How To Save Audio From WhatsApp Easily On iPhone And Android: Use These 5 Ways

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One of the most popular messaging apps today, there’s no doubt that WhatsApp is regularly used to send hundreds of thousands of audio files around the globe. But how do you save audio from WhatsApp easily on your iPhone or Android phone? This article provides 5 different methods.

WhatsApp is a convenient way of sending all kinds of messages, but saving these messages can sometimes be tricky.

This is especially true when it comes to audio messages and even more so if you’re using an iPhone since you can’t directly access files on iOS phones like you can with Androids.

In this article, I’ll teach you how to save audio from WhatsApp, whether you’re using an Android or iPhone.

5 Ways To Save Audio From WhatsApp On iPhone & Android – Step By Step

Using iPhone – Exporting From WhatsApp

As mentioned above, saving WhatsApp audio files can be quite tricky on an iPhone since you can’t directly access an app’s storage files. On an Android phone, you can simply open the file manager and access your files that way.

However, there are a few ways to export audio files from your iPhone’s WhatsApp: using email and using the Files app

This section will go through each method.

Using Email

The easiest and most convenient method to save WhatsApp voice messages and other audio files is through email. 

However, the main disadvantage is that you can only send one audio message at a time, which can be time-consuming if you want to save multiple files.

It will take you about 3 minutes

Follow the steps below to save Whatsapp audio messages or send to your email.

  1. Open WhatsApp on your iPhone and go to the chat with the audio file you want to save.

    Tap on your desired chat from the chats screen

  2. Tap and hold the message containing the file and wait for an options menu to pop up.

    Tap and hold the required audio message

  3. From the menu, tap Forward.

    Tap forward from the menu

  4. Next, pick Share.

    Tap on the share icon at the right

  5. You will then have the option to choose the method of sharing. From the menu, pick Mail.

    Tap on the mail icon

  6. On the next window, input the email address that you want to send the file to. If you only want to save the audio file, you can input your own email. The audio file will then automatically attach.

    Input email screen

  7. Tap Send.

    Tap on the blue arrow icon to send

  8. Open your email and look for the message that you sent to yourself, and then open it.

    Open the email that you sent to yourself

  9. Tap the attached audio file to download. You will then be able to access the file anywhere, including on your iPhone, as long as you have the email where it’s attached.

    Tap on the audio file in the email

Using The Files App

Since you can’t access app storage files, you need to export WhatsApp media files first in order to save them to your Files app.

This works the same way as an Android File Manager, except it’s a lot more limited and it only contains certain files.

You know how Android File Manager has folders showing what the different apps contain, including their developer packages? You won’t find this with iOS Files.

To save your voice messages and voice notes using this method, follow the steps below.

  1. Go back to Step 5 of the previous method. Instead of picking Mail, select Save to Files.

    Sharing options in whatsapp with the save to files option highlighted
  2. You’ll show some available folders where you can save your audio file. In this case, we’ll click Downloads.

    Available folders for saving file from whatsapp
  3. Click Save.

    Saving audio file from whatsapp to a folder in a smartphone
  4. To check if you’ve successfully saved the recording, open the Files app.

    Files explorer app in an iPhone
  5. Click the folder where you saved the file. In this case, it’s Downloads, so go ahead and click that.

    Files explorer in iPhone with the download folder highlighted
  6. If you did it correctly, you should see the media file here.

    Downloads folder in iPhone with an audio file highlighted

Using iPhone – With Export Chat

Another method to save your audio from WhatsApp easily on iPhone is to use the Export Chat function.

This is a great way to save audio files if you have many of them since you’ll be able to save them all in one go. However, you can’t use it to just save one file, just the entire chat.

The biggest advantage of this method is that once you open it, you get access to all the files at once.

  1. In the Settings tab, click Chats.

    iPhone settings with the chats option highlighted
  2. After this, click the Export Chat button.

    iPhone chats settings with the export chat option highlighted
  3. You’ll be asked to select which conversation you’d like to export. Pick one.

    Chats on an iphone with a selected chat thread highlighted
  4. Next, choose whether you want to attach media or not. Since we want to save audio files, tap Attach Media.

    Chat export options with the attach media button highlighted
  5. Your WhatsApp will now create a .zip file. Wait for it until you can select where you want to save it. Click Save to Files to save it on your iPhone.

    Whatsapp chats saving options with save to files option highlighted
  6. For this example, I’ll be saving it to the Audio folder in my iCloud Drive.

    Saving whatsapp chats file to icloud drive audio folder
  7. Go to your Files app and select the folder where you saved the .zip file. In this case, it’s iCloud Drive > Audio.

    iPhone files app with the icloud drive option highlighted
  8. You should see the file here.

    iCloud drive audio folder with an audio file highlighted
  9. Once you tap it, iOS will export it automatically.

    iCloud drive audio folder with the whatsapp chat extracted folder highlighted
  10. You can now open the new folder and see all the contents of your exported conversation. All audio files should be included.

    Whatsapp chats folder with the audio files highlighted

Using Android – Exporting The File To Email

As mentioned, it’s easier to save WhatsApp audio files on Android. If you want to save just one audio file in a conversation, you can also just export it to your email.

To do so, follow the steps below.

  1. Open WhatsApp and navigate to the conversation with the file you want to save.

    Whatsapp conversation in android with an audio message highlighted
  2. Tap and hold until the message is selected. An actions menu will then appear on the top of the interface.

    Whatsapp conversation in android with an audio message highlighted
  3. From the menu, pick the three interconnected dots that denote the Share icon.

    Action menu for a selected message in whatsapp for android
  4. You will then have to choose a method of sharing the file. For this tutorial, we’ll tap Gmail.

    Sharing options in whatsapp for android with the gmail option highlighted
  5. Your phone will bring you to your default email client. Input your email address. The audio file will automatically attach.

    Composing mail in gmail with the recipient field highlighted
  6. Then, hit the Send button on the top-right corner.

    A composed email message in gmail with the send button highlighted
  7. Go to your email account and open the message containing the attached audio file. Tap on the file to download it.

    A new email message as seen in gmail

You now have your WhatsApp audio file saved to your Android phone.

Using Android – By Accessing Raw Files

Unlike with iPhones, you can access the app’s storage files on Android with any file manager app. This means you can directly copy the audio files from WhatsApp’s raw files without exporting them to your email.

Accessing the File Manager is the most efficient method to save audio from WhatsApp since you can easily use it for multiple and single files alike.

To learn how to use this method, follow the steps below. 

  1. Open the File Manager app on your phone.
File manager app in android
  1. You then need to navigate to WhatsApp’s storage location. As you can see in the screenshot, although there’s a WhatsApp folder, it contains 0 items. In most cases, the files we want are actually located in the internal or phone storage.
File manager app in android with the phone storage option highlighted
  1. You will then see a list of folders stored on your internal storage. Here, you should find WhatsApp’s storage folder by scrolling to the bottom of the list until you see it.
Android phone storage folder with the all files category selected and the whatsapp folder highlighted
  1. From here, you will see several folders, likely named Backups, Databases, and Media. Pick Media.
Whatsapp folder in android with the media folder highlighted
  1. This folder contains all the media files downloaded by WhatsApp, including any audio files you might have downloaded. They are usually categorized in folders, as you can see below.
The contents of a whatsapp media folder in android
  1. Music files will be saved on the WhatsApp Audio folder, while voice notes will be saved in the WhatsApp Voice Notes folder. For this tutorial, we’ll choose WhatsApp Voice Notes.
Whatsapp voice notes folder in android
  1. To find the right file, sort through them in order of time and date. Your most recent file will likely be located at the top.
the voice notes file in a whatsapp voice notes folder
  1. Once you’ve found your file, tap and hold until a menu appears, and then copy it.
File action options in android with the copy option highlighted
  1. Go to a separate location in your phone’s storage where you want to save your file, and then paste it there. In this case, I pasted it to the Music folder of my External Storage.
A copied voice file from whatsapp voice notes folder saved to a folder in the sd card

Once it’s pasted to another location, you can now do what you want with it, including converting the WhatsApp audio to text.

For Android Or iPhone – Using Third-Party Software

There are also third-party solutions that allow you to easily transfer WhatsApp audio to the computer. With an app like this installed, you can easily share your audio file back to your phone or upload it to cloud storage.

Wondershare’s MobileTrans is a good example of this. It’s a third-party file management solution that can download files from your device in just a few clicks. You can also use it to transfer files from iPhone to Android and vice versa or even create a backup for both operating systems.

The only downside to using this service is that it isn’t free. The app starts at $29.95 for a year’s worth of features on Windows devices. However, if you find yourself often needing this service, it’s a small price to pay for the convenience.

If you want to use MobileTrans to save audio from WhatsApp, purchase a subscription now and follow the steps below.

  1. Once you have downloaded, installed, and licensed your MobileTrans app, launch it on your PC.

    Mobiletrans main dashboard
  2. You will then have several options to choose from. Select the WhatsApp Transfer option.

    Mobiletrans main dashboard with the whatsapp transfer option highlighted
  3. The app will then present you with several options. From there, pick Backup WhatsApp Messages.

    Mobiletrans whatsapp dashboard with the backup whatsapp messages option highlighted
  4. Connect your phone to your PC, and wait for it to be recognized. Once the app recognizes your Android device, you’re good to go.

    Mobiletrans data transfer page showing the connected devices
  5. If needed, you will have to enable Developer Mode on your phone, and turn on USB Debugging. MobileTrans will provide tailored instructions with images, depending on your phone brand. Just follow the provided instructions on your screen.

    the Steps to enable developer mode in an android phone
  6. Next, choose what types of files MobileTrans will back up. Simply uncheck the file types that you don’t need. For this tutorial, I’ll go ahead and back up everything.

    Whatsapp data available for transfer as seen in mobiletrans
  7. When you’re done choosing, click the violet Start button on the bottom right of the screen, and then wait for the process to finish.

    Initiating data transfer in mobiletrans
    Mobiletrans data transfer backing up phase
  8. When prompted, follow the on-screen instructions.

    Mobiletrans prompt with instruction on how to turn off auto-backup to google drive
  9. Once done, you’ll have your full WhatsApp backup on your computer, including the audio files.

    Backup completed prompt in mobiletrans
  10. To confirm the backup, click the “View” button on the side of the backup name.

    Whatsapp back up data as seen in mobile trans with the view button highlighhted
  11. Once you’ve made sure that you have the correct file, you can now go ahead and disconnect your phone.

    Whatsapp backup file details as seen in mobiletrans

FAQs

Where Are WhatsApp Audio Files Stored On Android?

WhatsApp’s audio files are typically stored in your Android phone’s internal storage. More specifically, you can find the files by going to the main WhatsApp folder, then Media, and then the WhatsApp Audio folder. Here, you can see a list of all the audio files downloaded through WhatsApp.

Where Are WhatsApp Voice Notes Stored On iPhone?

WhatsApp voice notes stored on iPhone can be found in the audio folder since they’re a type of audio file. However, you can’t see them directly on your iPhone, so you have to either email them first, save them to your Files app, or export a .zip file.

Why Can't I Download Audio On WhatsApp?

If you can’t download audio on WhatsApp, you might be experiencing problems with your internet connection, internal storage, or WhatsApp settings. Make sure to check all three to see which one is having an issue.

How Do I Transfer WhatsApp Audio From iPhone To Computer?

There are several ways to transfer WhatsApp audio files from iPhone to your computer. You can email the audio file to yourself, upload it to iCloud and download it to your computer from there, or use a third-party solution like Wondershare MobileTrans.

How To Save Audio From WhatsApp – In Conclusion

Although it has its advantages and disadvantages, WhatsApp is a convenient and popular app to use in our daily lives. This app can send messages for free and even files such as photos, videos, audio, and documents. However, it can be tricky if you want to download these media files from WhatsApp, especially if you’re using an iPhone.

This article discussed several methods to save audio files from WhatsApp to Android, iPhone, and even a computer. If you follow these instructions, you will never experience the hassle of figuring out how to transfer files again.

And if you need to transfer WhatsApp media from your phone to your computer, read this post.

Did you enjoy this article? Have you tried any of these methods? Let us know in the comments!

About The Author

  • Michael Duong

    Tech editor and senior writer Michael Duong is passionate about technology and innovation. He codes open-source projects and plays quiz games in his free time. An expert in his field and an avid learner, always seeking to expand his knowledge and skills in the ever-evolving world of technology. His specialization is mobile security and mobile data safety. Follow Michael on Twitter and Github.

Photo of author

Michael Duong

Tech editor and senior writer Michael Duong is passionate about technology and innovation. He codes open-source projects and plays quiz games in his free time. An expert in his field and an avid learner, always seeking to expand his knowledge and skills in the ever-evolving world of technology. His specialization is mobile security and mobile data safety. Follow Michael on Twitter and Github.

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