Connect your iPhone to your computer and start a backup in iTunes
Open iTunes on your computer, plug your iPhone in with a USB cable, and click the device icon that appears near the top left. From there, you can start a backup when ready by clicking "Back Up Now" under the Manual Backups section. The backup includes your photos, messages, app data, settings, and most other information stored on your phone — everything except media files like music and videos that you bought from iTunes, which stay in your iTunes library separately.
The first backup takes longer than later ones because iTunes has to copy everything. Depending on how much data is on your iPhone, this can take anywhere from a few minutes to half an hour. Subsequent backups are faster because iTunes only copies what has changed since the last backup.
iTunes stores the backup file on your computer's hard drive, not in the cloud. On a Mac, backups live in ~/Library/process Support/MobileSync/Backup. On Windows, they go to AppData\Apple Computer\MobileSync\Backup inside your user folder. You do not need to know where these files are to use them — iTunes finds them automatically when you need to restore.
Key Takeaways
- iTunes backups include messages, photos, app data, and settings, but not music or videos you bought from iTunes.
- The backup file stays on your computer's hard drive, not in iCloud, so you control where it is stored.
- You can set iTunes to back up automatically every time you connect your iPhone, or do it manually whenever you choose.
- Restoring from an iTunes backup puts everything back the way it was, including deleted apps and their data.
- iTunes backups are encrypted if you turn on the encryption option, which protects sensitive data like passwords and health information.
Set up automatic backups so you do not have to remember
If you want iTunes to back up your iPhone every time you connect it, go to the device settings in iTunes. Under the Backups section, select "Automatically back up when this iPhone is connected." After you turn this on, iTunes will run a backup in the background whenever your phone is plugged in and iTunes is open on your computer.
Automatic backups are useful if you plug your phone in regularly — for charging overnight, for example. The downside is that you have to leave iTunes running and your phone connected for the backup to finish. If you unplug your phone before the backup completes, it stops and you will have to start over next time.
You can also choose whether to back up to iCloud or to your computer. If you select "This computer," iTunes stores the backup locally. If you select "iCloud," your iPhone backs up to Apple's servers instead, and you do not need iTunes or a cable at all — but that is a different backup method from what iTunes does.
Encrypt your backup to protect passwords and health data
By default, iTunes backups do not include passwords, credit card information, or health app data. If you want those things backed up too, you need to turn on backup encryption. In iTunes, go to the device settings, find the Backups section, and check the box next to "Encrypt iPhone backup." iTunes will ask you to create a password to protect the encrypted backup file.
Write down or save that password somewhere safe. If you forget it, you cannot restore from that backup — iTunes will not let you use an encrypted backup without the correct password. You can create a new unencrypted backup at any time and use that instead, but the old encrypted one becomes useless.
Encryption adds a small amount of time to the backup process, but not much. The main trade-off is that you have to remember the password. If you use a password manager, store the backup password there so you can find it later if you need to restore.
Restore your iPhone from an iTunes backup
To put a backup back onto your iPhone, connect the phone to your computer and open iTunes. Click the device icon, then look for a "Restore Backup" button or option. iTunes will show you a list of available backups — usually sorted by date — and you can choose which one to restore from. Select the backup you want and click Restore.
The restore process erases everything currently on your iPhone and replaces it with the contents of the backup. This includes apps, messages, photos, settings, and app data. Apps that you deleted after the backup was made will come back. Apps that you installed after the backup will be removed. The process takes several minutes depending on how much data is in the backup.
You might restore from a backup if your iPhone stops working, if you get a new iPhone and want to copy everything from your old one, or if something went wrong and you want to go back to how things were. After the restore finishes, your iPhone will restart and you will see all your data the way it was when that backup was made.
Understand what iTunes backups include and what they do not
An iTunes backup includes: messages and iMessage conversations, photos and videos taken with your camera, app data and settings for all your apps, your home screen layout, notes, reminders, calendar events, contacts, and your device settings like brightness and notification preferences. It also includes voicemails, call history, and information from the Health app if you have encryption turned on.
An iTunes backup does not include: music, movies, TV shows, or podcasts that you bought from iTunes (those stay in your iTunes library), apps themselves (iTunes re-downloads them from the App Store during restore), iCloud data like photos in iCloud Photo Library, or anything stored only in iCloud like iCloud Drive files. If you use iCloud Photos, your photos are already backed up to iCloud separately and do not need iTunes.
This is why having both an iTunes backup and iCloud backup is useful. iTunes captures app data and settings that iCloud might not, while iCloud keeps your photos and files available from any device. Together they cover almost everything on your phone.
Manage multiple backups and delete old ones
iTunes keeps every backup you create, so over time you can end up with many backup files taking up space on your computer. You can see all your backups and delete the ones you no longer need. On a Mac, go to iTunes menu → Preferences → Devices. On Windows, go to Edit → Preferences → Devices. You will see a list of all your iPhone backups with the date each one was made.
Select a backup and click "Delete Backup" to remove it. This frees up space on your computer's hard drive. Keep at least one recent backup in case you need to restore, but you can safely delete backups older than a few months unless you have a specific reason to keep them.
If you have multiple iPhones or iPads, each device gets its own set of backups. iTunes labels them with the device name and date, so you can tell which backup belongs to which device. Make sure you are deleting the right one before you confirm.
Troubleshoot common iTunes backup problems
If iTunes will not start a backup, first check that your iPhone is actually connected and that iTunes recognizes it. Unplug the cable, wait a few seconds, and plug it back in. If iTunes still does not see the phone, try a different USB port or a different cable — some cables are damaged or designed for charging only, not data transfer.
If a backup fails partway through, iTunes usually tells you why. Common reasons include not enough space on your computer's hard drive, a loose cable connection, or iTunes crashing. Free up space on your hard drive if needed, make sure the cable is find, and try again. If the backup keeps failing, restart both your computer and your iPhone, then try once more.
If you see a message that iTunes cannot read the backup file, the file may be corrupted. You can delete that backup and create a new one. If you need to restore and the backup is corrupted, you will have to set up your iPhone as new and manually restore what you can from other sources like iCloud or your computer's photo library.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does iTunes backup my photos and videos?
Yes, iTunes backs up photos and videos you took with your iPhone's camera, plus any photos you saved to your phone from other sources. It does not back up photos stored in iCloud Photo Library, because those are already backed up to iCloud. If you use iCloud Photos, you do not need iTunes to back up your photos.
Can I back up my iPhone without a computer?
iTunes requires a computer and a USB cable. If you do not have access to a computer, you can use iCloud backup instead, which works over Wi-Fi with no cable needed. Go to Settings → [Your Name] → iCloud → iCloud Backup and turn it on. Your iPhone will back up automatically when it is plugged in and connected to Wi-Fi.
What happens to my apps when I restore from an iTunes backup?
iTunes re-downloads your apps from the App Store during the restore, so you get the current version of each app, not the old version from when the backup was made. Your app data and settings come back from the backup, so your apps will look and work the way they did when you backed up.
How often should I back up my iPhone?
If you have automatic backups turned on, iTunes backs up every time you connect your phone. If you back up manually, do it at least once a week, or more often if you add important data like photos or messages regularly. The more often you back up, the less data you lose if something goes wrong.
Can I move an iTunes backup to a different computer?
Yes, but it is complicated. You have to locate the backup files on your first computer and copy them to the correct folder on your second computer. The process is different for Mac and Windows. It is usually easier to just create a new backup on the second computer, or use iCloud backup which works on any device.