4 Free Ways to Back Up WhatsApp Messages without Google Drive

WhatsApp keeps you connected with your colleagues, but losing WhatsApp chats and media can be a major setback. While Google Drive offers automatic backups on Android, its reliance on a stable internet connection and inaccessible backup files can be limiting.

This article provides alternative ways to back up your WhatsApp data without Google Drive.

How to Back up WhatsApp without Google Drive?

1. Back Up WhatsApp Chats via Email

You can back up WhatsApp messages to emails. But it’s impossible to import chats from email to WhatsApp, and it’s just like separately saving precious messages. If you have only a few chats to save, this method is a good choice.

To backup WhatsApp chats or groups without Google Drive via Emal, follow the simple steps:

• On your Android device, open WhatsApp and head over to Settings > Chats > Chat History > Email Chat.
• Select the chat history you need and send them to the Email you entered.
• The WhatsApp chats will be saved as the txt document. You can download them from this Email at any time you want in the future.

Cons

• The backup is saved as a .txt file, which cannot be imported into WhatsApp. This means you can only view the chats as a text document, not as part of your WhatsApp conversation history.
• This method requires you to manually select and email each chat individually. If you have multiple chats to back up, this can be a time-consuming process.
• Most email services have storage limits. If you back up a large number of chats, you may run out of email storage space, especially if you are using a free email service with limited capacity.

2. Backup WhatsApp Messages to SD Card

On Android devices, WhatsApp messages are always backed up to Google Drive rather than SD card by default. Convenient as it is, the messages and media files are not secure in Google Drive. They are not protected by WhatsApp encryption. In that case, you get one more chance to back up WhatsApp to SD card.

• Open the WhatsApp on your Android device.
• On the main screen of WhatsApp, click on 3-dots in the upper right corner and hit on Settings option.
• On the Settings interface, click on Chats and Chat Backup.

• Scroll down and select ‘Backup to Google Drive’ under the section of ‘Google Drive Settings’.
• This will bring up a pop-up window. Select ‘Never’ and all the WhatsApp messages will be backed up to SD card.

The most troublesome thing is that the device will only keep more than 7 days’ worth of local backup. Since you will not be able to enable automatical backup, you need to save the backup data every 7 days.

Cons

• If the SD card is lost, damaged, or stolen, your backup data is at risk.
• Data on SD cards may not be encrypted, making it vulnerable to unauthorized access.

3. Take a Screenshot of the Messages

The most straightforward approach to save WhatsApp messages is shown as below:

• Open WhatsApp and find the chat history you want to save.
• Press the volume down and Power button at the same time to take a screenshot.
• Then save the screenshot on the gallery.

This method is suitable for those who want to save individual chats rather than the whole chat history.

4. Backup WhatsApp without Google Drive Using FoneGeek

The best Google Drive alternative to back up WhatsApp messages on Android/iPhone is FoneGeek WhatsApp Transfer. This is a free tool that allows everyone to selectively or fully back up WhatsApp messages to computer without affecting the previous backup files, which makes it more convenient for users who needs to keep all WhatsApp backups.

You can also restore the WhatsApp messages to another Android or iPhone if required.

Core feature of FoneGeek WhatsApp Transfer:

• Totally free to back up entire WhatsApp messages.
• Flexibly back up WhatsApp messages and save them on your computer. In this way, you can restore them to your device when you lost any crucial messages or switched to a new device.
• Transfer WhatsApp messages between android device and iPhone, including any items you want.

Now, follow the steps below to back up WhatsApp messages on computer without Google Drive using FoneGeek program.

Step 1. Download FoneGeek WhatsApp Transfer on your computer and run it. On the main screen, select ‘WhatsApp’ to proceed.

Step 2. Tap the option of ‘Backup’ and get the Android device connected to your computer. Then click on 'Back Up Now' when the device is detected.

Step 3. It will take a few minutes to back up all the WhatsApp data. Do no disconnect the device during the backup process.

In short, there is no other requirements to be considered except that the Android device should be connected with your computer throughout the complete backup process.

Bonus Tip: Restore Whatsapp Backup without Google Drive

If you have a local backup saved on your phone (not via Google Drive), you can restore WhatsApp manually without Google drive. Here’s how:

1. Locate the backup file:

• Use a file manager to navigate to WhatsApp’s local folder (usually Internal Storage/WhatsApp/Databases).
• Find the backup file named msgstore-YYYY-MM-DD.1.db.crypt12 (the date indicates when it was created).

2.Rename the file:

• Rename the desired backup file to msgstore.db.crypt12 (this tricks WhatsApp into recognizing it as the active backup).

3.Reinstall WhatsApp:

• Uninstall WhatsApp, then reinstall it. During setup, you’ll be prompted to ‘Restore’ from the renamed local backup.

FAQs about WhatsApp Backup

Q1. Can I back up WhatsApp messages without internet connection?

Yes. You can export WhatsApp chats to emails or to local device or use free third-party tools to back up entire messages.

Q2. Whare is the local backup of storing WhatsApp messages?

WhatsApp backup can be found from the file manager app. Open the file manager app and go to local storage > WhatsApp > Databases.

Conclusion

It isn’t hard to backup WhatsApp without Google Drive with the methods and application mentioned in this article, is it? You can also leave your comments below if you have more solutions with high efficiency to backup WhatsApp messages without Google Drive.