This article explains how to undelete and permanently delete voicemails. Instructions apply to iPhones running iOS 10 and later.
What to Know
- To undelete, open Phone app > Voicemail > Deleted Messages > tap voicemail > Undelete > Voicemail.To permanently delete, Phone > Voicemail > Deleted Messages > Clear All > Clear All.
How to Undelete Voicemails on iPhone
If you’ve deleted a voicemail and would now like it back, follow these steps:
- Tap the Phone app to open it.
- Tap Voicemail in the bottom right corner.
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- If there are any voicemails on your iPhone that can be undeleted, you’ll see the Deleted Messages menu. Tap it to bring up a list of all the voicemails you’ve deleted, but that are still on your phone.
- Tap the voicemail you want to undelete.
- Tap Undelete beneath the selected voicemail. On some versions of the iOS, tap the red trash icon with a line through it.
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- Tap the Voicemail menu in the top left corner to return to the main Visual Voicemail screen. The voicemail you just undeleted will be there waiting for you.
When You Can’t Undelete Voicemail on iPhone
While undeleting voicemail on iPhone is easy, there are some cases in which you won’t be able to save your old voicemails.
Tap the Phone app to open it.
Tap Voicemail in the bottom right corner.
If there are any voicemails on your iPhone that can be undeleted, you’ll see the Deleted Messages menu. Tap it to bring up a list of all the voicemails you’ve deleted, but that are still on your phone.
Tap the voicemail you want to undelete.
Tap Undelete beneath the selected voicemail. On some versions of the iOS, tap the red trash icon with a line through it.
Tap the Voicemail menu in the top left corner to return to the main Visual Voicemail screen. The voicemail you just undeleted will be there waiting for you.
The Deleted Messages section of the Phone app is like the trash or recycle bin on a desktop computer: the files stay there until they’re emptied. While there’s no “empty” button on the iPhone, the deleted voicemails are cleared from memory when you sync your iPhone with your computer. They can also be permanently deleted (check out the next section) and your phone company may automatically clear deleted messages every so often.
As long as you haven’t synced your phone since you last marked a voicemail for deletion, you should be able to get it back. If a voicemail doesn’t appear in the Deleted Messages section, though, it’s probably gone for good.
How to Permanently Delete iPhone Voicemails
To clear deleted voicemails permanently and immediately, following these steps:
- Tap the Phone app.
- Tap Voicemail.
- Tap Deleted Messages.
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- Tap Clear All in the top right corner.
- Tap Clear All in the pop-up confirmation screen.
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- Your Deleted Voicemails folder is now empty, and you can’t recover anything that it contained.
Tap the Phone app.
Tap Voicemail.
Tap Deleted Messages.
Tap Clear All in the top right corner.
Tap Clear All in the pop-up confirmation screen.
Your Deleted Voicemails folder is now empty, and you can’t recover anything that it contained.
- How do I recover deleted voicemail on my Android?
- Most of the time, you can recover deleted voicemails by opening the voicemail app and tap Menu > Deleted Voicemails. Tap and hold one of the voicemails, then tap Save.
- How do I recover deleted voicemails on Google Voice?
- Unfortunately, once you delete voicemails on Google Voice, you won’t be able to recover them. If you think you might need a voicemail, archive it by long pressing the voicemail > Archive.
Most of the time, you can recover deleted voicemails by opening the voicemail app and tap Menu > Deleted Voicemails. Tap and hold one of the voicemails, then tap Save.
Unfortunately, once you delete voicemails on Google Voice, you won’t be able to recover them. If you think you might need a voicemail, archive it by long pressing the voicemail > Archive.
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