How to Restore Deleted SMS Messages from Google Drive
- Jerry Cook
- Updated on 2023-02-22 to  Android Data
If you’re reading this article, chances are you have lost important text messages and want them back. Luckily, there’re tons of ways to retrieve your deleted messages and Google backup is one of them.
In this article, we are going to provide a comprehensive guide on how to restore SMS from Google Drive. In addition, you’ll learn about additional methods to get back your permanently deleted messages – if you haven’t made a Google backup.
Let’s give it a read and find out!
- Part 1: Prerequisites for Restoring SMS from Google Drive
- Part 2: Restore SMS from Google Drive
- Part 3: Restore Android Backup without Factory Reset
- Wrap up
Part 1: Prerequisites for Restoring SMS from Google Drive
Note that restoring data from the Google Drive requires certain preconditions. So, before learning how to retrieve text messages from Google account, let’s take a quick look at these preconditions:
- 1. First, your Android phone must be running on Android 6.0 or up. Else, you won’t be able to restore your text messages from the Google account.
- 2. Users can retrieve certain types of data from the Google Drive. This includes Apps, Call History, Device Settings, Contacts, Calendar. Only Pixel phones can back up SMS, photos, and videos from the Google Drive.
- 3. The Google backup remains when you actively use the phone. In case, you don’t use it for 2 weeks, an expiry date will appear below your backup. And after 57 days, that specific backup is permanently deleted from the Drive.
- 4. To restore text messages from Google Drive, you need to factory reset your device. (However, if you wish to avoid factory resetting the device, jump to the Part 3)
- 5. Stating the obvious, you must already have a Google backup before restoring SMS from Google Drive.
How to Back up Text Messages to Google Drive?
Backing up your data on Google Drive is a great way to prevent data loss. You can only restore the messages from Google Drive if a backup of this data was already made. Thus, try to make a regular backup of your files on Android.
Here’s how to do that:
- Step 1: Head to Settings and tap Google > System.
- Step 2: Next on SMS backup and restore, tap Backup and enable Back up to Google Drive.
- Step 3: Finally, select the Google account to sync the data and hit Backup Now.
The system will take some time to backup your data including messages, photos, videos, contacts, apps, and other documents.
Part 2: Restore SMS from Google Drive
As mentioned earlier, the official method to restore text messages from Google Drive is by factory resetting the device. This will overwrite the data on your phone with the Google Drive backup.
But be sure that you may end up losing significant data if you take this route. Performing factory reset wipes out everything on your phone – including the data that might not be backed up on Google Drive. Thus, it’s recommended to try this method as a last resort of recovering your deleted messages.
Having said that, follow the below instructions to learn how to retrieve text messages from Google account:
- Step 1: Go to Settings and tap System > Reset options.
- Step 2: Next, tap on Erase all data and hit Delete on the pop-up tab. Enter your password if prompted for confirmation.
- Step 3: Wait until the factory reset is completed. Then, again go to Settings > Backup and Reset > Google.
- Step 4. Enter the Google ID and password of the same account you used to make backups. Hit Sync to proceed.
- Step 5. Finally, choose the data you want to restore and tap Restore All Synced Data. It will start restoring your messages.
Remember that you’ll lose all the messages on your phone after the backup was taken. The same goes for other data on your phone. This can do more harm than good and that’s why people look for alternative methods to restore their lost messages.
Part 3: Restore Android Backup without Factory Reset
Don’t want to risk your data with factory reset? Worry not as we have outlined the two proven methods to restore SMS from Google Drive to Android without factory resetting the device.
1. UltFone Android Data Recovery
When it comes to the most efficient solution to restore SMS from Google Drive without factory reset, UltFone Android Data Recovery stands out. It helps you selectively restore the text messages on your phone with just a few clicks. The good news is you don’t need any prior backup file to start recovering your messages.
One powerful feature of UltFone is it allows you to preview the messages before you retrieve them. This comes handy if you have lost tons of messages but want to recover specific messages or chats. It boasts of its compatibility with over 7000 Android phones and tablets, making it an ideal choice for every Android user.
Follow the below steps to get back your lost messages via this stellar software:
- Step 1 Launch the program on your PC.
Free Download For PC Secure Download Free Download For Mac Secure Download BUY NOW BUY NOW - Step 2 Choose the Recover Data option to get started.
- Step 3 Once the software detects your phone, tick Messages (and other data types) and hit Start.
- Step 4 After scanning process, it will display both existing and deleted messages on the screen under the Messages tab. Select the messages you want to retrieve and hit Recover.
2. Contact Support Team
Still unable to restore SMS from Google Drive? Go ahead and contact the Google Drive customer service. It is time consuming and also doesn’t work in most cases, but still, it is worth a try.
The steps to contact the support team are explained below:
- Step 1: Login to your Google Drive and open the main page.
- Step 2: At the top-right corner, click on Contact Us and choose either of the three ways to contact them.
- Step 3: Next, you need to convey your issue to the support team including why you are trying to SMS backup from your Google Drive.
- Step 4: The team will look into your account and provide insights if anything is wrong. Follow their suggestions to get back your messages.
Wrap up
Losing your text messages can be very annoying. But with the help of abovementioned guide, you can easily restore SMS from Google Drive. Since the original method requires factory resetting the phone, not many users are comfortable with it.
So, we strongly recommend everyone to use UltFone Android Data Recovery to restore text messages from Google Drive without factory reset. With 99.9% success ratio, it is arguably the best option to get back your deleted files in a fast and secure way.
Feel free to ask any questions.