Instagram chat to PDF
Open your Instagram message download here to read any conversation as chat bubbles, search it, and save it as a PDF. It's free, needs no Instagram login, and the file never leaves your device.
How to save Instagram DMs as a PDF
Instagram doesn't export one chat at a time. You ask for a copy of your messages, Instagram prepares it, and you open the file here.
- In the Instagram app, open your profile, tap ☰, then Accounts Center. On the web, click More, then Settings, then Accounts Center.
- Tap Your information and permissions, then Download your information.
- Start a download, pick your Instagram account, and choose Some of your information. Tick Messages only.
- Choose Download to device, set Format to JSON (not HTML), and pick the date range, such as All time.
- Submit the request. Instagram tells you when the file is ready, which can take a while, and the link expires after a few days.
- Open the .zip above, pick the conversation from the list and click Open.
- Pick which person is you, so your messages sit on the right, then click Save as PDF. In the print window, set the destination to Save as PDF. On a Mac, use the PDF menu at the bottom left.
Only need part of the conversation? Type in the search box first, and Save as PDF prints only the matching messages. Download for Excel (CSV) next to it gives you a spreadsheet with one row per message instead.
What's in the PDF, and what isn't
- In it: every message in the conversation, with names, dates and times, and a marker where a photo, video, voice message or other attachment was sent. The PDF starts with the chat's name, the number of messages and the date range.
- Not in it: the photos and media themselves, likes and reactions, and anything outside the date range you asked Instagram for.
- Group chats work too. Each message shows who sent it.
Private by design
The page reads your download in your browser and your browser makes the PDF. Nothing is uploaded, saved or shared, there's no account, and the page sets no cookies. Load it, switch off Wi-Fi, then open your download: it still works.
Want numbers instead, like who sends more DMs and how fast each of you replies? Open the same file in the Instagram chat analyzer.
Questions
Can I save Instagram DMs as a PDF?
Not from the Instagram app itself. Download your messages from Instagram's Accounts Center in JSON format, open the .zip on this page, pick the conversation and click Save as PDF. The browser's print window makes the PDF.
Do I have to log in with Instagram?
No. This page never asks for your Instagram password. You download your own messages from Instagram, then open that file here. It's read on your device and nothing is uploaded.
I downloaded the HTML version. Can I use it?
Not on this page: it reads the JSON format, which is what lets it show bubbles and search. Request your messages again with Format set to JSON. The HTML files open in any browser, so you can also print one of those directly, without the bubbles or search.
Are photos and voice messages in the PDF?
No. The PDF has the conversation's text. Photos, videos, voice messages and other attachments show as a placeholder where they were sent. Likes and reactions aren't messages, so they're left out.
Why do accented names look broken in Instagram's file?
Instagram's JSON stores accented letters and emoji in a garbled encoding, so "José" can show up as "José". The viewer repairs this, so the PDF shows names and emoji correctly.
Will the other person know?
No. Nothing on this page contacts Instagram or the other person. The download itself is between you and Instagram.
Can I use the PDF as evidence?
It's a readable copy of your download, nothing more. It isn't certified, and we don't claim it's accepted as legal evidence. Ask a lawyer what your case needs.