How to Backup Messages on Android with 2 Methods

When most users think of backups, they usually think of items like photos and videos to create a backup. However, for most people, the text messages on their devices are equally important and they will want to back up their SMS on their Android devices as well. Luckily, that is a totally possible thing to do and you can indeed create a backup copy of your messages.

There are multiple ways to make a backup of your text messages on your Android device and this guide covers many of those ways for you. What these methods basically do is create a backup of your messages and upload them somewhere safe. Then, when you want to restore them, all you need to do is access your account and you can have them restored.

The following is what you need to do.

Method 1. Backup Messages on Android with Google Account

One of the easiest ways to backup messages on an Android device is to use your Google account. Google’s integration with Android devices is so deep that you can pretty much back up everything you have on your device with your Google account. This includes your photos, videos, other files, and even your text messages.

In order to make a backup of your Android messages in your Google account, you want to make sure there is enough free space available on your Google Drive. That is where your backup is going to be stored. Also, when you need to restore the backup, you will be accessing your Google Drive account from the device where the backup is to be restored.

Without further ado, the following is how to backup messages in Android using your free Google account.

Step 1. Launch the app drawer on your Android device and find and tap on the Settings app. It will open the settings menu for your device.

Step 2. When the Settings app launches, scroll down and tap on the option that says System followed by Backup. That is where you create a backup for your device.

Step 3. Turn the toggle for Back up to Google Drive to the ON position. It will enable automatic backups of your device to your Google account.

Step 4. On the following screen, tap on the Back up now option to quickly create a full backup of your device in your Google account.

You will need to wait while the contents of your device including your messages are uploaded to your Google account. Your device will let you know when the backup is successfully made. That is all there is to it.

If you ever need to restore the backup on your Android device, all you need to do is configure your device with the Google account that you used to create the backup. It will then let you restore the contents of the backup, including your messages, to your Android device.

Method 2. Backup Messages on Android with AnyDroid

While Google Drive is one of the good ways to backup messages on an Android device, it has some restrictions and some users may not want to go for it because of those restrictions. One of the restrictions is that the method does not give you the flexibility as to where you want to store your backup contents.

Second, you are going to need to have a stable and fast Internet connection to be able to make a backup of your device. It is because the method backs up the full contents of your device which includes the usually large video and photo files located on your device.

If you do not want all of that hassle, your best bet is to use something like AnyDroid to backup your messages. It is a data transfer app that allows you to transfer files from your device to your computer and vice versa. That way, you can use it to export your messages from your Android phone over to your computer.

Step 1. Open the AnyDroid site and download and install AnyDroid on your computer.

Step 2. Plug-in your Android device to your computer and launch the app.

Step 3. Click on the Messages option on the main interface of the app. It lets you access and transfers your phone’s messages to your computer.

Step 4. The following screen lists out all the messages you have on your device. You can either select all the messages to transfer to your computer or you can selectively transfer your messages. Select the ones you want to transfer and click on To Computer at the top.

Step 5. Wait while your messages are being sent to your computer. It will let you know when the task is done.

Once the messages are transferred, you should find them in the target folder on your computer. You want to make sure you keep this folder in a handy and secure place as it contains all of your device’s messages. You are going to need this folder to restore the messages.

Method 3. Backup Messages on Android with SMS Backup+

One of the issues with the default backup method for Android phones is that you do not get the option to search your messages. You can only view and access your messages when they have been restored on your Android.

That is where an app like SMS Backup+ comes into the picture. The app allows you to create backups of your text messages with the ability to search them. You do not actually need to restore your messages to be able to view them. The reason why it is able to do it is that your messages are backed up to your Gmail account.

Your text messages are saved in your Gmail account along with your other emails but with a specific tag for them. This way, you can view them on the web, search them, as well as restore them when needed.

Step 1. You need to enable the IMAP access for your Gmail account. Open your Gmail dashboard, click on the cog icon, select Settings, click on the Forwarding and POP/IMAP option, and enable the Enable IMAP option.

Step 2. Download, install and launch the SMS Backup+ on your device.

Step 3. On the first screen, tap on the option that says Connect to link your Gmail account with the app.

Step 4. Choose the Gmail account you want to use with the app and follow the authorization process.

Step 5. Once that is done, tap on the Backup option to start backing up messages from your Android device to your Gmail account.

Step 6. If you want to change the tags that the app uses to organize your messages in Gmail, tap on the Advanced settings option. Select Backup settings and you should be able to modify the tags along with many other options.

Step 7. When you want to restore your messages on your device, all you need to do is tap on the Restore button and it will get the task done for you.

Conclusion

When you have your important chats saved in your messages, it becomes even more important to backup messages on your Android device. With several methods available out there to help you do the task, you can always back up your messages with ease on your phones and/or tablets.