You thought convincing your friends to swap WhatsApp for Telegram or Signal would be the hardest thing about switching messaging apps. But then you realized you’d lose your precious sticker collection.
Only you don’t have to. Whether you walk on the iOS or Android side of the street, you can move all of your stickers from WhatsApp to Telegram or Signal. It’s slightly unintuitive, and will probably take a while if you have an iPhone, but at least you won’t have to throw years of sticker-collecting out the proverbial window. And then you can go ahead and delete WhatsApp without looking back.
How to export WhatsApp stickers to Telegram
On an Android phone
1. From the Files app, scroll down to Internal storage and follow this path: Android > Media > com.whatsapp > WhatsApp > Media > WhatsApp Stickers. Don’t be surprised if you find a large number of WebP files in that folder—it holds your personal collection of stickers and every single one you’ve ever received. Even the bad ones.
- Note: We tried this path on a Pixel 7 Pro, but there’s a lot of variation among Android phones, so the steps on your device might be slightly different depending on its manufacturer.
2. Select the stickers you want to export. If you want to trim the fat and grab only the best of the best, long-press one file to activate selection mode and tap on the rest of the files you want to export. If you think you can leave nothing behind, tap the three dots in the top right corner of your screen to Select all.
3. Once you’re done, hit the three dots again, tap Move to, and select an easily accessible folder on your phone—we moved our stickers to the Downloads folder.
- Note: If you have a large number of stickers, it might be easier to move them to your laptop and import them to Telegram using the platform’s desktop client. To do that, you can use Android’s Nearby feature or transfer the files to your computer using a USB cable. You can also back up your stickers to a cloud service (like iCloud or Google Drive) that you can easily access through a web browser. Just remember that you’ll have to download them to a local folder on your computer before uploading them to Telegram.
[Related: Make a Memoji that actually looks like you]
4. To import your stickers into Telegram, you’ll be using the app’s official sticker bot. On the app, use the search feature (the magnifying glass in the upper right corner of the screen) to summon it.
5. Type /newpack into the message field and follow the instructions.
6. Upload your stickers as files. Tap the paper clip icon on the right of the message field and choose File. Use your device’s file explorer to get to the folder where you saved your stickers and send them to the bot—you can do this one by one or in bulk.
7. The sticker bot will ask you for one or two emojis that best describe your sticker. This will help it know what the sticker is about so it can recommend it when you’re messaging your friends.
- Note: If you upload multiple stickers, you’ll only have to provide an emoji for the first one. This is less of a hassle, but it’ll hinder Telegram’s ability to provide accurate sticker recommendations in the future.
8. When you’re done, type /publish. Telegram’s sticker bot will ask you to give a unique short name to your pack, which will serve to create a URL you can share with your contacts so they can also use your stickers.
9. Tap the URL and on the next screen finish by hitting Add stickers. They will be easily accessible every time you tap the sticker icon to the left of the message field.
On an iPhone
You can’t transfer WhatsApp stickers anywhere using an iPhone, but you can use WhatsApp’s web platform and Telegram’s sticker bot to transfer stickers from your computer. It’s easy, but might take a while.
1. Open WhatsApp web in your browser and find a sticker you like in a chat. Right-click on it and choose Save image as to store the sticker as a WebP file. Repeat this step to save as many stickers as you want.
- Note: You won’t get the option to save the image on WhatsApp’s desktop client, so make sure you use the web interface on your browser.
[Related: Emojis and reaction GIFs make Slack better. Here’s how to create them.]
2. Open Telegram in your browser and use the search feature in the left corner of your screen to summon the app’s official sticker bot.
3. Type /newpack into the message field and follow the instructions.
4. Upload your stickers as files. Tap the paper clip icon on the right of the message field and choose File. Use your device’s file explorer to get to the folder where you saved your stickers and send them to the bot—you can do this one by one or in bulk.
5. The sticker bot will ask you for one or two emojis that best describe your sticker. This will help it know what it’s about so that it can then recommend it to you when you’re messaging your friends.
- Note: If you upload multiple stickers, you’ll only have to provide an emoji for the first one. This is less of a hassle, but it’ll hinder Telegram’s ability to provide accurate sticker recommendations in the future.
6. When you’re done, type /publish. Telegram’s sticker bot will ask you to give a unique short name to your pack, which will serve to create a URL you can share with your contacts so they can also use your stickers.
7. Tap the URL, and finish on the next screen by hitting Add stickers. They will be easily accessible every time you tap the sticker icon to the left of the message field.
How to export WhatsApp stickers to Signal
Good news: Transferring WhatsApp stickers to Signal is a lot easier than moving them to Telegram. The key is using Signal’s desktop app.
First, export your WhatsApp stickers as WebP files. How you do this will depend on your phone’s operating system. Click to skip directly to the steps for iPhone, or continue for the Android how-to:
On an Android phone
1. From the Files app, scroll down to Internal storage and follow this path: Android > Media > com.whatsapp > WhatsApp > Media > WhatsApp Stickers. There you’ll find WebP files with your personal collection of stickers and every single one you’ve ever received. Even the bad ones.
- Note: We tried this path on a Pixel 7 Pro, but there’s a lot of variation among Android phones, so the steps on your device might be slightly different depending on its manufacturer.
2. Select the stickers you want to export. If you want to trim the fat and grab only the best of the best, long-press one file to activate selection mode and tap on the rest of the files you want to export. If you think you can leave nothing behind, tap the three dots in the top right corner of your screen to Select all.
3. Once you’re done, you’ll need to transfer the files to your computer. You have three options:
- Use Nearby share: Hit the Nearby icon to the left of the trash can. It looks like two lines intertwined. If you need help, follow our step-by-step guide on how to use Nearby Share on your PC.
- Transfer files via USB: You can connect your Android phone to a computer with a USB cable. Whether you own a Mac or a PC, we have a guide with specific instructions you can follow. The path to find your stickers is the same as in Step 1 above.
- Back up to the cloud: Back up your stickers to a cloud service, like iCloud or Google Drive, that you can later access through a web browser. Then download the stickers to a local folder.
4. Continue below with uploading your stickers to Signal.
On an iPhone
1. Open WhatsApp web in your browser and find a sticker you like in a chat. Right-click on it and choose Save image as to store the sticker as a WebP file. Repeat this step to save as many stickers as you want.
- Note: You won’t get the option to save the image on WhatsApp’s desktop client, so make sure you use the web interface on your browser.
2. Continue below.
Upload your stickers to Signal
Once your stickers are saved to your computer, you can upload them to Signal.
1. Open the Signal desktop app, go to File, and click Create/upload sticker pack.
2. Click the plus sign to open your computer’s file explorer or drag and drop your stickers. The app will show you thumbnails of what you’ve uploaded—click the X in the upper right corner of each sticker to remove it, or click the plus sign at the end of the selection to add more. Finish by hitting Next.
3. Click the emoji icon in the upper right corner of each thumbnail to associate an emoji with your sticker. Signal will use this as a hint to know what your sticker is and recommend it to you when you’re messaging your friends. Click Next when you’re done.
4. Give your sticker pack a title, an author name, and a cover image. This will help identify your stickers if you want to share them later.
5. Hit Next and confirm your choice in the next dialogue box by clicking Upload. Your stickers will automatically upload to Signal and you’ll be able to immediately use them in a chat.
To manage your sticker packs, go to Signal on mobile or the web, open any chat, click or tap the sticker icon, and then hit the plus sign. You should see your sticker icons under Installed, and you’ll be able to remove them by clicking Uninstall on desktop and web, or the X on mobile.
This story has been updated. It was originally published in 2021.
