Back up or restore data on your Android device

You can back up content, data, and settings from your phone to your Google Account. You can restore your backed-up information to the original phone or to some other Android phones.  

Restoring data varies by phone and Android version. You can't restore a backup from a higher Android version onto a phone running a lower Android version.

Important: Some of these steps work only on Android 9 and up. Learn how to check your Android version.

Back up content

  1. Back up photos and videos. Learn how to automatically upload photos and videos to your Google Photos library.
  2. Back up files and folders. Learn how to back up files to Google Drive.

Automatically back up data & settings

Important: To help protect your backed-up data, use a PIN, pattern, or password screen lock, instead of a swipe or Smart Lock.

  1. Open your phone's Settings app.
  2. Tap System And then Backup.​ If these steps don't match your phone's settings, try searching your settings app for backup.
  3. Turn on your backup service.

Tip: On a tablet that people share, only the tablet's owner can see the backup and reset options.

Add or switch backup accounts

Add a backup account

  1. Open your phone's Settings app.

  2. Tap System And then Backup. If these steps don't match your phone's settings, try searching your settings app for backup, or get help from your device manufacturer. 

  3. Tap Backup account And then Add account.
  4. If needed, enter your phone's PIN, pattern, or password.
  5. Sign in to the account that you want to add.

Switch between backup accounts

  1. Open your phone's Settings app.
  2. Tap System And then Backup. If these steps don't match your phone's settings, try searching your settings app for backup, or get help from your device manufacturer.
  3. Tap Backup account.
  4. Tap the account that you want to use for backups.
What gets backed up
Important: Not all apps can back up or restore all settings and data. To find out about an app, learn how to contact its developer.

If your backups are uploaded to Google, they're encrypted using your Google Account password. For some data, your phone's screen lock PIN, pattern, or password is also used for encryption.

If you back up to Google Drive, here's what's backed up:

  • Contacts
  • Google Calendar events and settings
  • SMS text messages (not MMS)
  • Wi-Fi networks and passwords
  • Wallpapers
  • Gmail settings
  • Apps
  • Display settings (brightness and sleep)
  • Language and input settings
  • Date and time
  • Settings and data for apps not made by Google (varies by app)
Tip: You can automatically back up your photos and videos to your Google Photos library. Learn how to back up your photos.

Manually back up data & settings

  1. Open your phone's Settings app.
  2. Tap System And then Backup. If these steps don't match your phone's settings, try searching your settings app for backup, or get help from your device manufacturer.
  3. Tap Back up now And then Continue.

Erase after backing up

After you back up, you can reset your phone by erasing everything on it. Learn how to reset your phone to factory settings.

Restore backed-up data & settings

When you add your Google Account to a phone that's been set up, what you'd previously backed up for that Google Account gets put onto the phone.

To restore a backed-up account to a reset phone, follow the on-screen steps. For more help, see your manufacturer's support site.

Important: You can't restore a backup from a higher Android version onto a phone running a lower Android version. Learn how to check and update your Android version.

Restore backed-up contacts

If you've saved your contacts to your Google Account, they'll sync automatically. If you have other contacts on a phone or SIM card, learn how to manually restore contacts.

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