A WhatsApp
archive that outlives
the phone.
Pull your encrypted WhatsApp backup off Android, decrypt it on your Mac, and keep a single .tarc file that survives a lost phone, a deleted account, or a switched number.
- License
- $99 once
- Devices
- 2 · revocable
- Source
- Android only
- Network
- On-device
Archive · Family · 2018–2026
42,118 entries
- 19:02✓✓ read
Mom · text Found Grandma's recipe
- 19:03✓✓ read
Mom · voice 0:42 Try this in coffee
- 19:05✓✓ read
You · text Got it. Saving this forever.
- 19:06✓✓ read
Mom · pdf 142 KB recipe-final.pdf
- 19:11✓✓ read
Mom · photo kitchen-1985.jpg
sha-256
9f3a c2b1 8e4d 7a02 · 89e0 e5c4 0011 ab46
.tarc
Fig. 01 · fragment of a 2018 family thread,
opened on a Mac in 2026. Decrypted locally.
File 02 · Capabilities
What WhatsApp's own export
left on the floor.
A backup expires the moment the source account does. An archive doesn't. Chat Hoarding app reads the encrypted database directly: every field WhatsApp stored ends up in your .tarc.
- 01
Decrypts the backup, on your Mac
on-devicePaste your 64-digit WhatsApp key. The whole thing runs locally. The key never reaches our servers.
Read note ↗
- 02
Three ways to get the backup off Android
Easy · Medium · AdvancedCompanion app + wireless share. USB drag-drop. Or fully automatic over a cable. Pick what fits the phone.
Read note ↗
- 03
The whole conversation, not just the words
every kind preservedVoice notes, photos, videos, calls, locations, contact cards, and group history. Deletion events stay in the archive with sender attribution.
Read note ↗
- 04
Receipts and timestamps the export drops
per-recipientSent, delivered, read, played, kept per message. In group chats, one row per recipient with all four timestamps.
Read note ↗
- 05
Names, not phone numbers
auto + manualResolves contacts from WhatsApp and your address book. You can rename anyone Chat Hoarding can't figure out.
Read note ↗
- 06
One file. Yours forever.
open · portableThe archive opens with a double-click. On the Mac you used, on your spouse's Mac, on a future Mac. The format is open, so you're not locked in.
Read note ↗
- 07
Two network calls. That's it.
license + update onlyThe Android companion has no INTERNET permission, verifiable in the manifest. Chat Hoarding for Mac reaches the network only to activate your license and to check for a new version. Message content never leaves your Mac.
Read note ↗
File 04 · Use cases
Why people actually reach for it.
All use cases →- 01Read note ↗
Anyone migrating phones, switching numbers, going iPhone ↔ Android
Keep the years before you switch the phone
You upgrade your phone, restore the WhatsApp backup, and 80% of the time it kinda works. Sometimes it doesn't. Either way you've lost your insurance copy.
- 02Read note ↗
Anyone preserving messages from a deceased family member or close friend
The last messages from the people you've lost
When someone dies, their WhatsApp account stays alive in your chat list, until one day it isn't. Eventually the number is reissued, the account is cleared, and the conversation is gone.
- 03Read note ↗
Individuals preserving messages for a pending matter, and the professionals they hand the archive to
Preserve WhatsApp messages for a pending dispute
A custody matter, a workplace situation, a contract that fell apart over text. Native screenshots strip the metadata that makes the message useful, and a chat in a live WhatsApp app can change. The encrypted backup, decrypted on a Mac you control, preserves the source data as it was. (Whether any of it satisfies the evidentiary rules of a specific process is a question for the lawyer or auditor handling the matter — this page is about preservation, not admissibility.)
- 04Read note ↗
Anyone with WhatsApp history they don't want tied to one device
Your phone is gone. Your chats don't have to be.
Phone stolen, lost on a flight, dropped in the ocean. If you only relied on Google Drive's nightly sync, you have at best last night's WhatsApp, missing the morning. Better: an archive that already lived somewhere else.
- 05Read note ↗
Reporters, fact-checkers, investigative editors
Source-grade preservation for working journalists
A source sent you everything over WhatsApp. The story comes out in six months. You need that chat intact, off your phone, off Meta's cloud, and verifiable when an editor or lawyer asks.
- 06Read note ↗
Anyone keeping a personal record of important conversations
A chat you might need years from now
Workplace harassment. Custody dispute. A landlord refusing to admit what they promised. The conversation matters now, and it will matter even more later, long after the other side has blocked you.
File 03 · Subscription · Terms
Pay once. Archive forever.
One license, two Macs, lifetime updates within the v1.x major version. Revoke any Mac from /account. The freed seat is reusable.
Certificate of Sealing
Chat Hoarding
Nº 0099
Issued for
Lifetime license, 2 Macs, revocable.
USD · one-time · every v1.x update
Stripe · 14-day refund · 95% back
Manifest · included
- Chat Hoarding for Mac + Chat Hoarding for Android
- Activate on up to 2 Macs · revoke any time
- Lifetime within v1.x, no subscription
- Signed updates that install themselves
- 14-day refund, 95% back
- Open .tarc format, no lock-in
Signed · Launch52
Signed · verifiedchathoarding.app
File 05 · Download
Two binaries. Both signed.
Install Chat Hoarding for Mac to decrypt and browse. Sideload Chat Hoarding for Android to locate the backup on the phone.
Chat Hoarding for Android
Android 8+ · sideload APK
- Locates WhatsApp and WhatsApp Business backups automatically
- Send to the Mac by share sheet, drag-drop, or USB
- Optional contacts export so names show up on the Mac side
Sideload only. Enable Install unknown apps in Android settings, then open the APK.
File 07 · Notes
Field notes on archiving chats.
- 01Read note ↗
May 19, 2026 · 9 min read
Archive WhatsApp chats on Mac in 2026
WhatsApp's own export drops the metadata that makes a chat worth keeping years later. The path that survives a lost phone, a banned account, or a switched number is to decrypt the Crypt15 backup directly. The 2026 method.
- 02Read note ↗
May 22, 2026 · 7 min read
Where Android WhatsApp stores backups
WhatsApp's backup path has moved a few times over the years. Where the Crypt15 file lives on every modern Android version, why Google Drive only ever holds one snapshot, and how to confirm you're looking at the right file.
- 03Read note ↗
May 21, 2026 · 5 min read
Find your 64-digit WhatsApp encryption key
WhatsApp shows you the 64-character end-to-end backup key once. Where to tap to see it again on Android, how to store it safely, and what happens if you've lost it.
File 06 · FAQ
The things people ask first.
- 01
Which phones does Chat Hoarding read backups from?
Android only, today. WhatsApp on Android writes a Crypt15 backup nightly that the Chat Hoarding app decrypts. iPhone WhatsApp uses Apple's protected backup and isn't supported yet (it's on the roadmap). If you're on iPhone, the current workaround is to migrate the chat to Android first using WhatsApp's built-in Chat Transfer (or a tool like WazzapMigrator), then archive from there.
- 02
Is it subscription or one-time?
One-time. $99 for a lifetime license that activates on up to 2 Macs.
- 03
Can I activate more than 2 Macs?
2 active activations at a time. Revoke any Mac from /account and the freed seat is reusable for a new Mac.
- 04
How do I activate the app?
After purchase you get a license key (also visible at /account → Billing). Open Chat Hoarding for Mac → Settings → License → paste the key → Activate. That's it. Up to 2 Macs at once; revoke any Mac from /account to free a seat.
- 05
Do I need an account?
For the web yes: passwordless, one-click magic link emailed to you. Lets you see your license key, manage activated Macs, and request a refund. The Mac app itself only needs the license key, no account login.
- 06
Why is it $99 when WazzapMigrator is around $9?
WazzapMigrator (~$8–14 depending on store) is a one-shot iPhone-to-Android transfer. The chat ends up inside another phone's WhatsApp. Chat Hoarding is the opposite: pull from Android, decrypt on a Mac you own, save as a portable archive file you keep forever. Different scope, different durability.
- 07
Refund policy?
14 days, 95% back (the 5% covers the Stripe fee Stripe doesn't refund). License revokes the moment the refund is issued.
- 08
Requirements?
macOS 14+ on Apple Silicon or Intel for the Mac side. Android 8+ for the Android companion.
- 09
Does my data leave the Mac?
No. Decryption, rendering, archive creation: all on-device. The Chat Hoarding for Android companion has no INTERNET permission. The Chat Hoarding for Mac app reaches the network only for license activation and the update check. Message content stays.
More questions answered on the full FAQ page.
Read all FAQs →