When you're ready to transfer your files and data from an old Android phone to a new one, you'll want to ensure a seamless transition. In this guide, we'll show you how to transfer everything from your old phone using Google's backup and restore feature, as well as how to create automatic backups to keep everything safe should anything happen to your phone in the future.

The screenshots in this guide come from a Google Pixel phone, but the process will be similar on most Android devices from other manufacturers, especially those using near-stock skins. If you can't find the backup section in the settings on your phone, try searching for it and then follow the on-screen instructions if it differs from the below.

Back up your old phone

Before we start setting up your new phone, you'll need to back up your existing phone first. Even if you decide to transfer your data without Google, this is an excellent way to provide a safety net in case your phone is lost, stolen, or broken beyond repair. Google automatically backs up contacts, calendar events, messages, Wi-FI networks, wallpapers, Gmail settings, and app data. Once all of this has been backed up, you can easily restore it to your new phone during setup.

  1. Go to your phone's Settings.
  2. Scroll down and tap System.
  3. Tap Backup.
  4. Here you can check exactly what is being backed up. If Photos & Videos is not set to "On" follow the steps below to back up your photos and videos.
  5. Tap Backup Now.

Even if you've already set automatic backups, it's worth doing a manual backup right before you switch over to a new phone to ensure the latest data is transferred across. You can also use this opportunity to change what you want to be backed up to the cloud.

Back up your photos and videos

  1. From the Backup screen, tap Photos & Videos.
  2. Toggle the switch on to turn on Back up & sync.
  3. Tap Upload Size and select your desired image quality.
    1. If you do not have unlimited Google Drive storage, we recommend that you choose High Quality. This will use up less of your storage, and unless you do anything special with your photos and videos, you'll likely not notice the difference for casual use like sharing on social media.
    2. If you have unlimited storage or plan to use your photos and video for anything more professional, you'll want to select Original Quality. This will not compress your photos but it will use up more cloud storage, so make sure you have enough

Your images and videos on your old phone will now be synced with your Google Photos account.

Set up your new phone

Once you've successfully backed up your existing phone, you can start setting up your new one.

Transfer files and data using your old phone

If you've still got your old phone to hand, you can use the wired option to transfer files and data

  1. After booting up your new Android phone, you'll be asked to select a language.
  2. Next, you'll be asked to insert a SIM and connect to Wi-Fi — you'll at least need to do the latter in order to connect your Google account on your new device, even though we're transferring data via a wired connection.
  3. Now it's time to Copy apps and data — tap Next.
  4. You'll be asked to Use your old device — tap Next.
  5. Then you'll need to connect both phones with a USB-C cable. It will likely need to be USB-C on both ends if both phones are fairly recent — if you don't have the right cable, you can pick one up cheaply on Amazon or go ahead with the wireless transfer steps below instead.
  6. On your old phone, you'll need to confirm that you want to Copy.
  7. Now, on your new phone, you need to choose what you want to copy. You'll probably want to leave everything checked, then tap Copy.

While data is being copied, you can carry on setting up some other things such as screen lock, Google Assistant, Google Pay, and other device settings. Eventually, you'll be told your phone is almost ready to go. You can now disconnect the cable while apps are installed over Wi-Fi. All of your other settings and data have already been transferred, so you can hit Finished.

Transfer files and data without your old phone

This method will restore your files and data to your new phone using the most recent backup saved to your Google account. This will be your only option if you're unable to access your old phone or connect them with the correct cable.

  1. After booting up, select a language.
  2. Next, you'll be asked to insert a SIM and connect to Wi-Fi — the latter is recommended for a smooth restore process but you can do both at this point.
  3. Now it's time to Copy apps and data — tap Next.
  4. You'll be asked to Use your old device — instead, tap Can't use old device.
  5. It will then check that you're sure you want to Restore data without old device — tap OK.
  6. Then you'll need to sign in using the same Google account that you saved your backup to.
  7. Choose which device backup you want to use — this will be the old phone you most recently backed up.
  8. Confirm the screen lock that you used on your old device.
  9. Now you can choose what you want to restore — You'll probably want to leave everything checked, then tap Restore.

Your new phone will now be restored with all the same data and settings as your old one. In the meantime, you can continue setting up your new device.

It can take up to 24 hours for your new phone to reinstall all of your apps, depending on how many you have, but this won't interrupt the rest of the setup process. Now that everything is being restored in the background, you can go about getting to grips with your new phone without worrying about lost data. The fun bit comes when you have to sign in to most of your apps again... unfortunately, there's nothing we can do to help with that.