How to Back Up iPhone (iCloud or Computer)

A backup is what lets you restore your apps, settings and messages if your iPhone is lost, broken or replaced. Apple gives you two ways to do it, iCloud or a computer, and each leaves different things out. Most people should use iCloud and let it run every night. Here's how to set up both, and the gaps worth knowing about.

iCloud or computer: which to use

	iCloud backup	Computer backup
Where it's stored	Apple's servers	Your Mac or PC
When it runs	Automatically, overnight	When you connect and click Back Up
Encryption	Always	Optional, off by default
Space	Your iCloud storage	Your computer's free space

You can use both. Apple says if one method isn't available, you can still use the other, which is a good reason to have the second as a fallback.

Back up your iPhone to iCloud

1. Connect to Wi-Fi.
2. Open Settings, tap your name, then iCloud.
3. Tap iCloud Backup and make sure Back Up This iPhone is on.
4. Tap Back Up Now and stay on Wi-Fi until it finishes.

Underneath Back Up Now you'll see the date and time of your last successful backup. Check it every so often; it's the quickest way to know your backups are working.

Make iCloud back up every night

Once Back Up This iPhone is switched on, the phone backs itself up automatically when three things are true: it's charging, it's on Wi-Fi and the screen is locked. For most people that happens overnight. If your last backup date is weeks old, one of those three isn't happening; charging in a room with weak Wi-Fi is a common cause.

Not enough iCloud storage?

This is the most common reason backups fail. Before upgrading your storage, shrink the backup: in Settings, your name, iCloud, iCloud Backup, you can see which apps take the most space and switch off the ones that don't need backing up, such as apps whose data lives online anyway. Turning on iCloud Photos also helps, because photos synced that way aren't stored in the backup itself.

Back up to a Mac

1. Connect the iPhone with a cable and enter your passcode. Tap Trust if asked.
2. Open Finder and select your iPhone in the sidebar.
3. Choose to back up all of the data on your iPhone to this Mac.
4. Tick Encrypt local backup and set a password you'll remember.
5. Click Back Up Now.

On a Windows PC, use the Apple Devices app (or iTunes on older versions of Windows) and follow the same steps.

Why to encrypt a computer backup

Here's the catch Apple notes in the small print: an unencrypted computer backup leaves out your Activity, Health and Keychain data, which includes saved passwords. Turn encryption on and they're included. Just don't lose the password, because Apple can't recover it, and without it the encrypted backup can't be restored.

What a backup doesn't include

• Photos, Notes and Messages that already sync to iCloud. They're safe in iCloud, just not in the backup itself.
• Face ID or Touch ID settings. You set these up again.
• Mail data and accounts such as Gmail. These come back from the mail server.
• Data from apps with their own cloud storage.

WhatsApp is the app people most often lose chats from, because it keeps its own backup; check it in WhatsApp's Settings, Chats, Chat Backup. Saved passwords are another gap if you use a separate password manager, which syncs its own vault; my look at whether LastPass is safe covers what to check.

Restoring from a backup

When you set up a new or erased iPhone, choose Restore from iCloud Backup or from your Mac or PC. Apple even lets you restore an iPad backup onto an iPhone, though some content, such as Voice Memos, doesn't transfer between device types. If you're keeping the same model, everything comes across.

How long does a backup take?

The first iCloud backup can take hours if you have lots of apps and data, which is why Apple runs it overnight. Later backups only send what's changed, so they're much quicker. A computer backup over a cable is usually faster than the first iCloud one. If a backup seems stuck, check the Wi-Fi, keep the phone plugged in and leave it; cancelling and restarting just makes it start again.

Back up before you update or repair

Make a fresh backup before a major iOS update, before sending the phone for repair and before a factory reset. It takes a few minutes and means nothing important rides on the update going perfectly. Check the date under Back Up Now says today before you hand the phone over or tap Erase. If you use an iPhone camera for work content, my guides to editing videos on iPhone cover the projects worth saving first.

One last check: make sure you can sign in to your Apple Account on another device, because you'll need that password to restore an iCloud backup to a new phone.

My verdict

Turn on iCloud Backup and let it run each night while the phone charges; check the last-backup date now and then. Add an encrypted computer backup before big changes, such as a new phone or a factory reset, so your passwords and Health data come with you.

Frequently asked questions

How do I back up my iPhone to iCloud?

Settings, your name, iCloud, iCloud Backup, then Back Up Now.

How do I back up my iPhone to my computer?

Connect it, open Finder on a Mac or the Apple Devices app on Windows, and click Back Up Now.

Why isn't my iPhone backing up automatically?

It needs to be charging, on Wi-Fi and locked. Also check you have enough iCloud space.

Does an iPhone backup include photos?

Not if iCloud Photos is on. They're stored in iCloud Photos instead.

Should I encrypt my iPhone backup?

Yes for computer backups. It's the only way to include Health data and saved passwords.