The short answer: On a Samsung Galaxy, open Settings → Notifications → Advanced settings → Notification history and switch it on. It is off by default, starts empty, and keeps roughly the last 24 hours of notifications, including the ones you swiped away.
Samsung phones have had notification history since One UI 3, the Android 11 update. It works the same way as on any other Android phone. The only difference is where Samsung keeps it: one level deeper than most people look.
Where notification history is on a Samsung
Settings → Notifications → Advanced settings → Notification history → turn the switch on.
The step people miss is Advanced settings. The main Notifications screen lists app notifications, Do Not Disturb and the lock-screen style, and nothing on it mentions history. It’s the same path on a Galaxy S25, S24 or S23, the A-series, the Z Fold and Z Flip, and Galaxy tablets.
If your menus look different, type history into the search box at the top of Settings. It finds the screen wherever your One UI version has put it.
What you’ll see once it’s on
The screen has two parts: recent notifications, and below them the ones that were dismissed or snoozed, grouped by app with the time each one arrived. Tapping an entry opens the app that sent it.
Three things about the Samsung version catch people out:
- It starts empty. Nothing from before you switched it on was recorded, so there is no backlog to reveal.
- Turning it off deletes it. Switching the toggle off clears everything it had collected, so leave it on.
- You can’t remove single entries. The list clears itself as entries age out after about a day, and that is the only way they go.
Dismissed notifications only appear on this settings screen. They don’t come back into the notification panel, so this screen is where you go when you need one.
What it can’t do
It’s a short safety net rather than an archive:
- About 24 hours, and no setting to change that. Anything older is gone.
- Text only. A photo someone sent shows as a line of text, not the picture.
- One flat list across every app. There’s no way to see just one person’s messages.
That last point matters most for messages that were deleted for everyone. The notification is often the only copy left, and how to read deleted WhatsApp messages covers when that works and when it doesn’t.
Samsung’s own longer log: NotiStar
Samsung offers one extra route other brands don’t. NotiStar is a module in Good Lock, Samsung’s customisation app from the Galaxy Store. It keeps its own notification log, lets you filter it by app, and can pin it to the lock screen. Good Lock isn’t available in every country, so check the Galaxy Store on your phone first.
Keeping notifications for longer
If a day isn’t enough, or Good Lock isn’t offered where you live, you need a notification saver: an app with notification access that writes each notification down as it arrives.
That’s what NotiWeave does. It saves notifications from the apps you choose and groups them into one thread per sender, so a week of messages from one person reads like a conversation. Photos that arrive with a notification stay in the thread, and nothing expires on a timer.
One sender, one thread, in date order. Searchable and filterable by day, with photos kept where the system log keeps only text.
One Samsung-specific step: Galaxy phones put apps they think you don’t use to sleep, and a sleeping app can’t save anything. After setting NotiWeave up, add it to Settings → Battery → Background usage limits → Never sleeping apps. The app walks you through the battery step on first launch.
Two honest limits: it only saves what arrives after you set it up, and everything stays on your phone. There’s no account, as the privacy policy explains.
Common questions
Where is notification history on Samsung?
Settings → Notifications → Advanced settings → Notification history. If you can’t find it, search Settings for “history”.
Can I see notifications from before I turned it on?
No. Nothing was being recorded, so nothing can be recovered. Turn it on now so it’s ready next time.
How far back does Samsung notification history go?
About 24 hours. There’s no setting to extend it. For anything longer you need NotiStar from Good Lock or a notification saver app.
Why did my notification history disappear?
Usually because the toggle was turned off, which clears the list, or because the entries were older than a day. A phone update that reset settings can also switch it off.
Does Samsung notification history show deleted WhatsApp messages?
Often, yes. If the notification arrived while history was on and in the last day, its text is usually listed even after the sender deletes the message, because the notification is a separate copy.
Does it work on Samsung tablets?
Yes. Galaxy Tab models on One UI 3 or newer use the same path.
Even if you do nothing else, turn the switch on today. It costs nothing, and it means the next notification you swipe away by accident is still there.