Switch to a new Android phone

You can move your data to a new Android phone from another kind of phone, or start fresh with your new Android phone.

Important: Some of these steps work only on Android 10 and up. Learn how to check your Android version.

Before you begin

• Charge both phones.
• Make sure you can unlock the old phone with a PIN, pattern, or password.
• On your old phone:
  • Sign in with your Google account. 
    • To check whether you have a Google Account, enter your email address. 
    • If you don't have a Google Account, create a Google Account.
  • Sync your data. Learn how to back up your data.
  • Check that you have a Wi-Fi connection.

Switch from an Android phone

1. Turn on your new phone.
2. Tap Start. If you don’t see “Start,” you can copy your data manually.
3. When asked, choose to copy apps and data from your old phone.
4. If you have a cable to connect your phones, follow the on-screen instructions to copy your data.
5. If you don’t have a cable:
   1. Tap No cable?  Ok.
   2. Tap A backup from an Android phone.
   3. To copy your data, follow the on-screen instructions.

Switch from an iPhone

1. Turn on your new phone.
2. Tap Start.
3. When asked, choose to copy apps and data from your old phone.
   • If you have a cable to connect your phones, follow the on-screen instructions to copy your data.
   • If you don’t have a cable:
     1. Tap No cable?  Ok.
     2. Tap An iPhone device.
4. To copy your data, follow the on-screen instructions.
5. To sync with your new phone, back up your iPhone and iCloud account to Google Drive. Learn how to back up iPhone data with Google Drive.
6. To make sure you can get texts on your new phone, learn how to switch from iMessages to Messages.

Restore data from the cloud

Important: If you don’t have your old phone, you need to know your Google Account and password to restore some data.

1. Turn on your new phone.
2. Tap Start.
3. To set up your phone without an old phone, follow the prompts.
4. When prompted, sign in with your Google Account. 
   • If you can’t sign in, learn how to recover your account.

Copy data manually

Important: The options above will help you restore the most data. If none of the other steps work for you, try copying your data yourself.

• Sync your contacts:
  • If you already use contacts in your Google Account, like in Gmail, they'll automatically show on your Android phone after you sign in.
  • If your contacts are on a SIM card, learn how to import contacts from a SIM card.
• Copy your music:
  • Music you buy from Google Play or YouTube music will automatically show on your phone after you sign in.
  • Back up your music from your current phone to your computer. Then, use your Chrome browser to drag songs into your Google Play library. Learn how to add music using Google Play Music for Chrome.
• Copy photos, videos, files & folders:
  • If you’re connected to the internet, learn how to upload to Google Drive and back up to Google Photos.
  • If you can't connect to the internet, learn how to transfer files between your computer and phone.
  • If you use Google Photos, learn how to back up your photos. If you use a different app for your photos, contact your phone manufacturer.
• Copy calendar events:
  • If you already use Google Calendar, you'll see your calendar events when you open the Calendar app.
  • To import events from another calendar app, learn how to import events to Google Calendar.

Tip: If your new phone is a Pixel or Nexus, view our Pixel setup guide or Nexus setup guide.

Related resources

• Set up email
• Set up messaging
• Download & use apps