How to Move From iPhone to Android Without Losing Anything

Updated September 2026 · the four apps the move runs through now carry their own dated listing figures, and the order of the job sits in one table

Changing phones feels like packing for a move, and the worry is always the box left behind. The good news in 2026: almost everything that matters comes across, and the parts that do not are easy to plan for once you know where they hide. This guide goes through it in order, with the exact taps to make on both phones, including the one step most people forget. Set aside an unhurried hour, keep both phones charged above 80 percent, and have your old passcode handy. Nothing here is technical; it just needs doing in the right sequence.

A little setup now saves a lot of confusion later. Do these on your old iPhone first.

1. Update the iPhone. Open Settings, then General, then Software Update. Transfer tools behave best on current software.
2. Refresh your iCloud backup. Open Settings, tap your name, then iCloud, then iCloud Backup, and tap Back Up Now. Some transfer methods pull from iCloud rather than the phone itself.
3. Know your Google Account login. A new Android phone is built around a Google Account the way the iPhone is built around an Apple Account. If you use Gmail or YouTube, that same login works. If not, create one first so you are not stuck halfway through setup.
4. Find a cable. A wired transfer moves far more than a wireless one. An iPhone 15 or newer has USB-C, so a USB-C to USB-C cable connects straight to most new Android phones. Older iPhones use Lightning, so use a Lightning to USB-C cable instead.

One decision up front: keep your old iPhone switched on and nearby for at least a week. It is your safety net for verification codes and for the iMessage step below.

This step causes the most grief, so do it early. On an iPhone, Apple routes messages from other iPhone users through iMessage, the blue-bubble system. Switch phones without turning that off and Apple keeps delivering those messages to a phone that no longer speaks iMessage. The sender sees it go through. You never get it. People assume you are ignoring them.

The fix is simple. While you still have the iPhone in hand with a SIM in it, do this:

1. Open Settings, then Apps, then Messages, and turn off the iMessage switch. (On older iOS versions the path is Settings, then Messages.)
2. Go back, then Apps, then FaceTime, and turn that off too. FaceTime can hold your number in the same way.

If you have already wiped or sold the iPhone, use Apple's web tool instead. Go to the official Deregister iMessage page, find the section for people who no longer have their iPhone, enter your number, request a code, and type in the code you receive by text. Allow a few hours for Apple's servers to release your number. To confirm it worked, ask a friend with an iPhone to text you and check the bubble turns green, not blue.

Android phones run a guided setup the first time you turn them on, and that wizard does the heavy lifting. The flow is the same across brands, with small wording differences.

1. Power on the Android phone and follow the prompts for language and Wi-Fi.
2. When it asks to copy data, choose the option that mentions an iPhone or iOS device.
3. Connect the two phones with your cable when prompted. A wired connection is strongly preferred: per Google's own documentation, only contacts, photos, videos, and calendar events come across over Wi-Fi, while a cable also brings texts and iMessages, notes, call history, wallpaper, free apps, music, and WhatsApp data.
4. On the iPhone, tap Trust when asked, and enter your passcode.
5. Tick the categories you want, then start the copy. Google notes this takes from a few minutes to a few hours depending on how much you have. Leave both phones alone and plugged in.

Google's full list of what moves and what does not lives on its support site: Copy apps and data from an iPhone to a new Android device. It is worth a glance before you commit.

The cable transfer on a Pixel or a stock Android phone

4.0 stars from 1,251,308 reviews · 10,000,000,000+ installs · free · no in-app purchases · by Google LLC · Contains ads: No · checked 4 September 2026

Google Play listing · 4.0 (1,251,308) · read 4 September 2026

This is the app behind the copy-your-data step in setup, and on a Pixel it can also be opened later from the app list. Free, no in-app purchases, no Contains ads label, read 4 September 2026. Its 4.0 stars from 1,251,308 reviews is the honest signal on this page: people meet it once, on a stressful day, and rate it on whether the cable held.

• Good: Built into first-run setup, so there is nothing to find or install
• Good: The cable route brings texts, notes, call history, wallpaper and WhatsApp data
• Good: Free with no in-app purchases and no ads label
• Con: 4.0 stars from 1,251,308 reviews, the second lowest score on this page
• Con: Over Wi-Fi it moves far less than over a cable
• Con: On most non-Pixel phones it only appears during setup, not afterwards

Back to the table

The tool you use depends on the phone you bought.

Google Pixel. Pixels use Google's Android Switch system, built into setup; just follow the wizard. A bonus on Pixel 9 and newer (including the Pro, Fold, and A models): you can run Android Switch after setup, any time, even without your old phone present, by opening it from your app list. Pixel also detects WhatsApp during an iPhone import and offers to bring the chats over by cable, which we return to below.

Samsung Galaxy (One UI). Samsung phones use Smart Switch, preinstalled. You will see it during setup, or open it later from Settings, then Accounts and backup, then Bring data from old device. It can pull from iCloud (contacts, calendar, notes, call history, bookmarks) as well as by cable. Per Samsung's guidance, iTunes music and videos do not come from iCloud, and notes transfer only if they were stored in iCloud rather than just on the iPhone. See the official Smart Switch support page.

Other brands like OnePlus, Xiaomi, and Motorola each have a similar first-run importer, and all accept Google's Android Switch flow too. When in doubt, the Google method works on nearly any modern Android phone.

Pulling from iCloud as well as from the phone

3.9 stars from 529,163 reviews · 1,000,000,000+ installs · free · no in-app purchases · by Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd. · Contains ads: No · checked 4 September 2026

Google Play listing · 3.9 (529,163) · read 4 September 2026

Preinstalled on Galaxy phones, and the only route here that can pull contacts, calendar, notes, call history and bookmarks straight from iCloud rather than from the handset. Free, no in-app purchases, no Contains ads label, read 4 September 2026. At 3.9 stars from 529,163 reviews it is the lowest rated app on this page, which is worth knowing before you rely on it for a one-shot move.

• Good: Reads from iCloud as well as over a cable
• Good: Can be opened after setup from Settings, Accounts and backup
• Good: Free with no in-app purchases and no ads label
• Con: 3.9 stars from 529,163 reviews, the weakest score on this page
• Con: iTunes music and video do not come from iCloud, per Samsung
• Con: Notes transfer only if they were stored in iCloud in the first place

Back to the table

If all your pictures live on the iPhone itself, the cable transfer grabs them. The catch is iCloud. Many people have Optimize iPhone Storage switched on, which keeps only small previews on the device and the full-size originals in iCloud. Those full files do not come across in the phone-to-phone copy. You have two clean options.

Option A, the direct route. Apple offers an official service that copies your iCloud photo library straight to Google Photos. Sign in at privacy.apple.com, choose Request to transfer a copy of your data, then sign in with your Google Account and follow the prompts. Apple verifies it is really you, and the copy takes roughly three to seven days, with an email when it is done. Your originals stay safely in iCloud; nothing is deleted. Both companies document this: Google's instructions and Apple's instructions.

A few things do not survive this copy: shared albums, smart albums, and the video portion of Live Photos (you keep the still frame). Only the most recent edit of each photo comes over, and transferred albums arrive renamed with a "Copy of" prefix.

Option B, the manual route. Install the Google Photos app on Android, sign in, and let it back up. Then download originals from iCloud at icloud.com and add them. Once your library is settled, our roundup of the best gallery apps for Android can help you pick how you browse it day to day.

Receiving a full-size library from iCloud

4.4 stars from 53,920,630 reviews · 10,000,000,000+ installs · free · no in-app purchases · by Google LLC · Contains ads: No · checked 4 September 2026

Google Play listing · 4.4 (53,920,630) · read 4 September 2026

The destination for the one part of the move that catches everyone: photos that live in iCloud rather than on the phone. Apple's own transfer service copies the library here, and this app is free with no in-app purchases and no Contains ads label, read 4 September 2026. What it does not solve is the quota: the library lands in the same 15 GB pool as Gmail and Drive.

• Good: Apple documents an official transfer into it, with originals left in iCloud
• Good: Free with no in-app purchases and no ads label
• Good: 4.4 stars from 53,920,630 reviews
• Con: The transferred library counts against the free Google quota
• Con: Shared albums, Live Photos and some metadata do not survive the copy
• Con: The copy is a one-off request, not an ongoing sync

Back to the table

WhatsApp keeps its own backups, so it sits outside the normal transfer. There is now an official way to move your full chat history, including media, from iPhone to Android. It needs a cable and a little patience.

1. Update WhatsApp on the iPhone to the latest version from the App Store.
2. On the new Android phone, begin setting up WhatsApp. The transfer prompt appears during new-device setup, so the cleanest path is to do this while the Android phone is fresh.
3. On the iPhone, open WhatsApp, go to Settings, then Chats, then Move Chats to Android.
4. Connect the two phones by cable, then scan the QR code that the Android phone shows, using the iPhone camera. Keep both phones awake and plugged in until it finishes.

Two firm rules. First, you must use the exact same phone number on both phones; there is no way around this. Second, WhatsApp call history and peer-to-peer payment messages do not transfer by any method. Everything else, the conversations and shared photos, comes through.

Moving years of chats with the media intact

4.6 stars from 242,782,579 reviews · 10,000,000,000+ installs · free to install · in-app purchases $0.40 to $199.99 per item · by WhatsApp LLC · Contains ads: No · checked 4 September 2026

Google Play listing · 4.6 (242,782,579) · read 4 September 2026

The best rated app in this group, 4.6 stars from 242,782,579 reviews, and the one with its own transfer that sits outside everything else. It is free to install with no Contains ads label; the in-app purchases on the listing, $0.40 to $199.99 per item read 4 September 2026, are business features rather than anything a switcher needs. The move needs a cable, the same phone number on both sides, and a fresh Android phone.

• Good: An official iPhone to Android chat transfer, media included
• Good: 4.6 stars from 242,782,579 reviews, the strongest score here
• Good: Free to install with no ads label
• Con: The same phone number must be used on both phones, with no way around it
• Con: Call history and payment messages do not come across
• Con: The prompt appears during new-device setup, so a set-up phone means starting over

Back to the table

Here is a tidy trick that prevents future headaches: route contacts through your Google Account so they live in the cloud and follow you to any future phone. The transfer tools copy contacts for you, but if anything looks incomplete, do this on the iPhone before you put it away:

1. Open Settings, then Calendar (or Contacts), then Accounts.
2. Tap Add Account, choose Google, and sign in.
3. Turn on the toggles for Contacts, Calendars, and Mail.

Now your iPhone pushes those into Google, and your Android phone, already signed into the same Google Account, pulls them down within a minute or two. Email is the easy part: install Gmail, Outlook, or whatever you used, sign in, and your mail is there. If you want to compare the options before settling, see the best email apps for Android. Apple Notes deserve special mention because they are a common sticking point; we wrote a focused walkthrough on migrating your Apple Notes that covers the iCloud-versus-on-device trap.

Plenty of newer phones have no SIM tray, so your number lives as an eSIM, a digital SIM stored in software. Moving it is the one part that is not automatic, because iPhone and Android handle eSIM differently and cannot pass it directly to each other.

What happens instead: your carrier issues a new eSIM profile for the Android phone. In practice that means one of three things.

• In the carrier's app. Most major carriers let you start a transfer or activation from their app or website. Look for "transfer eSIM," "set up on a new device," or "activate eSIM."
• A QR code. The carrier emails or shows a QR code; on Android you scan it under Settings, then Network and internet, then SIMs, then Add SIM (the wording is similar on Pixel and Samsung).
• A quick call or store visit. If self-service is not offered, the carrier provisions it for you.

Two cautions. If your old number was on a physical SIM, you may be able to convert it to eSIM, but not every carrier allows that. And if your Android phone has no eSIM hardware, ask the carrier for a physical SIM card instead. Either way, plan a short window where your number might be inactive, and do not destroy the old SIM until calls and texts work on the new phone.

Knowing the gaps before you hit them means nothing feels like a loss later.

• Paid apps. An App Store purchase does not carry to Android. You re-download the Android version; many are free or cheaper there, though some you may buy again. Subscriptions tied to your account, like Netflix or Spotify, just work once you sign in.
• Passwords. iCloud Keychain passwords do not auto-import. Before switching, you can export them from the iPhone (on iOS 18 and newer that lives in the standalone Passwords app, under File and then Export Passwords; on older iOS it sat in Settings) and import the file into Google Password Manager, or move to a password manager that runs on both systems.
• Safari bookmarks. Sign into Chrome on the iPhone first so they sync to your Google Account, then they appear in Chrome on Android.
• Apple Health data. Years of step counts and workouts stay locked to Apple Health. Export tools exist, but there is no official bridge to Google's health platform.
• iMessages already on the iPhone. A cable transfer copies existing text and iMessage threads, but future blue-bubble chats become standard texts.
• Files and iTunes music. Loose files and iTunes purchases need a manual copy, easiest through a computer or a cloud drive.

None of this is dramatic once you expect it. The pattern holds throughout: anything tied to your Google Account flows freely, anything locked to Apple's world needs a deliberate hand-off.

The big move is done. Spend a few minutes over the first week making the phone yours.

1. Confirm texts work both ways. Have an iPhone-using friend message you and check it arrives. If it does not, revisit the iMessage step above.
2. Set your default keyboard. Android lets you choose, which iOS never did so freely. Settings, then System, then Keyboard. If the stock one feels off, the best keyboard apps for Android are worth a try.
3. Pick a texting app and learn RCS. Google Messages is the standard, and RCS gives you read receipts and typing dots with other Android users, and now with iPhones too. Browse the best messaging apps for Android for options.
4. Tidy the home screen. Long-press an empty spot to add widgets and change wallpaper. If you miss the iPhone's tidy grid, a launcher reshapes the whole layout; see the best launcher apps for Android.
5. Re-download your essential apps from the Play Store and sign in. Banking, ride-share, and streaming apps all exist here.
6. Set up payments. Add your cards to Google Wallet so you can tap to pay, the same habit you had with Apple Pay.
7. Review battery and privacy. Settings, then Battery, shows what is draining power; Settings, then Security and privacy, lets you tune app permissions.

Give yourself a few days. Muscle memory takes about a week to catch up, and after that the phone simply feels like yours.

Checked 4 September 2026: the guide walked through four apps without linking any of them or quoting a single figure from their listings, and had no table and no dated line. All four now carry fact lines read today. The numbers are worth seeing side by side, because the two apps that actually perform the transfer are the two worst rated of the four: Android Switch at 4.0 stars from 1,251,308 reviews and Samsung Smart Switch at 3.9 stars from 529,163 reviews, against WhatsApp at 4.6 and Google Photos at 4.4. All four are free and none carries the Contains ads label.