Telegram chat to PDF
Open a Telegram Desktop export here to read the chat as bubbles, search it, and save it as a PDF. It works for groups too. It's free, needs no bot or login, and the file never leaves your device.
How to save a Telegram chat as a PDF
You need Telegram Desktop on a Mac, Windows or Linux computer. The phone apps and Telegram Web can't export chats. Mac users often have the other Telegram app, the one called just "Telegram": if you don't see Export chat history, install Telegram Desktop.
- Open the chat in Telegram Desktop and click ⋮ at the top right, then Export chat history.
- Untick photos, videos and files if you only want the text: the export is much faster.
- Set Format to Machine-readable JSON (not HTML) and click Export.
- Open the
result.jsonit saves, using the button above. - 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.
For several chats, use Settings, Advanced, Export Telegram data with the format set to JSON. The page lists each chat in that file so you can pick one. To print only part of a chat, type in the search box first. 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 export, with names, dates and times, and a marker where a photo, video, voice message or file was sent (a caption shows as the message instead). The PDF starts with the chat's name, the number of messages and the date range.
- Not in it: the media themselves, reactions, and secret chats, which Telegram doesn't export.
- Groups work too. Each message shows who sent it.
Private by design
The page reads your export 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 export: it still works.
Want numbers instead, like who talks more and how fast each person replies? Open the same file in the Telegram chat analyzer.
Questions
How do I save a Telegram chat as a PDF?
Export the chat from Telegram Desktop as Machine-readable JSON, open the result.json on this page, pick which person is you and click Save as PDF. The browser's print window makes the PDF.
Why can't I find Export chat history in Telegram?
The export is a feature of Telegram Desktop. The phone apps and Telegram Web don't have it, and on a Mac you may be in the other app, the one called just "Telegram". Install Telegram Desktop from desktop.telegram.org (it runs on Mac, Windows and Linux), sign in, and the option is in each chat's ⋮ menu.
Telegram says I have to wait 24 hours. Why?
If you've only just signed in to Telegram Desktop, Telegram can hold the export back for 24 hours as a safety measure, or let it start straight away once you confirm it from another device where you're already signed in.
Can I use the HTML export instead?
Not on this page: it reads the JSON export, which is what lets it show one continuous chat with search. Telegram Desktop's HTML export opens in a browser, so you can also print that directly, without the search.
Does it need a Telegram bot or my login?
No. There's no bot to add and nothing asks for your phone number. You export the chat yourself and open the file here, where it's read in your browser and never uploaded.
Are secret chats included?
No. Telegram's export covers cloud chats. Secret chats live only on the devices in them, so they aren't in the file.
Are photos and files in the PDF?
No. The PDF has the chat's text. Photos, videos, voice messages and files show as a placeholder where they were sent.
Can I use the PDF as evidence?
It's a readable copy of your export, nothing more. It isn't certified, and we don't claim it's accepted as legal evidence. Ask a lawyer what your case needs.