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How to Take a Long Screenshot of a WhatsApp Chat on iPhone

Want to save a long WhatsApp conversation as a single image? Normally, a standard iPhone screenshot only captures what is visible on your screen. Unlike Safari, WhatsApp’s regular chat interface does not support Apple’s full-page screenshot feature. WhatsApp has no native scrolling screenshot function, but there are three solutions.For more information about the iPhone’s built-in screenshot feature, read our guide on how to take a long screenshot on iPhone.

Method 1: Combine WhatsApp Screenshots Using Apple Shortcuts

If you only need to save a few screens of messages, Apple’s Shortcuts app offers a free way to combine them into one image.

This method doesn’t require a third-party screenshot app, although you’ll need to capture and arrange the screenshots manually.

Step 1: Screenshot the conversation

Scroll to the starting message in your WhatsApp chat. Press the Side button and Volume Up button, then release quickly to take a screenshot.

Scroll down and keep capturing screenshots with a small overlap between each frame to avoid missing messages, until you cover all the content you need.

Step 2: Combine Your Screenshots With Shortcuts

  1. Open the Shortcuts app on your iPhone.
  2. Tap the + button to create a new shortcut.
  3. Add the Select Photos action and enable Select Multiple.
  4. Add the Combine Images action.
  5. Set the arrangement to Vertically and adjust the spacing.
  6. Add Save to Photo Album as the final action.
  7. Run the shortcut, select your screenshots in the correct order, and save the result.

How to combine WhatsApp screenshots on iPhone using Apple Shortcuts: Select Photos, Combine Images vertically, and Save to Photo Album.

Keep in mind: The Combine Images action places screenshots together but doesn’t automatically remove repeated chat bubbles or overlapping areas. You may need to crop your screenshots before combining them.

For a short conversation, this is a practical free option. If you’re dealing with dozens of screens, taking and editing individual screenshots can become time-consuming.

Method 2: Turn a WhatsApp Screen Recording Into a Long Screenshot

Go to the Toolbox section.
Tap the Long Screenshot option.
Follow the on-screen prompts to complete the operation.

Method 3: Export Your WhatsApp Chat Without Taking Screenshots

Sometimes you don’t need a screenshot at all. You simply want to save a conversation so you can read it later.

WhatsApp includes a built-in Export Chat feature that lets you save available messages as a text-based record, with optional media attachments.

This method doesn’t require a screenshot or a third-party app.

How to Export a WhatsApp Chat on iPhone

  1. Open WhatsApp and select the conversation you want to export.
  2. Tap the contact or group name at the top of the screen.
  3. Scroll down and select Export Chat.
  4. Choose Without Media or the option to include media.
  5. Use the iPhone share sheet to save the exported file to Files, send it by email, or share it with another supported app.

The exported data may be provided as a text file or a ZIP archive, depending on the export options and how you save it.

The text record generally includes message dates, times, sender names, and message content. If you choose to include media, available attachments may also be included.

However, Export Chat has two important limitations:

  • It doesn’t preserve the original WhatsApp chat bubble layout.
  • It isn’t a restorable WhatsApp backup and can’t simply be imported back as your chat history.

Also, WhatsApp may limit the amount of message history and media included in an export.

How to export chats on WhatsApp

What If Export Chat Is Unavailable?

If you can’t find or use Export Chat, check whether the conversation has Advanced Chat Privacy enabled.

According to WhatsApp, this setting prevents participants from exporting the chat through WhatsApp’s built-in export feature.

Learn more about this restriction in our article on WhatsApp Advanced Chat Privacy.

If your real goal is to preserve messages for future restoration, rather than save a readable copy, see our guide on how to back up WhatsApp chats on iPhone.

FAQ

You can take multiple screenshots using your iPhone’s built-in screenshot function. Apple’s Shortcuts app can then arrange those screenshots vertically.However, WhatsApp doesn’t offer a native scrolling screenshot feature that automatically captures an entire conversation as one image.
You can capture a long section of a WhatsApp conversation using multiple screenshots or a screen-recording-based tool. However, these methods only capture the content you actually display on the screen.They don’t automatically retrieve every message in the conversation’s history. For very long chats, exporting the available message history may be more practical.
WhatsApp’s Export Chat feature doesn’t directly create a PDF. It exports a text-based record, which you can later convert to PDF using a suitable document tool.
Apple’s Full Page option isn’t supported in every app. WhatsApp’s ordinary chat screen doesn’t provide the same full-page capture feature available in supported content, such as Safari webpages.This doesn’t necessarily mean there’s a problem with your iPhone.

Conclusion

WhatsApp doesn’t provide a native full-page screenshot option for ordinary conversations on iPhone, but you still have several ways to save your messages.

For shorter conversations, Apple Shortcuts can combine multiple screenshots into one image. For longer chats, a compatible screen-recording-based long-screenshot app may help preserve the original chat appearance with less manual editing.

If you only need the messages in text form, WhatsApp’s built-in Export Chat feature is a straightforward alternative.

Choose the method that fits what you want to save, and always check the result before sharing it.