WhatsApp for Android backups cannot be saved to the Google Drive cloud storage service unlimited how did it even happen. The measure was announced by Google and started to be implemented in the beta version of the instant messaging client.

As you know, WhatsApp for Android has a backup feature that allows you to save messages and media files to Google Drive. A secure way to store content that can be extended with end-to-end encryption and can also include video backup.

Until now, storage has been free and unlimited. This means that the space used was not counted in Google Drive for commercial accounts or for free accounts with 15 GB. This is exactly what will change, for now in the beta version, but eventually it will reach all versions in the first half of 2024, as you can read in the announcement:

“If you decide to back up your WhatsApp chats on your Android device in the coming months, Your backup will start counting towards your Google Account storage limit. If you exceed your storage limit, you will need to free up space on your Google Account to restore your backup.”.

Users will receive a notification 30 days before the implementation of this measure on their terminal. Those who have used up their free Google Drive storage (15GB) will need to purchase additional storage or upgrade to a business account with more space. You can also do a minimal backup, discard videos, images and multimedia in general, which is what takes up the most space, saving chats only.

It must be said that using Google Drive for WhatsApp backups for Android is convenient, but completely optional and copies can alternatively be stored in the device’s internal storage.

Additionally, WhatsApp introduced another way to backup and restore chats on new smartphones without the need for Google Drive. This is done through a live streaming feature that allows users to transfer chats to another device over a Wi-Fi connection if the devices are on the same network.