How to delete Messages and Conversations on MacBook

Unlike the Windows operating system the macOS allows you to store your conversation on your MacBook whether you have done it in your iPhone or iPad. Apple uses the iMessage’s system that keeps all the devices interlinked with each other. Similarly, if you are sending some message to the person that does not use the iMessage system then it will automatically send the message through SMS and will also save the conversation.

However, saving conversations can eat up your major part of space on your MacBook as it might include attachments as well. There are a number of ways by which you can delete the messages and conversations from your MacBook, but we have explained only the convenient ones in detail.

Deleting messages and conversations from your MacBook

Deleting the old and unnecessary messages and conversations can free up some of the space in your MacBook that you can utilize for better purposes. Similarly, there are different methods for deleting the conversation and messages, so we have described them separately in subsequent paragraphs.

There is another thing that you should remember that deleting the messages and conversation just removes it from your chat box, but they are still present in your MacBook, so you need to permanently delete them. We have described how you permanently remove the messages and conversation from your MacBook in this guide.

Deleting a message from your MacBook

To delete a message from a conversation first open your messaging application and then click on the contact, whose message you want to delete. When you click on the respective contact its conversation will open in the right side from there right click on the message you want to delete a list of options will open. One of the options will be the delete option click on it to delete the respective message so this is how you can delete a message from your MacBook.

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Deleting a conversation from your MacBook

Now let’s see how you can delete the whole conversation from your MacBook. Right click on the contact whose conversation you want to delete in your message application of your MacBook. As a result, a list of options will pop-up and from there click on the delete conversation option and next a dialogue box will open confirming that if you want to delete the conversation. Next click on the delete conversation option in the pop-up to remove the conversation of that respective contact.

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Or you can simply click on the cross icon on the contact card as shown in the image below:

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Alternative way for deleting the conversation from your MacBook

You can also delete the conversation from your MacBook by first clicking on the contact whose conversation you want to delete and then click on the clear transcript option by clicking on the edit menu present at the top menu bar. Next press the clear option on the dialogue box that popped up as the result of clicking on the clear transcript option.

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Deleting the messages permanently from your MacBook

The above two ways only remove your messages and conversations from the chat only but still remain in the system. So, in order to delete them permanently you have to follow the following steps one by one:

Step1: On the “Finder” menu, click on the “Go” option and then “Go to Folder…” or simply use shortcut key “Shift Cmd”:

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A dialog box will open type “~/Library/Messages”, click on “Go” button:

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It will open the directory where all your messages are saved.

Step2: Once the directory is opened find the files named “chat.db, chat.db-wal, chat.db-shm” or some other files just drag them to the trash can and then delete all the files from the trash can. This way you have got rid of all the messages that were saved in your MacBook permanently.

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Alternative way to permanently delete the messages and conversations from your MacBook

To remove the messages and the conversation permanently the quick way is that you have to open the terminal of your MacBook and write the following command and press enter:

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Conclusion

Saving the old conversations can eat up the space of your MacBook and also sometimes the conversation you did through your iPhone is also saved in your MacBook thus using the space of both devices. So, to free up some space on your MacBook these messages and conversations need to be deleted. We have some of the quick and easy ways that you can follow to get rid of the piled up messages and conversations.