Deleting messages may be an easy way to free up some memory space on your iPhone, but if you ever wanted to retrieve them you might not know exactly how.

Additionally, if you accidentally deleted some text messages that you meant to keep then there are ways to solve it.

Usually, it's best to try this retrieval process within a month of messages being deleted, and here are the ways you can do it.

3 ways to recover deleted iPhone messages

Easy way to retrieve them with iOS 16 

As part of the latest iOS 16 operating system update, you'll be able to recover all text messages within one month of deletion.

York Press: As part of the latest update messages can be retrieved within a month of deletionAs part of the latest update messages can be retrieved within a month of deletion (Image: PA)

To do this all you have to do is go to Messages, then go on Edit in the top left-hand corner, and they'll then be an option for 'Show Recently Deleted'.

After that, there will be a list of deleted messages you can pick to retrieve.

Recover with iCloud backup

If your phone is set to backup to iCloud then you may well be able to recover some messages through a recent backup.

BusinessInsider said on this: "This will revert your iPhone back to the point when you made that backup, meaning that while it can help you recover the text message, you might lose some other data."

This process does involve resetting your iPhone so be careful that you don't lose any data/photos you want to keep.

To do this go into Settings, click your name at the top, select iCloud and make sure that Messages are turned on in the list of apps.

After that tap iCloud backup and make sure your phone has been recently backed up.

Go back to the main Settings app menu and select General, then scroll down and select either Reset or Transfer or Reset iPhone, depending on what iOS version you have.

Tap Erase All Content and Settings, then confirm that it's what you want to do.

York Press: iPhones messages could potentially be recovered using a backupiPhones messages could potentially be recovered using a backup (Image: PA)

Following your iPhone resetting to factory conditions go through the first few welcome processes, and on the Apps & Data screen, choose Restore from iCloud Backup.

Finally, sign into iCloud to access your backups, then choose the last backup before you deleted the text messages you want to recover.

Use iTunes or Finder

If you backed up your iPhone onto a Mac or PC instead of iCloud, you can try restoring your iPhone with that backup instead.

If you have a Mac then you'll use the Finder tool, and if you are on Windows then you'll use the iTunes tool.

To do this you'll need to connect your iPhone to your computer and open iTunes or Finder, if they don't pop up automatically. 

In iTunes, click on the phone icon at the top of the screen and choose Summary from the menu on the left.

Meanwhile, on Finder click your phone's name under Locations.

From there click Restore Backup and your old texts will hopefully reappear on your phone.

If they don't appear then your backup didn't include these texts.