Guides

How to back up your iPhone to your Mac without iCloud

You can back up your whole iPhone to your Mac for free, using Finder, which is already on every Mac.

Quick answer Connect your iPhone to your Mac with a cable. Open Finder and click your iPhone in the sidebar. In the General tab, choose "Back up all of the data on your iPhone to this Mac," turn on "Encrypt local backup," and click Back Up Now. Keep the cable connected until it's done.

These steps work on macOS Catalina and later, including all recent versions. On macOS Mojave and earlier, you use iTunes instead of Finder.

What you need

• Your iPhone and a cable that carries data, not just power.
• Your iPhone passcode.
• Enough free space on your Mac. A backup can take several gigabytes, depending on what's on your phone.

A computer backup includes almost all of your iPhone's data and settings. It does not include things already stored in iCloud (like iCloud Photos or messages kept in iCloud), apps and media you bought from Apple's stores, or Face ID and Touch ID settings. After a restore, purchases download again and iCloud data syncs back; Face ID or Touch ID you set up again.

Step 1: Connect and trust

1. Plug your iPhone into your Mac with the cable.
2. On a Mac laptop with Apple silicon, you may be asked whether to allow the accessory to connect. Click Allow.
3. Open a Finder window. Your iPhone appears in the sidebar under Locations. Click it.
4. If your Mac asks, click Trust.
5. On your iPhone, tap Trust when it asks "Trust This Computer?" Then enter your passcode.

Step 2: Choose this Mac as the backup place

1. With your iPhone selected in Finder, click the General tab near the top.
2. Under Backups, select "Back up all of the data on your iPhone to this Mac."

Step 3: Turn on encryption (recommended)

Select "Encrypt local backup." Your Mac will ask you to create a password.

Why it matters: an unencrypted backup leaves out some of your most personal data. Only an encrypted backup includes:

• Saved passwords (Keychain)
• Health and Activity data
• Wi-Fi settings
• Website history
• Call history

Encryption also locks the backup itself with your password. Without it, anyone who can open your Mac user account could copy your phone's data.

Write the password down and keep it somewhere safe. You can't use an encrypted backup without it. If you forget it, you can't open older encrypted backups. To start over, on your iPhone go to Settings › General › Transfer or Reset iPhone › Reset › Reset All Settings. This keeps your data but removes the backup password. Then make a new encrypted backup with a new password.

Note: backups made to your Mac are not encrypted unless you turn this on. Once you confirm the password, a new encrypted backup starts right away and replaces your earlier backups of this iPhone.

Step 4: Back up and wait

1. Click Back Up Now (if a backup didn't already start).
2. Finder shows the progress while it works.
3. Leave the cable connected. The first backup can take a while.

How to check that it finished

When the backup is done, the General tab shows the date and time of your last backup to this Mac.

For more detail, click Manage Backups. You'll see a list of backups with their dates. A lock icon next to a backup means it's encrypted. Click OK to close the list.

Optional: back up over Wi-Fi

After the first cable connection, you can let your iPhone show up in Finder over Wi-Fi.

1. Connect with the cable and select your iPhone in Finder.
2. In the General tab, select "Show this iPhone when on Wi-Fi."
3. Click Apply.

From then on, when your iPhone and Mac are on the same Wi-Fi network, your iPhone appears in the Finder sidebar without a cable. Click it and choose Back Up Now. Wi-Fi is slower than a cable, so for the first full backup, the cable is the better choice.

How to restore from your backup later

Use this when you get a new iPhone or need to reset yours. Restoring replaces what's on the iPhone with what's in the backup.

1. Connect the iPhone to your Mac and select it in Finder.
2. In the General tab, click Restore Backup.
3. Open the Backup menu and pick the backup you want. Check its date and size.
4. If it's encrypted, enter the backup password.
5. Click Restore.
6. Keep the iPhone connected while it restarts and syncs. Unplug it after the sync finishes.

Afterward, keep the iPhone on Wi-Fi and power while apps, photos and music finish downloading.

Common problems

My iPhone doesn't show up in Finder

Try these, one at a time:

• If the Finder sidebar is hidden, choose View › Show Sidebar.
• Choose Finder › Settings › Sidebar (called Preferences on older macOS) and make sure "CDs, DVDs, and iOS Devices" is checked.
• Unlock your iPhone and look for the Trust alert.
• Try another cable. Many charging cables don't carry data.
• Try another USB port, and check the iPhone's port for lint.
• Update macOS and iOS to the latest versions.
• Restart both the Mac and the iPhone.

If you tapped "Don't Trust" by mistake, on your iPhone go to Settings › General › Transfer or Reset iPhone › Reset › Reset Location & Privacy. The next time you connect, it will ask again.

"Not enough space" on the Mac

A backup needs room on your Mac's main drive. To make space:

• Delete old backups you no longer need: select your iPhone in Finder, click Manage Backups, Control-click an old backup and choose Delete. A deleted backup can't be recovered, so keep the newest one.
• Empty the Trash and clear out your Downloads folder.
• See System Settings › General › Storage for more ideas.

The backup won't restore

Make sure your Mac and iPhone are both up to date. If your Mac says the iPhone's software is too old, update the iPhone first. If one backup won't restore, try another one from the list.

Updated November 2026