WhatsApp Backup Reader

Use it when

• You exported a large WhatsApp chat as a .zip and the raw _chat.txt plus loose media files are impossible to actually browse or search
• You need voice notes from a chat archive transcribed and full-text searchable without any audio or messages leaving your device

What it solves

Not the fit when

• Reads only official WhatsApp .zip chat exports, not encrypted phone-side database backups, and is a viewer, not a messaging client. Voice transcription needs a WebGPU-capable environment. AGPL-3.0: redistribution or hosting of modified versions requires sharing source.
• sending or receiving live WhatsApp messages
• decrypting .crypt14 phone database backups
• recovering deleted conversations

Install

Download the installer for your platform from https://github.com/rodrigogs/whats-reader/releases/latest (exe, dmg, deb, rpm, or AppImage); or git clone the repo, npm install, npm run dev

Invoke

Open the app (or localhost:5173 in dev mode) and drag in the WhatsApp export .zip; use the Media Gallery for photos and the Whisper button to transcribe voice notes locally

Alternatives

No reviewed alternatives recorded yet.