Reading a WhatsApp backup on a computer

People search for this a lot, so here's the straight answer: WhatsApp's chat backups (Google Drive on Android, iCloud on iPhone, and the local msgstore.db.crypt14/15 files) are encrypted and made for restoring to WhatsApp on a phone. There's no official way to open them on a PC.

Updated 2026-10-26 · 4 min read

What you can do instead

Export chats from the phone (per chat) – this produces a readable .txt plus media in a .zip. Open it on the computer with Convobook as a chat-style view, PDF, HTML archive or Excel.
WhatsApp Desktop / Web – shows your synced chats on a computer while your account is linked, but doesn't save a standalone archive.

Save chats to your PC

On the phone, export each important chat (with or without media).
Save the .zip to your computer (via Files/Drive/email/USB).
Open it in Convobook and save an HTML archive – one file with photos and a search box that opens in any browser, years from now – or a PDF.

Be careful with “backup extractor” tools

Tools that claim to decrypt Google Drive or iCloud WhatsApp backups usually need your account access or encryption keys from the phone. Handing those to unknown software is risky. Exporting chats is slower but safe.

Open your exported chat. Convobook reads the .zip or .txt from WhatsApp's “Export chat” (Android and iPhone, many languages and date formats) and turns it into a chat-bubble PDF with photos, a single-file HTML archive, or Excel/CSV – in your browser, nothing is uploaded. Reading the whole chat and exporting the first 100 messages is free; a 30-day pass is $9, lifetime $19.

Open the converter – free

Questions and answers

Can Convobook open msgstore.db.crypt14?

No. It reads the files from WhatsApp's 'Export chat'.

Can I restore a WhatsApp backup to a computer?

No, backups restore to WhatsApp on a phone only.

Sources and product names: WhatsApp Help Center articles on backups (Google Drive, iCloud, end-to-end encrypted backup) and chat export. WhatsApp is a trademark of WhatsApp LLC; Meta of Meta Platforms, Inc. Convobook is independent and not affiliated with, endorsed or sponsored by them. This page is general information, not legal advice.