How to Back Up an iPhone: iCloud or a Computer

A copy for the day the phone is lost, broken, or replaced.

Apple’s reason is simple: after you back up, you have a copy of your information to use if the device is replaced, lost, or damaged. Many apps already sync to the cloud — iCloud Photos, messages in iCloud, mail, notes — but a backup captures settings, app data, and anything not synced, and it is what you restore from when setting up a replacement. The 3-2-1 rule explains why one copy is not enough.

Four taps, on Wi-Fi.

Connect to Wi-Fi. Open Settings, tap your name, then iCloud, then iCloud Backup, and tap Back Up Now. Stay on Wi-Fi until it finishes. The date and time of the last successful backup appear under Back Up Now, which is the quickest way to check whether backups are actually happening.

Power, Wi-Fi, and a locked screen.

In the same iCloud Backup screen, make sure Back Up This iPhone is on. Automatic backups run when the iPhone is connected to power, connected to Wi-Fi, and the screen is locked, which in practice means overnight on the charger. If a backup stops because there is not enough iCloud storage, follow the on-screen steps to buy more, or reduce what is backed up; see what fills phone storage for what is taking the space.

Finder on a Mac; no subscription needed.

On a Mac with macOS Catalina or later, connect the iPhone with a cable, open Finder, and select the iPhone in the sidebar. Tap Trust on the iPhone if asked, and enter the passcode. To include Health and Activity data, select Encrypt local backup and create a password; Apple warns you cannot recover the backup without it, so store it in a password manager. Click Back Up Now. On older macOS versions, iTunes does the same job. A computer backup is limited by the computer’s free space, and the computer itself needs backing up; see how much storage to plan.

Both, if you can.

iCloud is automatic and off-site, so it survives a house fire or a stolen laptop, but it depends on paid storage once the free amount fills. A computer backup costs nothing extra, is fast to restore, and can be encrypted under a password you control, but only happens when you plug in. Using iCloud nightly and a computer backup monthly gives two independent copies, one of them off-site.

Back up, then check the date.

Before handing the phone over, run a fresh backup and confirm the date and time under Back Up Now. Then follow Apple’s steps for transferring and erasing; selling or trading in has its own checklist, including signing out and removing the device from your account.