For one reason or another, you may want to delete a Telegram account.
I will guide you through the steps to delete Telegram account and provide you with some important information to keep in mind before you proceed with the deletion process.
Deleting a Telegram account can be done in 3 major ways;
1. Either automatically using the Telegram Self-Destruct Feature on your App or
2. Directly via the Telegram Web Portal.
3. You can also delete your account from a particular device remotely.
We’ll be looking at each of these in detail, let’s dive right in.
way 1: How to Delete Telegram Account Automatically
By default, Telegram has a self-destruct feature that erases your account if it’s inactive for six months.
However, they also give you the option to edit this setting and adjust how long Telegram should wait before deleting your profile/account.
To set this up, go to the Telegram Menu button, tap on the top left (☰) then go to Settings > Devices > Automatically terminate old sessions> If inactive for, here you can choose to erase your account after 1 week, 3 months or 1 year of inactivity.
This way, if you leave your account unused or inactive for that set amount of time, it will be automatically deleted from the Telegram servers.
way 2: Delete a Telegram Account via Telegram Web Portal
Since Telegram does not provide you with the option to delete your account in real-time, directly from your app, you can only delete your account from the dedicated Telegram web portal, that is; Telegram Deactivation page.
You can access this using a web browser on your PC or mobile phone (android or iOS).
To do this, follow the steps below:
Step 1: Log into the Telegram Web Portal to delete Telegram account
Open up the Telegram web portal https://my.telegram.org/auth.
Here, enter the phone number associated with your Telegram account. Make sure to add the country code before the number and then press Next.
Step 2: Enter your Confirmation Code
After you have entered your phone number, a confirmation (web login) code will be sent to your Telegram inbox, enter that code and click Sign in.
Note: This confirmation code will be sent to you via Telegram, not regular SMS, so to access it you will need to make sure you still have access to your Telegram account and your chats.
Step 3: Delete your telegram account
On the next page you’ll be given 3 options, click the Delete account option
Tip: In the “Why are you leaving box”, you have the option to give your reason for leaving the Telegram service, you can either fill it out or leave it blank, that’s up to you.
Otherwise, go ahead and click the Delete My Account button.
When you do this, a new popup will appear asking you to confirm the deletion of your account.
If you happen to change your mind or feel like you still need access to your Telegram account, you can press the green “Nope, I’ll give it another try” button.
But if you’re sure about deleting your account then click the red Delete my account option.
In the next window, you’ll get a confirmation that your Telegram account was successfully deleted, and now you can go ahead and uninstall the app from your device.
Also read: How can Deleted Telegram Account be Traced
way 3: Delete a Telegram Account from Specific Devices Remotely
Telegram gives you the option to delete your account remotely.
In case where you have lost your mobile number or phone or any other device that you have been using to access your Telegram, and maybe you fear someone else might be accessing your account.
To do this;
Go to the Telegram Menu on the top left (☰) > Settings > Devices, under Active sessions/devices, you can see which devices have your Telegram account active on them.
Here, you can either use the Terminate all other sessions option to remove Telegram from any other devices apart from the one you are currently using.
Alternatively, you can also select any active session of your choice and terminate it individually.
Note: Telegram requires the new session to have been active for at least 24 hours on a new device to deactivate any old sessions.
So if maybe your device was stolen and you have just installed Telegram on your new mobile device, you would have to wait 24 hours after logging in on your new device, to be able to deactivate or delete your account from the other device(s).
Why Delete Telegram Account
Just like other social media platforms, ie Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp and Twitter/X, Telegram has its downsides, but there are plenty of other reasons why one may want to delete account on Telegram, including:
- If your friends are shifting
When the people you know are using some other messaging app, it’s obvious you might want to as well; in order to effortlessly keep in touch with them. This is one of the most common reasons for people changing their messaging apps.
- Maybe you simply want to change to another messaging app
One of the simplest reasons could be that you have found another app that best suits your need and interest and you want to switch from Telegram to that app.
- Its privacy policies bother you
Telegram has an open policy, therefore it doesn’t use end-to-end encryption. It also only offers security to secret chats, not all chats.
Also read: Telegram Hacked? Here is how to know and how to get it back
Also worth noting is that there are claims that the Telegram platform is a place for many illegal activities and that it hosts channels that support free and illegal downloads.
Whether these claims are true or not, they might bother you enough to want to change your messaging platform.
what to know Before You Delete Telegram Account
Here are a few pointers for you to note before proceeding to delete Telegram account:
- Once you delete your Telegram account, you will no longer be able to access it or any of your chat messages, contact list, groups, secret chats, group channels, media, etc, so make sure you check your chats and account for important information you might need and save it.
You might also want to consider informing your contacts that you are deleting your account. - Deleting your Telegram account is permanent, it can not be undone. Even if you sign up for Telegram again, all your messages, channels and contact lists from your previous account will not be restored.
- If you only uninstall Telegram, the app will be removed from your device, but your account will remain accessible once you reinstall the app.
How to Export Telegram Data Before Deleting Account
Before deleting your telegram account, you may want to export chat history or your data in case you have built channels and groups.
Channels and groups continue functioning normally even if your account is deleted. If you have an admin, that person will retain control of the groups and channels.
But if you were the group or channel admin, then Telegram will assign the admin privilege to a random active member hence becoming a new admin.
Note that you won’t be able to create a new Telegram account with the same number for at least a few days. And of course, you can’t revive the account.
To export all your chats, contacts, and other data before you move forward with the Telegram account deletion, you have to use Telegram Desktop, you can’t do it any other way.
Here’s how you can export your data in a few steps:
Use this link to download the Telegram desktop app: https://desktop.telegram.org/, then follow through the steps to install it.
Launch the app then click the three horizontal lines at the top left corner (☰). Go to Settings > Advanced
Under Advanced settings, scroll down and click on Export Telegram Data, then click the Export button.
After this, you’ll receive a confirmation message on your telegram, click Allow, and then all you have to do is wait till Telegram exports all your data.
Once this is done, then you are ready to delete the Telegram account.
Telegram Delete Account FAQ
How do you know if one of your contacts deleted their Telegram account?
When someone in your contact list deletes their Telegram account, you simply will not see them in your contact list.
If you had a conversation with them before, The user would be shown in your chat list as “Deleted Account”, but you will still be able to see past conversations (chat history).
Can you recover your data once your Telegram account is deleted?
Unfortunately, no you can not. After deleting your account from Telegram you won’t be able to retrieve any type of data like chat history, groups, contacts, etc. they will be deleted forever.
If you wish to use Telegram again you have to create a new account with the phone number you were using before.
Will my contacts be notified if I delete my Telegram account?
No, your contacts will not be notified if you delete your Telegram account.
Your chat will still show in their messages and they will still be able to view the content, but instead of your name, the chat will only appear as “Deleted Account”.
Additionally, they won’t be able to send any more messages to your contact, they will only have the option to “Delete this chat”
What happens to my Telegram groups when I delete my account?
If you are the only administrator of a group, the group will be deleted along with your account. If there are other administrators in the group, they will become the new owners of the group and can continue to manage it.
Do I need to uninstall the app after I delete account Telegram?
No, you don’t need to uninstall the Telegram app after deleting your account. However, if you no longer wish to use the app, you can uninstall it from your device.
In Conclusion
I hope this guide has been helpful for you if you are looking for how to delete a Telegram account or deactivate Telegram, either permanently or even just delete it remotely from selected active devices.
Remember, before you delete Telegram account, you must have a clear understanding of the consequences or what deleting the account really means..
