How do I clean up my text messages?

If you don't want to eliminate the entire conversation, you can delete messages singly or in a bunch.
  1. Open the Messages app.
  2. Scroll through your messages until you find the conversation you want to delete messages from, and tap on it.
  3. Find the message you want to delete, and then tap and hold it for about three seconds.
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How do I clean out my text messages?

Open Messages. Locate the conversation that has the message you want to delete then tap on it. Touch and hold the message you want to delete. Tap the trash can to delete the message.
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Should I delete old text messages?

Deleting all or most of your messages is a surefire way to boost storage space at least a bit. But it's not always just a matter of deleting messages after you've read them. Some phones could still be carrying messages around if it has been set to “Keep messages forever.”
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How do I delete large amounts of text messages?

Once you've got the Messages app installed and up to date, batch deletion is a cinch:
  1. Open the Messages app.
  2. Select a chat thread.
  3. Long-press on a message to highlight it.
  4. Tap any additional messages you wish to remove.
  5. Tap the trash can icon from the menu bar at the top of the app screen to delete the messages.
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How often should you clear text messages?

Bad luck never knocks before coming, so it is always safe to clear your text messages history every 30 days or before meeting your partner. Before the advent of smartphone, lover-letter and few collectibles were the only stuff to cry with after breakup.
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How to Delete Text Messages on iPhone



Does deleting text messages free up storage?

You'll be surprised to see how much storage space your text messages take on your smartphone. You may not even realize those messages are being saved to your phone. Don't worry, you can delete them. Be sure to delete messages with photos and videos first — they chew up the most space.
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Will deleting texts make phone faster?

Deleting those excess texts can speed up your phone and your texting app should see the most improvement.
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Where do text messages go when deleted?

The Android operating system stores text messages in the phone's memory, so if they're deleted, there's no way to retrieve them. You can, however, install a text message backup application from the Android market that allows you to restore any deleted text messages.
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How do I delete multiple messages on my iPhone?

How To Delete Multiple Conversations
  1. Launch the Messages app from the Home screen. What is this? ...
  2. Tap Edit. This option is located on the top-left corner of the screen.
  3. Select the conversations you wish to delete. A check mark should be visible inside the circle of the selected conversations. ...
  4. Then select Delete.
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What happens to deleted text messages?

Once you delete the message, your Android device changes the space it occupied as “unused” and only overwrites the deleted messages when you create new data as you continue using your device. There's no specific duration or period of time it takes before the deleted messages are overwritten.
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Why do my messages take up so much storage?

Many people simply let the conversations accumulate for months and years without deleting any messages. This is very common. And with messages kept forever, the storage requirements for those messages will grow over time. However, there is a setting that will allow your device to automatically delete old messages.
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How long do text messages stay on your phone?

They sit on the company's server for anywhere from three days to three months, depending on the company's policy. Verizon holds texts for up to five days and Virgin Mobile keeps them for 90 days. AT&T, T-Mobile and Sprint do not keep the contents of text messages.
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How do you clean up text messages on iPhone?

To quickly remove multiple conversations, tap the Edit button in the upper-left corner of the Messages screen, tap the unwanted conversations in the list to select them, and then tap the Delete button in the lower-right corner.
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When you delete a text message does it delete for the other person?

If you delete the message or conversation, the other person will still have a record of it. But it will appear on your phone like a new conversation. If you want to delete sent messages, you can use secure messaging apps like Telegram and Signal.
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Where do deleted messages go on iPhone?

There is no trash or recently deleted folder with the iOS messaging app. If you have a backup that would have had the deleted texts in it, you can restore the entire device from that backup. Otherwise, deleted texts are gone.
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How do I permanently delete messages?

Here's how: Long-press the message thread you'd like to remove. It will highlight with a checkmark. Tap on the trash can icon at the bottom and confirm.
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How far back can text messages be retrieved?

Most newer Android devices will let you view all your text messages but older models may limit you to viewing just the last 30 days' worth of messages. What is this? In some instances, you can delete messages as old as 3 months. In some other carriers, you can go beyond 6 months.
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What should I delete when storage is full?

Delete Old Files

And when a phone's storage is almost full, it will automatically remove all backed-up photos and videos. If you don't want to do that, you can manually clear out your downloads by going through your download directory, Fisco says.
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What uses the most storage on your phone?

Photos and videos can be some of the most space-hogging items on your phone. Luckily, if you've got an Android phone, you're probably already uploading your photos to Google Photos — and can therefore take them off your phone.
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What can I delete from my phone to free up space?

Clear the cache

If you need to clear up space on your phone quickly, the app cache is the first place you should look. To clear cached data from a single app, go to Settings > Applications > Application Manager and tap on the app you want to modify.
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How do I clean my phone storage?

“In Android, go to Settings, then Apps or Applications. You'll see how much space your apps are using. Tap on any app then tap Storage. Tap "Clear storage" and "Clear cache" for any apps that are using a lot of space.
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Should you delete old texts on iPhone?

Deleting old messages from your iPhone or iPad is a good way to save on your device's storage space, but going back through your old conversations and deleting them individually would be a tedious and long-winded process.
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Are all text messages saved somewhere?

When you receive and send text messages, they're sent through -- and saved by -- your service provider's data network. Data is then maintained on the phone. Deleting these messages clears them from the visible display, but a small piece of data is still stored temporarily in the device's system memory.
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Where are my texts stored?

In general, Android SMS are stored in a database in the data folder located in the internal memory of the Android phone. However, the location of the database might vary from phone to phone.
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Can police recover deleted text messages?

So, can police recover deleted pictures, texts, and files from a phone? The answer is yes—by using special tools, they can find data that hasn't been overwritten yet. However, by using encryption methods, you can ensure your data is kept private, even after deletion.
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