Setting up a new phone

Got a new phone? Moving everything over is mostly automatic these days — you keep the old phone nearby, answer a few prompts, and it copies your stuff across. This guide covers all four cases. Find yours below.

Before you start (do this first)

• Keep the old phone charged and nearby — you’ll need it during setup.
• Be on Wi-Fi, and plug both phones in if you can. A big transfer takes a while.
• Don’t erase or trade in the old phone until you’ve confirmed everything — especially photos — is really on the new one. Give it a day.

iPhone → iPhone

1. Turn on the new iPhone and hold it next to your old one.
2. A Quick Start screen pops up on the old phone — tap Continue and follow the prompts (point the old camera at the pattern on the new screen).
3. When asked, choose Transfer from iPhone to copy directly, or Download from iCloud if you’d rather pull from your backup.
4. Keep the phones together and plugged in until it finishes. Apps keep downloading in the background after.

Android → Android

1. Turn on the new phone and connect to Wi-Fi.
2. On the Copy apps & data screen, tap Next.
3. Connect your old phone — either with a cable (best) or by following the on-screen Google steps.
4. Choose what to bring (apps, photos, messages, contacts) and let it run.

Android → iPhone

1. On the new iPhone’s setup screen, choose Move Data from Android.
2. On the old Android, install the free Move to iOS app from the Play Store and open it.
3. Enter the code the iPhone shows, then pick what to move. Keep both phones on Wi-Fi and plugged in until it’s done.

iPhone → Android

1. The easiest way is during the new Android’s setup — pick Copy from iPhone / iCloud and follow the steps (a cable makes it smoother).
2. Or install Google’s Switch to Android app on the iPhone, or back the iPhone up to Google Drive first, then sign into that Google account on the Android.

Note

Turn off iMessage before you switch away from iPhone, or texts from iPhone users may not arrive. On the old iPhone: Settings → Messages → iMessage off, and Settings → tap your name → … → turn off iMessage. (Apple also has a “Deregister iMessage” web page.)

What you’ll still need to redo by hand

Most things come across, but a few always need a manual touch:

• Passwords / logins: many apps make you sign in again. Have your passwords handy.
• Two-factor / authenticator apps (Google Authenticator, Authy): these often need to be moved on purpose before you wipe the old phone — don’t erase it until banking and email logins work on the new one.
• WhatsApp: back up your chats in WhatsApp first, then restore during setup — it has its own backup, separate from the phone’s.
• Banking and 2FA apps: open them on the new phone and confirm they work while you still have the old one.

When something didn’t come across

1. Give it time — apps and photos keep downloading in the background for a while after setup.
2. Both phones on the same Wi-Fi, plugged in? Transfers stall on low battery or a dropped connection.
3. Photos missing? Make sure iCloud Photos (iPhone) or Google Photos backup (Android) finished syncing on the old phone first.
4. Still stuck? Text Stephen with which phones you’re moving between (e.g. “iPhone to iPhone”) and what’s missing.