Hello friends, Today I will tell you a method on how to delete all iMessages on Mac OS. You can clear the complete chat history from your MacOS. I have shared a method which will also remove your archive text messages from Mac. It will also delete the history of all iMessages. Users can delete all messages at once from their Mac.
Recover Deleted Text Messages Free
The beautiful thing about Apple’s Message app is that it stores all your messages and history. Such that you can find it later when you need them. Moreover, you can also retrieve lost chat or conversation from the archive box if you have accidentally lost them. Not only finding it on Mac, but you can also recover it on your both iPhone or iPad too. But, what about if you want to get away on how to delete all iMessages on Mac? Maybe you are uncomfortable by a message, and you want to delete them. It may also be possible that you want to close your account and want to know how to remove all iMessages on Mac. So, here is the solution for that.
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How to Delete all iMessages on Mac OS
- Before you start deleting messages, you’ll want to go to the Preferences menu on your iMessage app. Access the ‘Preferences’ menu by opening iMessage on your Mac, then clicking Messages at the top left corner of your computer screen. Under the General tab, you will notice the following option: Save history when conversations are closed.
- Recover macOS caches folder, log files, Library folders automatically If your data has been permanently deleted and you don’t have a backup from which you can recover it, the most reliable option to restore them is to opt for the secure and reliable Mac Data Recovery software.
- From the Finder menu bar. A folder window will open. Restore the subfolder named 'Messages' from a backup that predates the unwanted changes, then log out and log back in. If you're running OS X 10.9 or later, delete the subfolder Containers/com.apple.iChat. If you don't have a backup, the archive can't be restored.


A window will pop up with a number, which in my Mac’s case was over 236GB between a number of different photo libraries — Apple’s Photo Booth, Aperture, iPhoto, and Photos, just to name a few.
Deleting a message on iMessage may be painful if you have to delete it one by one. So, is there any option to remove all iMessages on Mac Os? Well, yes. There is a successful way to delete all iMessages on Mac. There is a select all option in the edit tab on iMessage or Message app. But, the sad part is that it didn’t work. Yes, it didn’t work to select all the chats or messages.
However, if you want to delete messages one by one, then you can use a combination of command key and the delete key. But, there is a simple way by which you can follow up to delete all iMessages on Mac. You can only hold up the option key with the command key and keep clicking on the delete key. You will find that the messages are going deleted one by one. It will save your precious time as well as protect your workforce both. Users can event setup VPN on Mac.

How to Clear Chat History in iMessage on Mac OS
In the iMessage app, you will find that it captures the chat history of all conversations. So, the question that arises here is that how we can clear the chat history of iMessages on Mac OS. Generally, what happens is that the iMessage captures the chat history by default. So, first of all, we have to fix that so that the iMessage will not take the chat history in the future. After that, we have to delete all the captured chat history that has been taken by the iMessage app. Users can delete large files on Mac.
Part 1: Disable – “Save history when conversations are closed”
- Open the Messages app on your MacBookok.
- Now, click on Preferences from the menu bar of the Messages app.
- Then, go to the General tab.
- Untick the option of “Save history when conversations are closed.”
- That’s it. Now, no more chat history will be captured from your messages.
Part 2: Delete iMessage History using Finder
- Terminate the iMessage app on your Macbook.
- Now, launch the finder and press CMD+Shift+G.
- Type ~/Library/Messages/ in the dialog box.
- A folder will be opened where you will find three files that are chat.db-wal, chat.db-shm, and chat.db.
- Simply, deleted all those files and that’s it.
Conclusion
We have seen how to delete all iMessages on Mac and how to clear chat history on Mac OS. These were the most straightforward way which I have shared with your guys. If you have accidentally deleted any message, then you can retrieve it later on as I told earlier. I hope now you can delete all iMessages on Mac. If you found this article helpful, then you can share this with your friends so that they can also learn about the method on how to delete all iMessages on Mac.
Learn how to recover deleted iMessages on Mac using [1]Apple iPhone and iPad devices, [2]Time Machine backup, [3]iCloud backup, and [4]third-party EaseUS messages recovery software for Mac. The four ways are proved to be helpful to recover deleted iMessages. In case that you didn't back up or sync your text messages, the EaseUS software solution is the only chance for deleted message recovery.
'I have accidentally deleted contents of an iMessage on a specific contact on my Mac. And after that, all the messages from the person were gone. Is there any way to recover deleted iMessages on Mac? I really want to get the conversations back!'
Mac Deleted File Recovery Free
iMessage is a free instant messaging service from Apple. Along with text messages, iMessage allows you to send unlimited pictures, videos, contacts, etc. to other Apple users anywhere anytime for free. Have you ever accidentally deleted iMessages? Do you know how to recover deleted messages, especially when those messages record some unforgettable memories? When you deleted iMessage text messages by mistake on your MacBook, iMac or Mini, stay calm. Learn carefully how to recover deleted iMessages on Mac with the below four effective solutions.
Workable Solutions | Step-by-step Troubleshooting |
---|---|
Method 1. Recover on iPhone/iPad | Generally speaking, for Mac users who use Apple iPhone or iPad at the same time...Full steps |
Method 2. Recover from Time Machine | Sign out all iMessage accounts and quit Messages, open Finder...Full steps |
Method 3. Recover from iCloud | Sign out of iMessage on your Mac and locate the library...Full steps |
Method 4. Recover with Software | Run Mac data recovery software, select the location where messages were deleted...Full steps |
Is It Possible to Recover Deleted iMessages on Mac
Can you bring back a deleted iMessage? To some degree, yes. Apple provides customers with Time Machine, a comprehensive backup solution to macOS operating systems, which you can find it in macOS Catalina, Mojave, High Sierra, and other versions as well. As long as you turned on Time Machine backup, you can easily recover everything, including the deleted iMessages, from its backup. Meanwhile, the other data sync solution of iCloud backup is also quite helpful in retrieving lost data across platforms. What if the mishap happens and you didn't have a backup at hand? Then grab the last chance of using iMessage data recovery software to recover deleted messages without a backup.
Next, let's walk you through each guide of how to recover deleted iMessages on Mac one by one.
#1. How to Recover Deleted iMessages on Mac Using iPhone or iPad
Generally speaking, for Mac users who use Apple iPhone or iPad at the same time, the chances of deleted iMessage recovery are greater. Apple users of the macOS system and iOS system are using the same Apple ID, so their received messages and sent messages will show up on every device. When you carelessly lost important messages on Mac, you can try to look for them on an iPhone or iPad.
#2. How to Recover Deleted iMessages on Mac Using Time Machine
As long as you back up Mac data regularly with Time Machine, follow these steps to easily recover deleted messages from the Time Machine backup:
Step 1. Sign out all iMessage accounts and quit Messages.
Step 2. Press and hold down the Option key and select 'Go' > 'Library' from the Finder menu bar.
Step 3. Locate the Library section and click on Messages
Step 4. When the messages folder comes up, locate a file with the ‘chat.db’ name and a date that is before the date the files you are looking for were deleted.
Step 5. Select the file and click Restore.
Note: This method restores the whole iMessage database and will replace the current database with an earlier version.

#3. How to Recover Deleted iMessages on Mac Using iCloud
To recover iMessages from iCloud:
Step 1. Sign out of iMessage on your Mac and quit the app.
Step 2. Open the Finder.
Step 3. Select Go from the Finder menu.
Step 4. Locate your library.
Step 5. Find a file named [messages] from an iCloud backup date that is before the day the files you are looking for is deleted.
Step 6. Open this messages folder.
Step 7. Click restore.
#4. How to Recover Deleted Messages on Mac Using Mac Data Recovery Software
Can you bring back a deleted iMessage when there is no backup at all? First of all, you need to figure out where the deleted iMessages stored.
By navigating to the ~/Library/Messages folder on your Mac, you will see the Archive folder, Attachments folder, and a file named 'chat.db'. The archive folder contains all your past messages that you have closed or saved, the Attachments folder contains the images, videos, audios, and other files that you have sent or received on your Mac via iMessage, and the file 'chat.db' is the database file where all of your messages are stored.
When you delete a conversation from iMessage on your Mac, the content of the chat.db file is changed but the file still exists on your computer. That's why you can't use data recovery software, which can only recover deleted files, not the deleted content of the file, to retrieve data. (Use EaseUS free data recovery software for Mac, and it will be quite helpful if you accidentally deleted the chat.db file on your Mac.)
Follow three simple steps to get back the deleted iMessage database with EaseUS data recovery software:
Step 1. Select the location where your important data & files were deleted and click the 'Scan' button.
Deleted Mac Os
Step 2. The software will run both quick scan and deep scan and work hard to find as many deleted files as possible on the selected volume.
Step 3. The scan results will be displayed in the left pane. Just select the file(s) and click the 'Recover Now' button to get them back.
