Open exported WhatsApp TXT or ZIP chats locally, match included media, search and filter messages, redact review copies, and export PDF, HTML, CSV, JSON, TXT, or a checksum record ZIP.
Use WhatsApp’s Export chat output, not an encrypted backup database. ZIP media is preflighted before extraction.
WhatsApp exports are useful records, but the raw TXT can be difficult to search, media filenames can be separated from the conversation, and a simple TXT-to-PDF conversion hides parsing ambiguity. This viewer reads the export locally, audits date-format and media evidence, gives large chats a bounded searchable timeline, and creates clearly labeled review copies without changing the source.
OpenFileTools parses the selected transcript in browser memory, preflights ZIP central-directory size and path safety before extraction, infers only unambiguous date order, matches media by exact exported filename, renders a bounded searchable timeline, applies optional redaction only to generated copies, and creates local PDF/HTML/CSV/JSON/TXT or a ZIP containing the original transcript, derived exports, media index, optional matched media, README, and SHA-256 manifest.
| Property | Behavior |
|---|---|
| Processing | Browser local; no chat or media upload |
| Inputs | One exported WhatsApp ZIP, or one TXT plus related media files |
| Parser ceiling | 40 MB transcript / 400,000 messages |
| ZIP preflight | 220 MB compressed / 6,000 entries / 650 MB expanded |
| Outputs | PDF (up to 25,000 messages), HTML, CSV, JSON, TXT, media-index CSV, record ZIP + SHA-256 manifest |
WhatsApp documents how to export a chat, but the generated text can vary by platform, locale, date punctuation, clock format, and attachment marker. The viewer recognizes common Android and iPhone wrappers and keeps the original raw timestamp beside any interpreted date.
When a message contains an attachment filename, OpenFileTools compares that filename with the selected ZIP or media files. One exact basename match is linked; zero matches remain missing; repeated filenames remain ambiguous. The viewer never picks one of several same-name files arbitrarily.
Search, participant filters, date limits, per-message exclusion, participant anonymization, and phone-number masking operate on generated copies. The source transcript remains unchanged. The record ZIP can preserve the original transcript alongside derived exports so the difference stays explicit.
No. Exported text is a readable sharing format, not a restorable WhatsApp backup.
No. A text export can be copied or edited. The tool structures the selected bytes but does not authenticate accounts, devices, delivery receipts, or server history.
The reference is marked ambiguous. OpenFileTools does not attach one arbitrarily.
The bundled PDF font has finite glyph coverage. HTML, JSON, and TXT preserve original Unicode; unsupported PDF glyphs are visibly replaced rather than dropped.