Select any other messages in the same conversation you want to delete, then tap the trash icon. If you want to delete the entire conversation, swipe left on the conversation name in the list, then tap Delete.
The message or conversation disappears from your phone when ready. At this point, the message is gone from the app, but it still exists in any backup made before you deleted it. To remove it from backups as well, you need to create a new backup that does not include the deleted message.
Removing deleted messages from iCloud backups
If your iPhone backs up to iCloud, deleted messages stay in that backup until a new backup replaces it. The fastest way to remove them is to create a new backup without message data. Go to Settings > [Your Name] > iCloud > Manage Storage > Backups, then tap your device name. Turn off the toggle next to Messages. Your phone will now back up everything except messages.
Tap Back Up Now at the top of the iCloud settings screen. This creates a new backup without any message data, which overwrites the previous backup that contained your deleted message. After the backup completes, you can turn the Messages toggle back on if you want future backups to include messages again. From that point forward, the deleted message is gone from your backups.
If you want to keep messages in future backups but just remove this one deleted message, you can instead wait for your phone to back up automatically — this happens daily if your phone is plugged in, locked, and connected to Wi-Fi. A new automatic backup will eventually replace the old one, removing the deleted message. However, this can take weeks if your backup habits are irregular.
Removing deleted messages from computer backups
If you back up your iPhone to a Mac or Windows PC using Finder (Mac) or iTunes (Windows), the backup file sits on your computer's hard drive. After you delete a message from your phone, you can delete the backup file itself, then create a new one. On a Mac, open Finder, go to Preferences > Devices, right-click the backup you want to delete, and select Delete Backup. On Windows, open iTunes, go to Edit > Preferences > Devices, right-click the backup, and select Delete.
After deleting the backup file, plug your phone into your computer and create a new backup. This new backup will not contain the message you deleted from your phone. From that point on, the deleted message is gone from both your phone and your computer backups.
If you use both iCloud and computer backups, you need to remove the message from both places. Delete it from your phone first, then follow the iCloud steps above and the computer steps above. Your message will then be removed from all backups.
Turning off automatic backups for more control
By default, your iPhone backs up automatically to iCloud every day if you are plugged in, locked, and on Wi-Fi. This means deleted messages may stay in backups for a long time before being replaced. If you want more control, you can turn off automatic backups and back up manually instead. Go to Settings > [Your Name] > iCloud > iCloud Backup and turn off the toggle.
With automatic backup off, your phone only backs up when you manually start it. This lets you delete a message, then when ready create a new backup that does not include it. You can turn automatic backup back on afterward if you prefer the convenience. Manual backups take the same amount of time as automatic ones, but you decide when they happen.
What happens if you restore from an old backup
If you restore your iPhone from a backup made before you deleted a message, that message will reappear on your phone. This is why removing deleted messages from backups matters — if you ever need to restore your phone (because of a hardware failure, a software problem, or switching to a new device), you do not want old deleted messages coming back. Once you have created a new backup after deleting a message, restoring from that new backup will not bring the message back.
If you have already restored from an old backup and the message has reappeared, delete it again from the Messages app, then create a new backup to remove it from backups going forward.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can someone recover a text message I deleted from my iPhone?
If they have access to a backup made before you deleted the message, yes — they could restore from that backup and see the message. Once you create a new backup after deleting the message, it cannot be recovered from backups. Data recovery software cannot retrieve deleted messages from an iPhone itself because the phone encrypts and overwrites deleted data.
Does deleting a message delete it from the other person's phone?
No. Deleting a message from your iPhone only removes it from your phone and your backups. The person you were texting with still has the message on their phone unless they delete it themselves. Text messages are stored separately on each person's device.
If I turn off iCloud backup, do my old messages get deleted?
No. Turning off iCloud backup stops future backups from being created, but it does not delete backups that already exist. Your old backups stay on iCloud's servers until you manually delete them or until iCloud automatically deletes them after 180 days of inactivity.
How long does it take to create a new backup after deleting a message?
A manual backup usually takes a few minutes to an hour depending on how much data is on your phone. Automatic backups happen in the background and may take longer. The backup is complete when you see "Back Up Now" available again in Settings, or when the backup progress indicator disappears.