Two Easy Ways to Delete Your Telegram Account [2023]

In Summary

Telegram is one of the popular instant messaging apps with a wide range of features.
Lately, Telegram has been subject to various security and privacy concerns, causing several users to quit Telegram and delete their accounts.
If this concerns you—or you don’t use Telegram any longer—it’s best to delete your Telegram account and all its related data.

Telegram is a cross-platform instant messaging service known for features like channels, end-to-end encrypted VoIP calls, secret chats, and file sharing, among others. However, in recent years, these features, which were supposed to make the platform more useful, have been exploited for nefarious purposes.

delete telegram account — IMAGE: Rubaitul Azad (Unsplash)

This led several users to quit Telegram and delete their accounts altogether. But as it turns out, there isn’t a straightforward process to delete your Telegram account.

So, if you, too, have been considering deleting your Telegram account because of security concerns—or any other reason—here’s a guide with instructions to help you delete your Telegram account.

Table of Contents

How to Delete Your Telegram Account Automatically

If you’ve been a Telegram user for some time, you’d be aware that Telegram lets you delete your account automatically via its mobile app.

Albeit deleting your Telegram account with this method won’t delete your account instantaneous, this method still works well for those who want their account to automatically get deleted when it’s not in use—or when they are away—beyond the period of inactivity.

So if you’re not in a hurry to delete your Telegram account and prefer to follow the process on your mobile device, follow the instructions in the sections below.

Delete Telegram Account on an Android Device:

Open the Telegram account on your Android.
Tap on the hamburger menu icon in the top-left corner and select Settings.
Select Privacy and Security.
Tap on the If away for option under Delete my account and select the time period after which your Telegram account will be deleted if you don’t use it.

Related Read: How to Delete Instagram Account

Delete Telegram Account on an iOS Device:

Open the Telegram app on your iPhone.
Click the Settings tab and select Privacy and Security.
Tap the If Away For option under AUTOMATICALLY DELETE MY ACCOUNT.
Select a time to set the inactivity period, after which your Telegram account gets deleted.

For the inactivity period (iOS)/account self-destructs period (Android), you can choose from 1 month, 3 months, 6 months, and 12 months. If you want to delete your account at the earliest, select a shorter period of time, like a one-month period, as your inactivity time.

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How to Delete Your Telegram Account Permanently

Although setting an inactivity period on your Telegram account to delete it automatically will do the job, it won’t delete your account immediately. Not to mention, if you log back into your account before the inactivity period expires, it will prevent your account from being deleted.

To avoid this—and delete your Telegram account immediately—what you can instead do is use Telegram’s Authorization website to perform your account deletion. The Authorization website lets you manage apps using the Telegram API as well as delete your Telegram account.

Follow the steps below to delete your Telegram account via Telegram’s Authorization website permanently:

Head over to Telegram’s Authorization website on your desktop using a browser.
Enter your phone number in the international format (i.e. with the country code), linked to the Telegram account that you want to delete, in the phone number field.
Hit Next. Telegram will now send you a confirmation code to your Telegram app.
Open the Telegram app on your Android or iPhone and tap the conversation with Telegram.
In this chat, you will see a confirmation code. Copy it.
Go back to the Telegram website and enter the confirmation code you just copied.
Click Sign In to sign in to your account.
On the next page, click on the Delete account option under Your Telegram Core.
Telegram will prompt you if you’re sure about deleting your account. You can also give a reason for account deletion in the Why are you leaving box?.
Hit Delete My Account.
When prompted for confirmation again via a pop-up message, tap Yes, delete my account, to proceed.

Your Telegram account will now be deleted as soon as you do that. And moving forward, you won’t be able to access any of your conversations/personal chats on the app even after you log back in.

Also Read: How to Delete Apps on iPhone/iPad

Successfully Deleting Your Telegram Account and All Its Data

Using any of the two methods above, you should be able to delete your account on Telegram successfully.

If you plan on not using your Telegram account anymore and don’t mind sitting on it to delete itself within a few days, setting an inactivity period would work best for you. That way, if you change your plan midway and decide to continue using your account, you can log in to stop the deletion. However, if you want your Telegram account to be deleted instantaneously, your best bet is to delete it from the Authorization website yourself.

With either method, when you delete your Telegram account, Telegram says it deletes all of your entire chat history and related data from its servers. Plus, all your channels and conversations are deleted, as well. In addition, if you’re a group admin, Telegram will automatically choose a random member in that group as the new admin moving forward.

Moreover, you also can’t sign up for a new Telegram account with the same phone number for at least the next 2 months post-deletion.