The last thing you want to do when you get a new iPhone is spend the day backing up all of your data to an external drive. On second thought, you certainly wouldn’t want to be in the difficult situation of wishing you had backed up your files after losing or having your iPhone stolen.
But here’s the thing; you don’t have to experience either of those things. To ensure you always have access to your most important data, it is recommended that you regularly back up your iPhone to an Apple computer like a MacBook Pro, MacBook Air, or iMac. Let’s go over how to back up your iPhone on Mac effectively.
How to Backup iPhone to Mac with Finder
The first and most basic method is to backup your iPhone to Mac using Finder. On a Mac, the Finder is where you manage all of your files. This includes…
- Downloads
- Recent files
- Pictures
- Applications
- Documents
- … and more.
It’s also where you keep track of your drives. Naturally, you can back up your iPhone in Finder as well. To find out how follow the steps below.
- Use a USB cable to connect your iPhone to your Mac.
- Select your iPhone from the Locations tab on the left by clicking the Finder icon in the screen’s bottom-left corner. If you’ve never connected your iPhone before, choose Trust when prompted.
- Select the General tab now.
- Navigate to the Backups section and choose Back up all data on your iPhone to this Mac. When you’re finished, press the Back Up Now button.
How to Backup iPhone to iTunes on Mac
The following method is to backup your iPhone on a Mac using iTunes. You may be familiar with iTunes; it was once a popular app for backing up files. Although it is not as popular as iCloud, it is still a convenient method of backing up your iPhone.
Since Apple discontinued it years ago, many Apple users have been wondering how to backup their phones with iTunes on their laptops. We’ve got you covered if you’re one of them.
You can use iTunes for backups if your computer is running macOS Mojave or earlier. This method, however, is not available for macOS Catalina (2019) and newer macOS versions such as OS X Big Sur, Monterey, and Ventura.
It’s likely been a long time since you managed the backups you made many moons ago. We understand. Many people have forgotten about iTunes or where their backups are kept. Before proceeding, learn how to delete your iTunes backups to free up some much-needed space on your Mac.
After that, simply follow the simple steps below to backup your iPhone to iTunes on Mac.
- Connect your iPhone to your Mac via a USB cable, then launch the iTunes app.
- Follow the instructions on the screen. Now, select your device and click Back Up Now. You may be prompted to enter your Mac’s passcode or confirm that you trust the Mac you’re using.
- That’s it; your iPhone has been successfully backed up. If your Mac is running an older version of macOS, you should consider upgrading to a newer version to ensure that it continues to function optimally.
How to Backup iPhone to Mac Without a USB Cable
After you’ve synced your phone to your Mac, the final step is to backup your iPhone to your Mac via Wi-Fi.
This method eliminates the need to enable syncing between the two devices every time you connect your iPhone. To do this, you’ll need a stable Wi-Fi connection. Here’s how it’s done:
- Go to Finder, select your iPhone, then click the General tab as you did before. Scroll down to the Options section and select Show this iPhone when connected to Wi-Fi, then click Apply.
- On Mac, there is an option to display the iPhone when connected to Wi-Fi.
If you’re still having trouble backing up your iPhone, try the following fixes
- Make sure your USB cable is properly connected to your Mac.
- If that fails, try connecting to a different USB port.
- When you connect your phone to your MacBook, make sure to select the “Trust” option when prompted.
- Restart your Mac and try once more.
What Is the Price of iCloud?
Apple provides iCloud services for backing up your iPhone automatically.
Here are the various plans that iCloud provides to its customers:
- 5GB of free iCloud storage
- 50GB of storage with iCloud+ $0.99
- 200GB of storage with iCloud+ $2.99
- 2TB of storage with iCloud+ $9.99
How to Backup to iCloud
- Tap Settings, then your name at the top, then iCloud, and then iCloud Backup.
- If iCloud Backup is turned off, flip the switch to turn it on. If it’s already on and you’re about to delete everything from your old iPhone, you might want to tap Back Up Now, just in case.
- If you want to make sure you’re backed up, go to Settings > [your name] > iCloud > Manage Account Storage > Backups. You’ll be able to see how many backups have been made and of what devices. Select the device to find out more about the backup.
How Backup to Your Desktop
- Use the phone’s charging cable to hook it up to your computer. If you’ve never done this before, you may get a pop-up asking for permission to connect; click Allow.
- Open a Finder window by clicking on the Finder icon in your dock or choosing File > New Finder Window from the top Finder menu bar. Then, look for your iPhone in the left-hand menu under Locations.
- If this is your first time doing this, when you click on the phone icon, you may be asked if you trust the phone, first on the computer and then on the phone itself. You may also be asked to enter the phone’s passcode.
- People who are setting up their phone for the first time may also be asked if they want to set it up as a new device or restore it from a previous backup. In this situation, choose the first one.
Read Also: How to Make Text Bigger on iPhone: Detailed Guide
- Click the General tab at the top of the screen and look for the Backups section. Select Copy everything from your iPhone to this Mac.
- You will need to encrypt your backup to make it more secure. Check Encrypt local backup and type in a password. Don’t lose that password, or you won’t be able to get to your files.
- Once the encryption is set, it’s likely that the backup will start on its own. If not, click the Back Up Now button.
- If you need to restore your backup, just go back to the same page and click on Restore Backup.
Keep in mind that you can back up your iPhone manually, or you can set it to back up automatically every time you connect it to your computer. Look for the word Options just below the section called “Backups,” and then choose “Automatically sync when this iPhone is connected.”
Once you’ve set up your backup on your computer, you may want to delete any backups you’ve made to iCloud.
How to Delete Backups Made to iCloud
Using Your Mac
On your Mac, do the following:
- Click on the Apple icon in the top right corner of your screen.
- Choose System Settings > Internet Accounts > iCloud from the menu.
- In the lower right corner of the window, click Manage, and then click Backups.
- Choose the backup you want to get rid of, then click the minus sign in the bottom left corner of the window.
- Choose the backup you want to get rid of, then click the minus sign in the bottom left corner of the window.
- Choose the backup you want to get rid of, click the minus sign in the bottom left corner of the window, and then click Delete. This will delete all of your iCloud backups and stop any more from being made.
Using Your iPhone
To do this with your iPhone:
- Tap your name and then go to Settings.
- Choose iCloud > Manage Account Storage > Backups from the menu. If you’ve backed up more than one device, choose one.
- Tap “Delete” and “Stop Backup.” If you’ve already turned off backups for that device, the button will just say “Delete Backup.”
- Tap the off button.
- And you’re done!
Is It Better to Back up an iPhone on a Computer or Through iCloud?
Both options have advantages and disadvantages, but I personally prefer cloud backup. I appreciate having my photos and videos easily accessible via an app on my phone without taking up storage space. This is preferable to having to open a computer and search for an old photo every time I want one.
Is It Necessary to Backup iPhone Apps?
Your purchased apps do not need to be backed up because they are linked to your Apple ID and can be easily downloaded when you need them again.
What Is the Purpose of an iCloud Backup?
When you backup your iPhone to iCloud, nearly all of your data and settings are saved to the cloud. It will not, however, back up data stored in other cloud services, Apple mail data, Apple Pay information, Face ID or Touch ID settings, or your Apple Music Library and App Store content.
When you enable iCloud backups, your iPhone will automatically back up when it is turned off, connected to a WiFi network, and powered on. This way, your iPhone will not slow down every time it needs to backup, which should occur while you are sleeping.
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