How to Message Yourself on Telegram (iPhone, Desktop and Web)

To message yourself on Telegram, open Saved Messages. It is a chat with just you in it, built into every Telegram account. Type a note, paste a link or attach a file, then tap Send. It syncs to every device where you use Telegram.

Below are the exact steps for each device, a few ways to get more out of Saved Messages, and where it falls short if you use it as your notes app.

How to message yourself on Telegram on iPhone or iPad

1. Open Telegram.
2. Tap Settings at the bottom of the screen.
3. Tap Saved Messages.
4. Type your note, or tap the paperclip to attach a photo, file or other item.
5. Tap Send.

You can also type “Saved Messages” into the search field at the top of your chat list and tap the result.

How to message yourself on Telegram Desktop (Mac or Windows)

1. Open Telegram Desktop or Telegram for macOS.
2. Click the search field at the top of your chat list.
3. Type “Saved Messages” and click the result.
4. Type your note, or drag a file into the chat.
5. Press Enter, or Return on a Mac, to send.

In Telegram Desktop, Ctrl+0 (Cmd+0 on a Mac) opens Saved Messages.

How to message yourself on Telegram Web

1. Go to web.telegram.org and log in.
2. Click the search field at the top of your chat list.
3. Type “Saved Messages” and click the result.
4. Type your note and send it.

How to forward a message to yourself

Saved Messages also works as a bookmark folder for things other people send you.

1. Press and hold the message. On desktop, right-click it.
2. Choose Forward.
3. Pick Saved Messages. It always sits at the top of the forwarding list.

Each forwarded message keeps a link back to where it came from, so you can jump to the original chat later. In channels, you can also hold the share arrow and drag your finger onto Saved Messages to forward a post in one move.

Tips to get more out of Saved Messages

• Pin the chat. Pin Saved Messages to the top of your chat list so it is always one tap away.
• Pin important notes. You can pin several messages inside Saved Messages. Tap the bar at the top of the chat to jump between them.
• Set reminders. In Saved Messages, press and hold Send (right-click it on desktop) and choose Set a Reminder. Telegram notifies you at the time you pick.
• Switch views. Tap the title in Saved Messages to switch between View as Messages and View as Chats. View as Chats groups forwarded messages by the chat they came from, and you can pin those groups.
• Search by type. Use the search icon in the chat, or open the chat’s shared media to browse photos, files and links on their own.
• Send any kind of content. Text, photos, videos, files, voice messages, links and polls all work.
• Add tags (Premium). Telegram Premium users can tag saved messages with emoji, give tags names, and filter by them in search.
• Make checklists (Premium). Telegram Premium users can create checklists from the attachment menu, including in Saved Messages.
• Make separate spaces. If one chat gets too crowded, you can create a private channel with only you in it and use it for a single topic.

Where Saved Messages falls short for notes

Saved Messages is good at what Telegram built it for: bookmarking messages, keeping files and moving things between your devices. It gets harder when it becomes your main place for notes and tasks.

• Your notes live in a messaging app. To write a note, you open the same app as your group chats, channels and unread badges. It is easy to get pulled into a conversation instead.
• It is one long stream. Everything lands in a single chat by default. Tags help, but they need Telegram Premium. So do checklists.
• It is not end-to-end encrypted. Saved Messages is a cloud chat. Telegram encrypts it between your device and its servers and stores it encrypted. Among chats, only Secret Chats are end-to-end encrypted.

If your notes keep getting lost between conversations, a chat-style notes app keeps the same habit without the distractions.

Alternatives: Better way to send yourself apps that feel like texting yourself

Saved Messages is a good way to message yourself. If you also use it for notes, you can make it better. These apps keep the same open, type, send habit and add what a notes app needs: separate spaces, to-dos and reminders, with no group chats pulling you away.

	Telegram Saved Messages	tetrify	Strflow	Qept
Built for notes (no group chats or channels)	No, it lives in your chat list	Yes	Yes	Yes
Separate spaces for topics	One chat (View as Chats groups by source); tags need Premium	Yes, chat Spaces	Yes, tag timelines	Yes, group by topic
To-dos	Checklists need Premium	Turn a text into a task	Checklists in a to-do timeline	Checkboxes
Reminders	Scheduled messages	Time-based notifications	Scheduled notes	—
Export	HTML or JSON from Telegram Desktop	To other productivity apps	Markdown	—

tetrify: Text Yourself Notes

tetrify looks like a messaging app, but every chat is yours. Notes, tasks and journal entries each get their own Space, so they don’t run together the way they do in one Saved Messages chat.

• Separate chat Spaces for notes, tasks and a journal
• Turns a text into a task with a time-based notification
• Export to other productivity apps, plus the Share Sheet

Platforms: iPhone, iPad, Mac.

Strflow: Text Yourself Notes

Strflow is a chat-style timeline for notes and to-dos. You type and send, then add structure when you need it.

• Tags that turn into topic timelines
• Checklists collect in a to-do timeline, and scheduled notes show up as reminders
• Share Sheet and Shortcuts on iOS, and a shortcut key on Mac
• Stored on your device, with optional encrypted iCloud sync and Markdown export

Platforms: iPhone, iPad, Mac.

Quick Capture & Notes - Qept

Qept presents itself as a replacement for messaging yourself. You write notes like texts, then come back later to refine them or tick them off.

• Notes that look and feel like texts
• Group notes by topic
• Checkboxes for to-do lists
• A Safari extension

Platforms: iPhone, iPad.

For more options, including apps that email your notes to you, see the best note to self apps for iPhone.

Many people use both. Telegram stays the place for things other people send you, and a send yourself app takes the notes you write for yourself.