Did you get the keys back from the landlord?
It looks like the conversation
Grey and blue bubbles, grouped messages, date separators. Chat View is close enough to iMessage that nobody has to be told what they are reading.
Export your iPhone messages to a PDF you can actually hand in.
SMS, MMS, iMessage and RCS, with photos, timestamps and emoji exactly as they were. ChatExport reads the backup already on your Windows PC and turns one conversation into a clean, searchable document. Usually in under two minutes.
Your messages never leave your PC
No upload, no cloud, no account. The app reads a local folder and writes a local file.
Works fully offline
Unplug the network and everything still works. There is no server to be down.
No telemetry in the app
Nothing you do in ChatExport is tracked or collected. Divorce and custody messages are nobody else’s business.
How it works
Three steps, no manual
ChatExport never talks to your iPhone over USB. It reads the backup Apple’s own software already wrote to your disk. Fewer moving parts, nothing to break on the next iOS update.
- 1
Back up your iPhone
Plug the phone in and let Apple Devices (or iTunes) make a local backup, the same one you already make before a phone upgrade. If you have one from last week, skip this step.
- 2
Pick a conversation
ChatExport finds the backup on your PC and lists your conversations with names from your contacts. Search by name, number or something you remember someone saying.
- 3
Export
Choose PDF, TXT, HTML or CSV, set a date range, decide whether to include photos, then hit Export. The folder opens when it is done.
Features
Everything survives the export
A screenshot loses the timestamp. A copy-paste loses the photo. ChatExport keeps the whole conversation, in a document you can print, email or file.
Photos come along
iPhone HEIC photos are converted so they actually display, at the size you choose. Other attachments are listed with filename and size.
Emoji in full colour
Vector emoji artwork is bundled with the app, so a 🙂 renders identically on every machine instead of collapsing to a black blob.
Searchable and bookmarked
Real text, not images of text. Ctrl+F works. Every PDF gets a table of contents, page numbers and bookmarks so you can jump to any month.
Nothing quietly dropped
Reactions, threaded replies, edited messages, unsent messages, delivered and read receipts are all preserved, because context is the argument.
Built for huge threads
A 100 000-message conversation renders in batches so memory stays flat and the window never freezes. Progress is shown the whole way.
Four formats
PDF for reading and filing, HTML for the browser, TXT for plain text, CSV for a spreadsheet. Same wording and formatting across all four.
SHA256 evidence hash
Every export shows a SHA256 fingerprint of the file you can copy and record, so anyone can verify the document has not been altered since.
Names, not phone numbers
Contact names are read from the backup’s own address book, so the document says “Anna Kowalski”, not “+48 601 …”.
For legal use
Built for the people who need this in writing
Most people who export a conversation are not archiving memories. They are in a custody case, a dispute with a landlord, or an HR process, and they need a document that holds up under someone else’s scrutiny.
- Court View
- A second PDF theme: monochrome, formal header, plain transcript. No blue bubbles, nothing that looks like a marketing screenshot.
- Straight from Apple’s backup file
- Messages are read from the database Apple itself wrote, not reconstructed from screenshots or screen recordings. Timestamps come from the record, not from a photo of a screen.
- A fingerprint you can quote
- Each export is stamped with a SHA256 hash. Record it when you file, and anyone can re-run it later to show the file has not changed.
- The full thread, not the convenient parts
- Export a whole conversation or a date range, including the messages that do not help you. Selective screenshots are the first thing the other side attacks.
ChatExport reproduces what is in the backup. It cannot promise a court will admit any particular document, and nothing here is legal advice. Ask your lawyer what your jurisdiction requires.
Comparison
Three ways people do this today
Screenshots are free but weak. Phone managers do everything, at a yearly price. ChatExport does one job.
| Feature | Screenshots & OCR apps | All-in-one phone managers | ChatExport |
|---|---|---|---|
| Where the messages come from | Photos of your screen, read back by OCR | The iPhone backup | The iPhone backup, read directly |
| Timestamps | Only what happened to be on screen | Preserved | Preserved to the second, from the record |
| Photos and attachments | Whatever fit in the frame | Usually included | Included, HEIC converted so they display |
| Very long conversations | Hours of scrolling | Varies | 100 000+ messages in one pass |
| What else it does | Nothing else | Music, contacts, apps, files… | Nothing else, on purpose |
| Price model | Free or in-app subscription | Increasingly annual subscription | No subscription, ever |
| Where your messages go | Depends on the app | Depends on the app | Nowhere. It all stays on your PC |
FAQ
Questions people actually ask
Do I need iTunes?
You need Apple’s own software to make the backup: either the Apple Devices app from the Microsoft Store (recommended) or iTunes. ChatExport does not replace it; it reads the backup afterwards. If ChatExport cannot find Apple’s software or a backup, it walks you through the exact next step.
Does my iPhone have to stay plugged in?
Only while the backup is being made. After that the phone can go back in your pocket. ChatExport works from the backup folder on your PC, with the phone nowhere near it.
Can it read encrypted backups?
Not yet. If "Encrypt local backup" is ticked in Apple’s software, ChatExport will tell you so instead of failing silently. Support for password-protected backups is the feature currently being finished. In the meantime you can untick that option and make a fresh backup.
Which iPhones and iOS versions work?
Backups from iOS 11 up to the current release. ChatExport detects the database layout of each iOS version and adapts, which is why old backups from a phone you no longer own still open.
Are RCS messages included?
Yes, where iOS stores them locally, which means iOS 18 and later. SMS, MMS and iMessage work on every supported version.
How long does an export take?
A normal conversation is done in seconds. Very large threads with thousands of photos take longer. The app renders in batches and shows the percentage and current step the whole way, and you can cancel at any point.
Is there a Mac version?
Not yet. Windows came first on purpose: Macs already have the Messages app, and Windows users with an iPhone are the ones with no good option. macOS is on the roadmap.
What does it cost?
Free while in beta. A one-time licence is planned. There will never be a subscription.
Do my messages get uploaded anywhere?
No. The app has no server, no account and no telemetry. You can disconnect from the internet, export a conversation, and nothing about the process changes. That is the simplest way to verify the claim yourself. This website is separate: it uses Google Analytics and Microsoft Clarity to see which pages get read and where the layout confuses people. Both are described on the privacy page.
Something went wrong. Can you help?
Email support@getchatexport.com. The app keeps local log files you can attach. They describe what the app did, not what your messages say.
Get your conversation out of your phone
One conversation, one PDF, about two minutes. Nothing uploaded, nothing to sign up for.