Microsoft Teams stores important business chats and messages, which is highly recommended to be accessible 24/7. For any reason, if your data is accidentally deleted or hacked, then there is no option to recover it until you have a backup. So, in this discussion, I’ll explain to you how to export Microsoft Teams chat with complete file history.
Let me clear one thing: there is no solution provided by Microsoft to back up or save Teams chat locally. Fortunately, I found three methods which are 100% accurate and reliable, i.e. Purview eDiscovery, Export APIs, or SysTools Microsoft Teams Backup Tool.
Here I’ll share all the details about these methods, with a complete set of instructions. Let’s start from the basics!
Can You Export Microsoft Teams Chat?
So, first of all, I’ll answer the most asked query, i.e., can you export Microsoft Teams chat directly from the Teams desktop application? The answer depends on your Teams environment.
For Teams Free, Microsoft provides a data export option to download chat and file history. However, you cannot select and export just one chat. Instead, the export includes your available chat history, from which you have to manually find the conversation you need. This process is time-consuming, but there is no other option for this.
For Microsoft 365 work or school accounts, admins and authorized users can use Microsoft Purview eDiscovery or Teams Export APIs to export Teams messages. These methods support 1:1 chats, group chats, meeting chats, and channel messages.
So, if you’re wondering how to export Microsoft Teams chat, first check which Teams account you’re using, as the backup procedure depends on that.
Why Backup Microsoft Teams Chat?
When I want to export a chat from Microsoft Teams, not only me, but many users need to perform this task for these reasons:
- Want offline access to important conversations.
- Backup Microsoft Teams chat history.
- Preserve conversations or information before an account is permanently closed due to migrations.
- Want to migrate Teams from one tenant to another, and as a pre-migration step, backup is mandatory.
- To maintain business records for legal purposes.
- Ensure content accessibility even after accidental loss or data breach.
- Want to access the chats without internet or Microsoft Teams.
One more thing: I have to clarify that your Teams chats can also be affected by retention policies and are stored in locations used by Microsoft’s compliance tools. In simple terms, Microsoft Teams data can be stored in multiple locations, and backing it up becomes hectic.
This is why organizations look for a dedicated way to backup Microsoft Teams chat history. For the same, I’ll share all the practical methods next with their proper step-by-step instructions.
How to Export Microsoft Teams Chat?
If you want to know how to backup Microsoft Teams chat, there are four major approaches to consider:
- Microsoft Teams Free data export
- Microsoft Purview eDiscovery
- Microsoft Teams Export APIs
- SysTools utility (Automated Software)
Each method can be utilised for different purposes, and below I’ll explain each one by one.
#Method 1. Backup Microsoft Teams Chat Using Microsoft Teams Free
If you use Microsoft Teams Free, Microsoft provides a data export feature that can export your chat and file history. This is useful when you want to create a copy of your personal Teams data. Moreover, this doesn’t require any other service; you just need Microsoft Teams Free to export.
Follow these steps to export chat from Microsoft Teams Free:
- Sign in to the Microsoft account associated with Teams Free.
- Open Microsoft’s Teams data export facility.
- Select the relevant chat-history export option.
- Submit the export request.
- Wait for Microsoft to prepare your data.
- Download the generated export when it becomes available.
- Extract the downloaded archive.
According to Microsoft Q&A, Teams Free does not have a simple option to export just one chat. The export includes other chats and file history, so you have to find the conversation you want from the exported data, which can be time-consuming, especially with a large dataset.
So, if your question is how do I export Microsoft Teams chat history, this is one of the options to consider for a Teams Free account.
The exported data does not look like a normal chat. It can include files such as JSON, which requires extra work to find the conversation you need. No doubt, this method is free and easy to export Microsoft Teams chat history; it may not be the simplest option if you want a regular backup.
Don’t worry if you find this approach complex; we have more options to backup Microsoft Teams chat simultaneously.
#Method 2. Export Chat from Microsoft Teams Using Microsoft Purview eDiscovery
Microsoft Purview eDiscovery is used to find and export Teams content. Microsoft also allows Teams conversations to be searched and exported through eDiscovery after they are added to a review set. Here’s how to save Teams chat using this:
- Sign in to the Microsoft Purview portal with the required permissions.
- Create or open an eDiscovery case.
- Create a search for the required Teams content.
- Select the appropriate data sources.
- Apply filters such as users, keywords, or date ranges.
- Review the returned Teams conversations.
- Add the required content to a review set.
- Select the export option.
- Download the resulting export package.
Microsoft Purview can export Teams content in formats that are useful for review. Teams data can appear as IM or Conversations in the eDiscovery export, including PST files that can be opened in Outlook.
This makes eDiscovery useful when you need to export chat from Microsoft Teams for legal purposes.
However, it can be too complicated for users who simply want to save Microsoft Teams chat for personal reference. So those can consider the next option.
#Method 3. How to Export Microsoft Teams Chat Via Microsoft Teams Export APIs
If you are wondering how to backup Microsoft Teams chat programmatically, Microsoft’s Teams Export APIs are an answer.
Microsoft states that the Teams Export APIs support:
- 1:1 chats
- Group chats
- Meeting chats
- Channel messages
They can also be used to export messages based on date ranges and automate recurring extraction processes.
Microsoft Graph also provides APIs for retrieving Teams chat messages. For example, the getAllMessages API can retrieve messages from all chats in which a user participates, including one-on-one, group, and meeting chats.
However, API-based exporting requires:
- Technical knowledge
- Application permissions
- Authentication
- Appropriate Microsoft 365 licensing or access
- Microsoft’s documentation should be checked for the current requirements
The general process for an API-based export is:
- Register an app in Microsoft Entra ID.
- Set the required Microsoft Graph permissions.
- Authenticate the app.
- Select the required users, teams, channels, or chats.
- Use the Microsoft Graph or Teams Export API to get messages.
- Apply date or other filters if needed.
- Save the exported message data, usually as JSON.
This approach is useful for those who want to automate this process. It can also be useful when an organization wants to backup Microsoft Teams chat history regularly rather than perform a one-time manual export.
Remember, this process needs technical knowledge and carries the risk of data loss. So, be prepared for unexpected data loss while using this technique.
#Method 4. Can you Export Microsoft Teams Chat Automatically?
So, the methods we discussed can be manual and complex. Many users avoid them because they require technical steps and may not provide a simple way to back up Teams chats.
For those who want a straightforward solution to back up Microsoft Teams chats, channels, and files can opt for SysTools Teams Backup. It can backup you Microsoft Teams chats in one go. Moreover, you can back up data specifically using its Date Filter option if you don’t want to export the entire account.
The first backup can take hours, but after that you can back up data in minutes, with its Delta Backup option, as it will save only newly arrived data, not old data. This saves time and storage.
This is a license-based tool, so you can choose the number of licenses based on your team size. You can purchase anywhere from 5 to Unlimited licenses, depending on your needs.
Here are the steps which I followed to export Microsoft Teams chat:
Step 1. Open the software, and you’ll see Microsoft 365 & JSON are already selected.
Step 2. Now, you have to select “Users” & “Teams.”
Step 3. Afterwards, provide the Microsoft 365 Admin credentials and validate them.
Step 4. Now, click on the “Backup Folder Path” and select the destination folder where you want to save the resultant Teams chat.
Step 5. Hit the Start Backup button to initiate the Microsoft Teams chat backup.
This approach can be especially convenient when you want to export chat from Microsoft Teams without manual export or building an API-based solution.
How to Backup Microsoft Teams Chat History?
If your objective is long-term protection rather than a one-time export, you may specifically be asking how to backup Microsoft Teams chat history.
Before creating a backup, decide:
- Which users should be included?
- Need 1:1 chats?
- Need group chats?
- Need meeting chats?
- Need channel messages?
- Need attachments?
- What date range should be included?
- Where should the backup be stored?
- How frequently should backups run?
- How will the backup be restored or reviewed?
Final Thoughts
Knowing how to export Microsoft Teams chat is important when Teams conversations contain valuable business or personal information. The best method depends on what you actually need to accomplish.