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Print or save Instagram messages as a PDF

Instagram has no print button for DMs. You can download your messages from Instagram, but the file is hard to read. Upload it here and get a clean PDF of the conversation.

The finished PDF, made from an invented example

This is the real output of this tool, made from an invented example by the same code that makes yours. The people and details in it are fictional.

Messages 30People 2From 13 Jan 2026To 26 Jan 2026Pages ~2Price $7
Page 1 of the sample PDFPage 2 of the sample PDFPage 3 of the sample PDF
Open the whole sample PDF (3 pages)
From $7 · one payment, no account
Free preview first · files deleted within 7 days

How it works.

There is one specific defect in Instagram's JSON export that everything else follows from: the text is written as UTF-8 bytes escaped as if they were Latin-1. So emoji and accented names arrive as nonsense like José. A lot of converters pass that straight through. Undoing it is most of the work here.

Step 1

Ask Instagram for your data

In Instagram, go to Settings, then Accounts Center or Meta Account, Your information and permissions, Export your information, Create export, Export to device. When it asks for a format, choose JSON rather than HTML. Meta says it can take up to 30 days, and once it is ready you have 4 days to download it.

Step 2

Upload the zip

Drop the whole zip here without unpacking it. Each conversation has its own folder of message files, so the longest one is picked and you are told how many others were in there.

Step 3

Check the names read properly, then download

The preview is where you confirm the accented names and emoji came out right. The PDF has the conversation with dates and senders, and photos if you add them.

Four ways to print it.

Every sample below is page one of a real PDF, made from the same sample as the one above by the same code that makes your file. Pick a style when you preview, and change it as often as you like.

A page of the sample transcript in the Instagram look style
Instagram lookRound bubbles, purple to blue for one side and grey for the other, like Instagram direct messages.
A page of the sample transcript in the Clean document style
Clean documentPlain and readable, made for paper. The safe choice if you are not sure.
A page of the sample transcript in the Formal / legal style
Formal / legalNumbered entries and full timestamps, for a hearing or a claim. No colour, so it photocopies.
A page of the sample transcript in the Book style
BookSet like a printed book, for binding or keeping. Warm paper, wide margins.

Getting your messages from Instagram

  1. In Instagram, open Settings, then Accounts Center, then Your information and permissions.
  2. Choose Export your information, then Create export, then Export to device.
  3. Pick JSON as the format, not HTML. Choose messages and the date range you want.
  4. Wait for Instagram to say the file is ready. Meta says it can take a while, and the download link expires after a few days, so download it promptly.
  5. Upload the zip here without unpacking it.

The problem this fixes

Instagram's JSON export writes emoji and accented names as broken characters, so a name like Jose with an accent arrives as nonsense. This undoes that, puts each conversation in date order, and lays it out with names and dates. If the export holds many conversations, the longest is chosen and you are told how many others were there.

Instagram DMs to PDF, the full tool page

Trust, with receipts.

No invented review scores, no badges, no “trusted by thousands”. Here is what is actually true, and you can check every line of it.

  • You see the result before you payUpload, look at your own parsed file, then decide. No account, no card, no email required to get that far.
  • Files are deleted within 7 daysYour upload, anything extracted from it, and the finished download. Automatically, on a schedule.
  • A person answers the emailOne Time Tool is a small independent studio in Johannesburg, South Africa. Questions go to hello@onetimetool.com and a person replies, not a bot.
  • Your card never touches this siteCheckout is hosted by Dodo Payments. We never see your card number.
  • One payment, for this one jobThere is no subscription, no plan and nothing to cancel. Depending on where you are, checkout may show the price in your currency and add local VAT or sales tax.
  • 7-day money backIf the output is not what you needed, email us and we refund it. No form to fill in.

Questions, answered.

Can I print Instagram DMs from the app?
No. The app has no print option for messages.
Will photos be included?
Photos in the export can be included as an optional extra, priced in the preview.
Can I use it to save DMs before deleting my account?
Yes. Export first, keep the zip, and make the PDF before you delete.
Is it private?
The file is processed automatically and deleted within 7 days.