Which cloud service does WhatsApp use for Android chat backups?

WhatsApp uses Google Drive for chat backups on Android devices.

In WhatsApp for Android, users can back up chat history and media to a Google Account through Google Drive. The backup can be scheduled daily, weekly, or monthly, or started manually from WhatsApp’s Chat Backup settings. During setup or restoration, the same phone number and Google Account are generally required to find the stored backup.

This answer is platform-specific. WhatsApp uses iCloud for its standard cloud chat backups on iPhone, which is why iCloud is a tempting but incorrect option for an Android-focused question. Dropbox and OneDrive are not WhatsApp’s built-in Android backup services.

Google Drive backups are not ordinary files that can be opened and browsed like documents or photos. They are managed through WhatsApp’s backup and restore process, and WhatsApp backups have also gained end-to-end encryption options. Android phones may additionally retain local backup files, but those local copies do not change Google Drive’s role as the Android cloud-backup service.