In this guide, we show you how to delete your contacts and chats from Telegram and then deactivate or permanently delete your account.
The steps here are for an iPhone, but they also work for iPad, Android phone, Mac, PC, or web with slight visual variations.
6 reasons why Telegram may not be right for you
In case you are not fully convinced, we’ve listed a few important reasons why you may want to delete your account.
1. Telegram is not secure
Contrary to popular belief, Telegram isn’t as secure as you and many people think. Apps like WhatsApp and Signal have full end-to-end encryption. This means except for you and the recipient, no one in the middle (your Internet Service Provider (ISP), the app company, or a third party) can decrypt and read your messages.
In Telegram, only a Secret Chat is fully encrypted. Other regular one-to-one or group chats have partial encryption. What this means is that the Telegram chats are encrypted from your app to Telegram servers (so your ISP or anyone in the middle can’t read it). But on the Telegram servers, your messages are decrypted (so technically, Telegram can see your messages). But again, the messages are encrypted from the Telegram servers to the recipient (so your friend’s ISP or anyone in the middle can’t read the text).
2. Not enough friends on Telegram
Another reason to delete your Telegram account is not enough friends and family members are on it.
3. Illegal activities (rightly) bother you
On Telegram (and other platforms, too), you will find channels and groups full of illegal movies, books, magazines, auctions, adult stuff, weapons, drugs, and several disturbing things that aren’t suitable to mention here. Sure, you have nothing to worry about if you don’t search and be a part of these channels and groups. But if these things bother you or you don’t want your child to browse such public channels accidentally, you might want to delete your Telegram account.
4. Telegram ads or policies aren’t suitable for you
You might want to get off this platform because of ads or their other policies that are not suitable for you.
5. You want to use other chat apps
The App Store and Google Play Store have several messaging apps that work on multiple platforms – iOS, iPadOS, Android, Windows, macOS, Linux, web, etc. If you want to switch to another such app, it’s okay to delete your Telegram account permanently. No benefit in keeping apps you don’t plan to use.
6. It isn’t available in your language
Currently, Telegram’s interface supports 19 languages, such as English, Arabic, Dutch, French, German, etc. If your language isn’t listed, you might want to delete the Telegram account and switch to an app available in your native language.
Delete your contact, payment, and address from Telegram servers
- Open the Telegram app on your iPhone and tap Settings.
- Tap Privacy and Security.
- Tap Data Settings.
- From here, you can Delete Synced Contacts and Clear Payment and Shipping Info. You can also delete the drafts (messages you have typed but not sent). Plus, turning off Suggest Frequent Contacts will delete all data about your frequently-messaged contacts and Telegram bots.
Delete all Telegram chats at once
There isn’t a single button to clear or delete all Telegram chats. Therefore, to delete all your Telegram chats, tap Edit from the top left, select all chats, and tap Delete.
Alternatively, if you delete your Telegram account, it also deletes all your chats.
Clear Telegram app cache to free space
You can free local space on your iPhone by deleting the app cache from Telegram Settings > Data and Storage > Storage Usage > Clear Entire Cache. You can also choose the duration you want to keep the media for and define the maximum Telegram cache size.
Log out of your Telegram account
The Telegram app lets you use up to three Telegram accounts with different phone numbers in the same app. To do that, touch and hold the Settings icon from the bottom right and tap Add Account. If you would like to log out from your only or one of the multiple accounts, here’s how to do that.
- Open the Telegram app and tap Settings.
- Tap Edit from the top right.
- Tap Log Out.
To log out from the Telegram Mac app or Telegram web, open the Telegram app on your phone > Settings > Devices and tap Terminate all other sessions. You can also tap the Mac or browser under active sessions and then tap Terminate Session.
If you do not have access to your phone, open the Telegram Mac app > Settings > Edit > Log Out. If you uninstall the Mac app and reinstall it, you’ll have to log in again.
On Telegram web, click the menu icon > Settings > three dots icon > Log Out. Clearing browser data also logs you out of Telegram and all other services.
Deactivate your Telegram account for some time
Telegram doesn’t offer a way to deactivate your account temporarily. If you need a break, your only option is to delete the account, which will remove you from groups and channels and make you completely unavailable. Alternatively, you can also offload or uninstall it from your phone.
If you just want to cut the distraction, you can mute chats, groups, and channels inside the Telegram app. You can also go to phone Settings > Notifications and prevent Telegram from sending you new notifications. Once that’s done, you can hide the Telegram app to remove it from your plain sight on the Home Screen.
What are the consequences of deleting your Telegram account?
- You lose all chats, media, channels, groups, etc.
- You cannot restore your chats, media, channels, or groups. If you later sign up with Telegram again, you will have to join each channel and group manually.
- You will be removed from the Telegram channels and groups you created. The other channel or group admins can continue to run it. If you were the sole admin, some random active member of that channel or group would be made the admin.
- Once you delete your Telegram account, you can sign up using the same number in the future. But this privilege may be unavailable for the next several days.
Export Telegram chats before deleting your account
You can export your Telegram chat only using the desktop app (and not the iOS or Android apps). To do that, click the three lines icon > Settings > Export Telegram data. This official blog tells you more about it.
Set your Telegram account to delete automatically
By default, Telegram will auto-delete your account if you do not come online at least once every 6 months. But you can change this period to 1 month, 3 months, or 12 months.
- Tap Settings inside the Telegram app.
- Tap Privacy and Security.
- Now, tap If Away For and select 1, 3, 6, or 12 months.
You can also auto-delete your Telegram account from the Mac app but not the web version of Telegram.
Permanently delete your Telegram account now
If you want immediate action, you have the option to instantly delete your Telegram account using your iPhone, Android, Mac, or Windows PC.
You can tap If Away For in the Privacy and Security section and select Delete Account Now > Delete My Account.
Alternatively, you can also use the browser to permanently delete your Telegram account from your phone or computer.
1) Visit my.telegram.org using a browser on your iPhone, iPad, Android, Mac, or PC.
2) Enter your country code (like +1 or +91, etc.) followed by your phone number.
3) You’ll receive a message in the Telegram app from Telegram that will have a long code. Press the message until it lifts up. Now, put your finger on the code and copy it. (Yes. Telegram lets you copy parts of a single message!)
4) Paste the confirmation code in the browser and tap Sign In.
5) Tap Delete account.
6) Read the info here and tap Delete My Account.
7) Finally, tap Yes, delete my account to confirm.
You have successfully deleted your Telegram account from your iPhone and everywhere else.
Read Next: How to send pictures in full quality on iMessage, WhatsApp, Telegram, and Signal