How to Back Up an iPhone to a Mac or Windows PC

To back up an iPhone to a computer, connect it with a cable, tap Trust on the phone, then use Finder on a Mac or the Apple Devices app on Windows. Select your iPhone, choose to back up all data to the computer, tick Encrypt local backup, and click Back Up Now. Encryption is worth turning on because it also saves your passwords, Wi-Fi settings and Health data.

Why back up to a computer instead of iCloud?

It’s free. It doesn’t use your iCloud storage, so you don’t need a bigger plan for a big phone.
It’s fast to restore over a cable, especially with lots of photos and apps.
It’s a second copy. Many people keep iCloud Backup on and make an occasional computer backup before a major update or a phone swap.

One caveat: if you use iCloud Photos or Messages in iCloud, those items are stored in iCloud rather than in the device backup either way.

What you need

A cable that fits your iPhone (USB-C on iPhone 15 and later, Lightning on older models) and your computer.
Mac: macOS Catalina (10.15) or later uses Finder. Older macOS versions use iTunes.
Windows: Windows 10 or later with the free Apple Devices app from the Microsoft Store. Without it, you can use iTunes for Windows.
Enough free disk space on the computer. A backup excludes media already in iCloud but can still take tens of gigabytes.

How to back up an iPhone to a Mac (Finder)

Connect the iPhone to the Mac with a cable.
Open a Finder window and click your iPhone under Locations in the sidebar.
If asked, click Trust on the Mac, then tap Trust on the iPhone and enter your passcode.
In the General tab, under Backups, select Back up all of the data on your iPhone to this Mac.
Tick Encrypt local backup and create a password (see below).
Click Back Up Now. Progress appears next to the iPhone in the sidebar; don’t disconnect until it finishes.
When done, Last backup to this Mac shows the date and time.

On macOS Mojave or earlier, open iTunes, click the small phone icon, then Summary > This Computer > Back Up Now.

How to back up an iPhone to a Windows PC (Apple Devices app)

Install Apple Devices from the Microsoft Store if you don’t have it.
Connect the iPhone with a cable and open the Apple Devices app.
Tap Trust on the iPhone and enter your passcode when prompted.
Select your iPhone in the sidebar, then click General.
Under Backups, select the option to back up all data on your iPhone to this computer.
Tick Encrypt local backup and set a password.
Click Back Up Now and wait until it completes.

Using iTunes instead? Click the phone icon near the top-left, open Summary, choose This Computer, tick Encrypt local backup and click Back Up Now. Apple’s step-by-step guide for Windows is on its Apple Devices user guide.

Encrypted backups: why and how

Computer backups are not encrypted by default. An encrypted backup protects your data with a password and also includes information Apple leaves out of unencrypted backups:

Saved passwords
Wi-Fi settings
Website history
Health data
Call history

Encrypted backups still don’t include Face ID, Touch ID or your device passcode. Once you turn encryption on, every later backup on that computer is encrypted automatically.

Important: store the backup password in a password manager. If you forget it, you can’t restore from those encrypted backups and Apple can’t recover it. You can reset it from the iPhone (Settings > General > Transfer or Reset iPhone > Reset > Reset All Settings), but that only lets you make a new encrypted backup; the old ones stay locked.

Apple explains encryption in more detail on its encrypted backups support page.

Back up over Wi-Fi (optional)

After the first cabled setup, you can tick Show this iPhone when on Wi-Fi in the General tab. When the phone and computer are on the same network and the app is open, you can sync and back up without a cable. Cabled backups are still faster and more reliable.

How to restore an iPhone from a computer backup

On the iPhone, turn off Find My: go to Settings > [your name] > Find My > Find My iPhone and switch it off. A restore won’t start while it’s on.
Connect the iPhone to the computer that holds the backup.
In Finder or the Apple Devices app, select the iPhone and click Restore Backup in the General tab.
Pick the backup by date, enter the encryption password if asked, and click Restore.
Keep the phone connected until it restarts and syncs. Then turn Find My back on.

Setting up a new iPhone? Choose From Mac or PC on the Transfer Your Apps & Data screen during setup, then connect it to the computer. Your new phone needs an iOS version at least as new as the one that made the backup, so install updates first if prompted.

Where backups are stored and how to delete old ones

On a Mac, go to the device’s General tab and click Manage Backups to see, archive or delete backups. In the Apple Devices app on Windows, use the same button in General. Deleting old backups is the safest way to free up disk space; don’t move or edit files inside the backup folder by hand, or the backup may stop working.

Troubleshooting

iPhone doesn’t appear: unlock it, try another cable or port, and make sure you tapped Trust. On Windows, update the Apple Devices app and Windows.
“Not enough free space”: delete old backups or free up space on the computer’s main drive.
Backup fails partway: restart both devices, update iOS and macOS or Windows, and try again with a direct cable rather than a hub.

Bottom line

A computer backup is the cheapest, quickest full copy of your iPhone. Use Finder on a Mac or Apple Devices on Windows, always tick Encrypt local backup, save the password somewhere safe, and make a fresh backup before every major iOS update or phone upgrade.

FAQ

Does a computer backup include my photos?

Yes, unless you use iCloud Photos. In that case your photos are stored in iCloud and aren’t duplicated in the device backup.

Can I back up to an external drive?

Not directly from the Finder or Apple Devices backup screen, which saves to the computer’s main drive. Moving the backup folder to another drive is possible with advanced tricks but isn’t supported by Apple.

How long does a backup take?

The first backup can take a while, depending on how much is on the phone. Later backups are usually faster.

Can I use both iCloud Backup and a computer backup?

Yes. Choosing “back up to this computer” turns off automatic iCloud Backup in the app, but you can switch it back on in Settings > [your name] > iCloud > iCloud Backup after the computer backup completes.