Backing up an iPhone is a vital act you should be doing regularly. Thankfully with our guide, you’ll know to do it easily and quickly.
Backing up your phone makes a copy of what’s on your device, storing it either online or on your laptop. This method works for any iPhone with iOS 13, whether it’s an iPhone SE 2 or iPhone 11 Pro.
These backups can be done in a couple of different ways – either via Apple’s iCloud service, through iTunes on Windows PC or directly on your Mac. All options have pros and cons, so let’s have a look at which one is for you.
How to back up an iPhone with iCloud
Having a back up of your phone online has big benefits. For example, if your phone breaks when you’re away from your laptop, you can restore it. All you need is access to the internet and your iCloud details.
- To begin, go into Settings and make sure that your phone has backup enabled under iCloud. (Settings > click the bar with your iCloud login > Select your current device > then turn iCloud backup on).
- Once this is done, you can start backing up your phone – select ‘Back up now’ to start.
- Make sure that you remain connected to the internet until the progress bar is complete. This might take a while, depending on how much information is being backed up.
- Once the bar completes, your phone is backed up. Your phone should not automatically backup when plugged in and connected to the internet, so you don’t need to do this process multiple times.
You can manage your backups in this section of the menu too, though unless you pay for extra iCloud storage, you’ll be limited to 5GB.
How to back up your iPhone on a Mac with Catalina
If you’re not a fan of the cloud solution, then there’s another way to back up your phone if you’ve got a Mac that doesn’t have iTunes.
- Connect up your iPhone up to your Mac with a USB cable
- Open up Finder, scroll down the sidebar until your see iPhone – click on it
- Click General
- And then click ‘Back up all the data on your iPhone to this Mac’
- Finally, click back up now and you’re done
How to back up an iPhone with iTunes
iTunes is another place to back up your phone. This method work if you’re using a Windows PC or a Mac which doesn’t have Catalina installed (if you do have Catalina, use the method above).
- These are the best iPhones
- To manually back up your iPhone to iTunes, plug it into your Mac or PC with iTunes installed and open.
- Once plugged in, your iPhone will appear in iTunes. Select it, then click on ‘Backup now’.
- Keep your iPhone plugged in until the backup is complete.
Editorial independence
Editorial independence means being able to give an unbiased verdict about a product or company, with the avoidance of conflicts of interest. To ensure this is possible, every member of the editorial staff follows a clear code of conduct.
Professional conduct
We also expect our journalists to follow clear ethical standards in their work. Our staff members must strive for honesty and accuracy in everything they do. We follow the IPSO Editors’ code of practice to underpin these standards.
Editorial independence
Editorial independence means being able to give an unbiased verdict about a product or company, with the avoidance of conflicts of interest. To ensure this is possible, every member of the editorial staff follows a clear code of conduct.
Professional conduct
We also expect our journalists to follow clear ethical standards in their work. Our staff members must strive for honesty and accuracy in everything they do. We follow the IPSO Editors’ code of practice to underpin these standards.
