How do i transfer everything from my old iphone to my new iphone

• You can transfer all your apps to a new iPhone from an iCloud backup during initial setup.
• Before transferring the apps using iCloud, make sure you've made an iCloud backup of your old phone.
• You can also use the App Store to choose which apps you'd like to download on your new iPhone.

Moving your data to a new iPhone has become a fairly seamless process, thanks in large part to Apple's iCloud backup and restore process.

So before you start transferring apps to your new iPhone, it's recommended to backup your old phone to iCloud. That way, you can use the backup to duplicate your existing iPhone — apps and data included — on a new phone when you upgrade.

And if for any reason you don't want to use iCloud to restore your new iPhone via iCloud, you can transfer apps one at a time using the App Store.

How to transfer apps to a new iPhone using iCloud 

With your iCloud backup ready, you can restore it during your new iPhone's initial setup.

1. Turn on your new iPhone and follow the setup instructions.

2. On the Apps & Data screen, tap Restore from iCloud Backup.

3. When your iPhone asks you to sign into iCloud, use the same Apple ID that you used on your previous iPhone.

4. You'll then need to enter the passcode that Apple sends to your old iPhone or any other Apple device linked to your Apple ID – you can also just have the code texted to you instead.

5. Agree to the Terms and Conditions by tapping Agree.

6. Tap the most recent backup on the Choose Backup screen.

7. Tap Continue.

8. Follow the rest of the instructions to finish setting up your new iPhone.

After a few moments, your phone will be restored with all the apps from your previous iPhone.

How to transfer apps to a new iPhone using the App Store

If you want to selectively restore apps to a new phone without transferring every app you had on the old phone, you can do that using the App Store.

That's because Apple keeps a record of every app you've ever purchased or downloaded for free, and you can re-install those apps at any time on the same phone or any iPhone you later upgrade to.

1. Open the App Store app on the new iPhone.

2. Search or browse to find the app you want to install.

3. Instead of Get or a price, you should see a cloud icon to indicate you already installed that app in the past. Tap the cloud icon to install the app again. 

4. Repeat that process for any other apps you want to install.

Dave Johnson

Freelance Writer

Dave Johnson is a technology journalist who writes about consumer tech and how the industry is transforming the speculative world of science fiction into modern-day real life. Dave grew up in New Jersey before entering the Air Force to operate satellites, teach space operations, and do space launch planning. He then spent eight years as a content lead on the Windows team at Microsoft. As a photographer, Dave has photographed wolves in their natural environment; he's also a scuba instructor and co-host of several podcasts. Dave is the author of more than two dozen books and has contributed to many sites and publications including CNET, Forbes, PC World, How To Geek, and Insider.

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Losing all the stuff on your phone was no big deal before the smartphone age. These days, it's practically a Netflix horror movie plot. Wondering how to switch iPhones or iPads successfully, without losing anything in the process? If you're looking to upgrade (these are the best iPhones to buy right now), it is possible to do so painlessly. Your photos, contacts, videos, message history, music, calendars, mail accounts, and many of your apps can all be transferred from your previous device to the new one. We've outlined the steps below.

Updated September 2022: We tweaked the instructions for the latest version of iOS and added details on eSIM.

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1. Back Up Your Old iPhone or iPad

First, you need to back up your old device, which can you do via iCloud or your computer. We've broken down these steps below. 

Using iCloud

Photograph: Apple

Make sure your device is connected to Wi-Fi. Then go into your iPhone or iPad’s settings and click your name at the top, which will take you to your Apple ID page. Depending on which model you have, you will either choose iCloud > iCloud Backup > Back Up Now, or after clicking your Apple ID page, you'll see a list of devices your ID is signed into. If that's the case, click on your iPhone or iPad. From there, choose iCloud Backup, toggle it on, click on Back Up Now, and let your device back up while it’s still on Wi-Fi. It might be worth setting your new device to automatically backup daily, but be aware that Apple only lets you store 5 GB for free.

Using a Mac

Plug your iPhone or iPad into your MacBook or iMac and open Finder. On the left, you should see your device come up under Locations. You can go through all your saved data, from music and podcasts to photos and files. If your photos have been saved via iCloud, they won't show up here unless you turn that feature off. Under the General tab, you can select Back Up Now. To save Health and Activity data, choose the option to encrypt your backup, or else it will not be saved; not saving unencrypted Health and Activity data is a default privacy feature. All iCloud backups are encrypted automatically.

Using a Windows Computer

You'll need to download iTunes for Windows and plug your iPhone or iPad into your laptop or desktop via USB. Click the iPhone/iPad button at the top left of the iTunes window, then go to Summary > Back Up Now. Encrypt your backup by clicking Encrypt local backup and setting a password. Encrypting allows you to back up your Health and Activity data, as well. To find your backups, click Edit > Preferences > Devices. Apple also goes through the steps here.

2. Swap SIMs or Activate eSIM

Photograph: Apple

Once you're fully backed up, it's time to sort your SIM card. If you're in the US, the iPhone 14 range no longer has a physical SIM card slot, so you have to use eSIM. If you have previously used an eSIM on an iPhone, you can activate it during setup by following the onscreen instructions. If you are switching from an older iPhone using a physical SIM card, then you will be asked about transferring your number as a part of the Quick Start process described below. Apple has full eSIM setup instructions for different scenarios. Just know that once you go from a physical SIM to eSIM, your physical SIM card will no longer work. 

To use a physical SIM card with an older iPhone, simply swap the SIM card from your old phone into the iPhone. You can also do this step after setting up your new iPhone, in case you don't want to miss any calls or messages during the process. Lightly pushing a SIM tool or paperclip into the SIM tray hole will help you open it up. The SIM card has one sloped side, which you can line up on the SIM tray of your new iPhone.

3. Turn On Your New Device

We recommend fully charging both your old device and your new iPhone before you begin, and keep a charger handy just in case. You are ready to turn on the new device. The next part depends on the version of iOS or iPadOS your old device is running. 

Note: Before we run through the methods, anyone using the Google Authenticator app (or any other two-factor authenticator app) should be careful not to delete this app on their old iPhone until they have moved their accounts across to the new one or they may lose access. Here are Google's instructions for transferring Authenticator codes to a new phone.

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