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How Do I Move Everything from Android to iPhone?
The official way is a free app called Move to iOS — and it moves most of your life, honestly labeled.
What actually transfers
- Contacts — everyone in your Google or phone address book.
- Message history — your SMS/MMS texts, carried over as conversations.
- Photos and videos — your camera roll, if both phones have space for it.
- Mail and calendar accounts — your Gmail and other accounts get re-added to the iPhone's apps.
- WhatsApp chat history — in most countries, Move to iOS brings your chats (including media) across.
- Some free apps — apps that exist on both Google Play and the App Store and support the transfer feature can be matched; after the move, you download the matched ones from the App Store.
- Bookmarks, wallpaper, and a few settings — small but nice-to-have extras.
What does not transfer (the honest boundary)
- App data and logins. The apps install, but you sign in again. Anything stored inside an app — game progress, notes in a third-party app, downloaded files — stays on Android unless that app has its own backup.
- Music from outside Apple. Music you bought on Google Play or stream from Spotify doesn't "move"; you re-add your Apple Music subscription or transfer files manually to your computer.
- Most passwords. You sign into apps again on the iPhone. Wi-Fi passwords aren't part of the official Move to iOS list, so plan to re-join your home network on the iPhone. A password manager makes all of this painless if you use one.
- Anything that only exists inside a specific app — that app's cloud is the only way to bring it over.
This isn't a flaw in the process; it's how two different systems work. Knowing the boundary means no nasty surprises on the other side.
Before you start
- Keep both phones charged — the transfer can take a while, and a dead phone mid-move is the classic frustration.
- Put the new iPhone on a good Wi-Fi network (or let it set up its own transfer network with the Android phone — Move to iOS handles this automatically).
- Install Move to iOS from the Google Play store on your Android phone while you still have it. You can transfer over Wi-Fi, or — on iPhones and Android phones that support it — connect the two phones with a USB-C cable for a faster transfer (you may be asked to adjust USB settings on the Android phone).
- Make sure there's room on the iPhone for your photos and videos before starting.
The Move to iOS flow, step by step
- Start setting up the iPhone. When it asks "Move Data from Android," tap it (it appears early in setup).
- On the Android phone, open Move to iOS and follow the prompts. It shows a six-digit code.
- Enter that code on the iPhone — the two phones now talk over a private Wi-Fi connection.
- On the Android phone, choose what to move (contacts, messages, photos, WhatsApp, and more), then tap Continue.
- Leave both phones alone until the iPhone says the transfer is done. How long depends on how much you're moving.
If setup on the iPhone is already finished, you have two options: erase the iPhone and start over to use Move to iOS, or move things manually (contacts from your Google account, photos via Google Photos or iCloud, and so on). For most people, the fresh-setup path is worth it — it's the only way WhatsApp history moves automatically.
If the transfer fails or stalls
- Restart both phones and try again — most stalls are temporary.
- Close other apps on the Android phone and keep both on charge.
- Check free space on the iPhone. A full iPhone is the most common cause of a partial transfer.
- For very large photo libraries, it can be smoother to let photos sync separately (Google Photos or iCloud) and move the rest with Move to iOS.
A simple way to decide
If the iPhone is still in setup → use Move to iOS; it's the one path that moves WhatsApp history and messages automatically. If setup is already done → decide whether the WhatsApp/message history is worth erasing and re-setting-up for; if it's not, move the essentials (contacts, photos, mail) manually and move on. Either way, don't clear the Android phone until you've checked what came over.
You probably don't need to
- Pay for a "transfer service." Move to iOS is free and official. Paid tools sell convenience you usually don't need.
- Worry about losing your contacts. They live in your Google account; they'll arrive automatically when you sign in.
- Erase the Android phone on day one. Keep it until you've checked photos, WhatsApp, and contacts on the iPhone.
- Recreate every app setting. Most apps reinstall clean; you re-login and move on.
What to check after the move
- Contacts — open the Contacts app and spot-check a few names.
- Photos — compare photo counts or scroll recent albums.
- WhatsApp — open a chat you care about and confirm history is there.
- Messages — check that old text threads came over.
- Apps — sign in to the ones you use daily; re-add anything missing.
When you can clear the Android phone
Only after everything above checks out. Then it's the same safe-handoff process as any old phone — see When can I safely erase my old iPhone? for the timing standard, and Should I sell, trade in, or keep my old iPhone? for what to do with it next.
What to do next
Something specific didn't come across? Tell us what it was (WhatsApp, photos, an app) via Ask Us and we'll point you to the exact way to get it over.