You have read online about the possibility of creating a complete backup of the data on your device, but frankly, you have noticed that the procedures are never completely explanatory and often not very up-to-date, so you really want to understand how to back up your phone, to then restore everything on the new device.
Don’t worry, you’ve come to the right place! Throughout this tutorial, I will provide you with all the information you need to complete this operation, regardless of the type of device you have. All you need to do is sit back, take five minutes of free time, and continue reading the following paragraphs. I wish you a good read!
Table of Contents
How to Back Up Your Android Phone
Do you have an Android smartphone that supports Google services and want to know how to back up your Android phone? No problem, in this case, you can easily use Google’s data synchronization service, which allows you to transfer contacts, emails, photos, videos, and browsing data over the Internet. To do this, you need to set up a Google account on your smartphone.
With that said, to synchronize your data with Google Cloud, open the Settings app, identifiable by the gear icon, and go to Password and Accounts > [your Gmail address] > Account Sync. In the screen that opens, make sure that the toggles for various items (Calendar, Contacts, Drive, etc.) are set to ON. If they are not, tap them to activate them. If you want to ensure the sync is up to date at the time of the operation, tap the button with the three dots in the upper right corner and from the menu that opens, press on Sync Now.
If you want to transfer photos and videos you had stored via Google Photos, just open the app, tap on the icon of your avatar in the upper right corner, and then tap on the Photos Settings from the menu that opens. In the screen that opens, press on Backup and switch the toggle to ON. To select the quality of the backup, press on the coinciding option and then choose between Original Quality or Optimize Storage.
Once done, still in the Settings app, go to System > Backup, check the boxes for Photos and Videos and Other Device Data, and press the Confirm button at the bottom right. Now, in the backup screen that opens, set the toggle for Google One Backup to ON (if it was disabled) and then press on the Back Up Now button (the backup will happen over Wi-Fi).
The only thing left for you to do is wait for the process to complete, which may take some time depending on the amount of data being backed up.
How to Back Up Your Samsung Phone
Do you use a Samsung smartphone and want to understand how to back up your Samsung phone? In the case of devices from the South Korean company, in addition to using the backup service offered by Google, you can also use those provided by Samsung.
To proceed, open the Settings app, identifiable by the gear icon, and tap the entry at the top to log in with your Samsung account. After that, go to Accounts and Backup and tap on the Backup Data entry found under the Samsung Cloud section. Now, in the screen that opens, set the toggle next to each item you wish to back up (such as Call Logs, Messages, Contacts, etc.) to ON and then tap on the Back Up Now button found at the bottom. Once the backup process is complete, tap the Done button found at the bottom.
Alternatively, you can also back up your smartphone via PC or Mac using Samsung Smart Switch software. With this program, you can manage various aspects of the device, such as performing a backup (or restoring it) or checking for software updates. To proceed with the software download, go to this official website and click on the Windows button if you are using a PC with Windows operating system or on Mac OS if you are using a Mac. For more information on how to install the software in question and how to use it, check out my dedicated tutorial.
Once you have completed the installation of the application on your computer, open it and click on the I Accept button. Then connect your smartphone to the PC using the USB cable included in the sales package and confirm the connection by tapping on the Allow button from the pop-up that appears on your device screen. On the main screen of Smart Switch, you will see the name of your smartphone and, just below, the Backup and Restore options will appear. To back up your smartphone, click the Backup option.
Next, select the items related to the data you want to back up (if you want to perform a full backup, click the Select All button at the top) and confirm by clicking the OK button. Now, all you have to do is wait for the backup procedure to complete.
How to Back Up Your Huawei Phone
Are you using a relatively recent Huawei smartphone that no longer supports Google services replaced by HMS? Therefore, you cannot use Google’s backup service. Not sure how to back up your Huawei phone? No problem, because I am here to help you.
In the case of more recent Huawei smartphones, you can back up the device using the solutions offered by Huawei. To proceed, then open the Settings app, identifiable by the gear icon, and tap on the entry related to your Huawei ID. In the screen that opens, press on Cloud and then, from the Cloud Backup section, tap on the name of your smartphone that appears in the list. In the screen that opens, set the toggle for Cloud Backup to ON and then press on Backup Options. From here, switch the toggles for the types of data you want to back up (like Gallery, Notes, Contacts, etc.) to ON, then go back by tapping the back arrow in the upper left corner and tap on the Backup button at the bottom to start the backup procedure.
If you want to perform a local backup, for example, on an external memory card like a Nano Memory Card, from the Settings app, go to System and Updates > Backup and Restore > Backup Data > External Memory and then select one of the available options to perform the backup: Memory Card, USB Memory or Shared Folder.
Alternatively, you can also back up your smartphone via PC or Mac using HiSuite, a program provided by the Chinese company.
To download the software to your Windows computer, visit this web page and click on the Download for Windows button. Once the download is complete, double-click on the .exe file just downloaded and proceed with the installation: check the box for I have read and agree to the HiSuite user agreement, click the Install button and wait for the operation to complete.
To download HiSuite on your Mac, proceed with the download via the Mac App Store and click the Get button: enter your Apple ID password or authenticate via Touch ID (if available) to start the download and subsequent installation.
Before connecting the smartphone to the computer via USB cable, you need to enable HDB mode. To do this, open the Settings app and go to Security > More Settings and flip the toggle for Allow connection via HDB to ON: enter your device’s unlock password to confirm the operation. After that, you can connect the smartphone to the PC: from the pop-up that appears on your device screen, press on Transfer Files.
Now, all you need to do is start the HiSuite application on your PC or Mac and subsequently tap the Allow button from the pop-up that appears on your Huawei device screen and wait for a numeric code to appear. On the computer, enter the code displayed on your smartphone and click the Connect button to establish the connection with the PC.
On the main screen of the application, to back up the device, just click on the Backup option and then on the Continue button: on the smartphone, tap Allow for every request that appears on the screen.
Now, select the data to include in the backup, or check the box for Select All at the top right for a complete backup and then click on the Backup button: enter a password to protect the backup in the text field and click on the OK button. To start the backup of the smartphone, enter your smartphone’s unlock code and wait for the process to be completed.
How to Back Up Your iPhone
Do you use an iPhone and, since you have decided to buy a new iPhone model, you would like to understand how to back up your iPhone and then later restore it on the new model? No problem, in this case, all you need to do is take a look at the instructions you will find in the next paragraphs.
iCloud
The first method available for you to create a complete backup of your iPhone is to use Apple’s iCloud service, which obviously requires using an Apple ID. To proceed, then open the Settings app, identifiable by the gear icon, and go to [Apple ID name] > iCloud > iCloud Backup. Once you reach this section, switch the toggles for Back Up This iPhone and Back Up Over Cellular (only if you don’t have Wi-Fi available) to ON and then press on the Back Up Now button to start the procedure.
Alternatively, you can back up your iPhone to prepare it for the subsequent transfer to the new iPhone you will buy. To do this, from the Settings app, go to General > Transfer or Reset iPhone and tap on Start. In the screen that opens, press the Continue button and then on Done. Returning to the main Settings screen, you will be able to see the remaining time needed to complete the backup of your iPhone to iCloud.
Apple Devices/Finder
If, on the other hand, you want to back up via computer, you need to use Apple Devices or Finder, depending on the type of computer you have.
If you have a PC with Windows 11 or Windows 10, you can download and install Apple Devices directly from the Microsoft Store. If you are using an earlier version of Windows, go to the official Apple website to download iTunes, click the Download iTunes for Windows Now button, and wait for the download to complete. For detailed procedures, see my guide on how to download iTunes.
Once you have the necessary application, connect your iPhone to the computer using the Lightning or USB-C cable you have (the one included in the sales package) and launch the application by double-clicking its icon. For more information, check out my guide on how to connect iPhone to PC.
To allow the connection between the two devices, authorize the connection by clicking on the Continue button that appears on the computer screen and then on the Authorize option that appears on the iPhone display: confirm the operation by entering the unlock code or via biometric authentication. If everything went well, on Apple Devices you will see the phone icon appear in the upper left to indicate that your iPhone is connected.
Now, from the sidebar menu, click on the General tab, and in the screen that opens on the right, find the Backup section. Then check the box next to the option Back Up All iPhone Data to This Computer and click the Apply button at the bottom right. After this, click the Back Up Now button to start the backup of your iPhone. More info here.
On Mac, however, if you have a Mac with macOS 10.15 Catalina or later, connect your iPhone to the computer and launch Finder by clicking its icon (the smiley face) in the Dock below. Then select the iPhone option that you find in the left sidebar, select the General tab, and locate the Backup section.
Once this is done, check the box next to the options Back Up All iPhone Data to This Mac and Encrypt Local Backup (to secure passwords and sensitive data) and click the Back Up Now button to start the backup. It wasn’t difficult, was it?