Transfer data from your previous device to a Pixel phone

You can pair your previous Android or Pixel device with your new Pixel phone to transfer data wirelessly, with a cable, or both. Based on your connection, your Pixel phone automatically detects the best option for data transfer.

Step 1: Pair your devices

1. Turn both your existing Android and new Pixel devices on.
2. On your Pixel phone, tap Pixel or Android device.
3. On the notification on your Android device, tap Set up.
   • A QR code scanner appears.
   • To scan the QR code manually, you may also open your Camera app.

4. To scan the QR code on your new Pixel phone, use your previous Android or Pixel device.

Step 2: Prepare your new Pixel

1. Set up your SIM.
   • If available, download an eSIM from your carrier. To download, follow the prompts on the screen of your Pixel phone. Learn how to set up an eSIM.

2. On your Pixel, enter the screen lock code of your previous Android device.
   • Your Google Accounts transfer.

Step 3: Transfer data from your Android device

Important: For Pixel 9 and later, you can transfer data from your current device in the initial set up and add additional data post setup. Learn how to add data after initial setup.

You can transfer data through a QR code transfer method or Wi-Fi transfer.

Use a QR code (Recommended)

To choose the data that you want to transfer from your current Android device, follow the on-screen instructions. Learn more about items you can transfer to your Pixel.

Important: If you want to transfer data with a USB-C cable, on the “Copy apps & data” screen, tap on the image 5 times. You can do this even if you haven't paired your phones yet.

Step 1: Insert your SIM card (if applicable) & turn on your Pixel phone

1. Insert your SIM card. Learn how to get and insert a SIM card.
   • If you use an eSIM, download your eSIM. Learn how to set up an eSIM.

2. Turn on your Pixel phone.
3. Tap Get Started.

Tip: If you’ve inserted a physical SIM card, your device automatically applies your language and accessibility settings.

Step 2: Connect your previous Android device to your Pixel phone

You can transfer data through:

• Your previous Android device with a cable, which is recommended
• A Wi-Fi connection

Use Wi-Fi

Important: To transfer data with Wi-Fi, your previous Android device should run on Android 5 or later, and your Pixel phone should run on Android 12 or later.

1. On your Pixel phone, when asked to “Copy Apps & Data,” tap Next Copy your data.
2. When asked to “Use your old device,” tap Next.
3. When asked to “Find your old phone’s cable,” tap No cable? Copy without cable.
4. On your previous Android device, open the notification to set up your new device.
5. On your new Pixel phone, choose how to transfer your data.
   • To transfer your Google Account and backed up data, tap Express.
   • To only transfer select data, tap Customize.
     1. Turn off what you don't want.
     2. Tap Copy.

Tip: Express Transfer copies all of the same data as Custom Transfer as long as the data is backed up in your Google Account.

Important: For Pixel 9 and later, you can transfer data from your current device in the initial set up and add additional data post setup. Learn how to add data after initial setup.

Data type	During setup Transfer	Post-setup data transfer
Google Accounts	Yes	Yes
Device-stored data Music, photos, and videos* Recordings For Pixel to Pixel only Contacts on your device or a SIM card Call history Messages including RCS, SMS/MMS Documents and downloads	Yes	Yes
Apps Play-downloaded apps and app data App notification preferences and statistics	Yes	Yes
Wallpaper and Widgets	Yes	Yes
Preferences and settings Saved Wi-Fi networks Sound and vibration settings, and ringtones SIM settings Conversations Device rules Clock settings and Alarms Now Playing history Safety and Emergency settings Blocked numbers Autofill settings	Yes	Depends on setting
Cloud-synced data (Make sure you're signed into the same Google Account) Email Contacts Calendar events Password Manager and Passkeys from Google Learn more about Google Password Manager and Passkeys Synced photos, videos, music, and recordings Any other information associated with your Google Account	Yes	Yes
What doesn’t automatically transfer to your Pixel Other services data* Non-Google Accounts and their data, which includes contacts and calendar events If backed up, LINE contacts and full history of chat conversations Learn how to back up your chat history WhatsApp chat history If you signed into the service on your Pixel device, your subscription services such as Spotify or Fitbit Downloads such as PDF files Photos, videos, and music stored in hidden or locked folders Apps that aren’t from the Google Play Store Data from apps that don't use Android backup Non-Google Accounts and their data Contacts and calendars synced to services other than Google Ringtones Certain device settings that can vary by device and Android version App permissions	No	No

*Some third-party apps and data may not be transferred automatically. Learn about data you can’t transfer in setup.

Use no QR code & a cable

Important: To connect your old phone and new phone, you'll need to use a USB-C cable.

Transfer data with a cable to Pixel 8 and later

1. On your new Pixel phone, when prompted to “Copy data from your Android device,” tap 5 times on the screen.
2. Tap Next.
3. Turn on and unlock your previous Android device.
4. Connect your devices with a USB-C cable:
   • If you need to use a Quick Switch Adapter, plug the adapter into your Pixel phone. Learn more about Quick Switch Adapters.

5. On your Android device, follow the on-screen instructions.
6. On your Pixel phone, you can find a list of your data.
   • To transfer all your data, tap Copy.
   • To only transfer select data:
     1. Turn off what you don't want.
     2. Tap Copy.

Tips:

• If your device recommends it, use a cable for your data transfer.
• You can transfer data with a USB-C cable even if you haven't paired your devices yet.
• Some apps need time to download and install and may take time to show up.

Transfer data with a cable to Pixel Fold, Pixel 7 Pro, and earlier

1. On your Pixel phone, when asked to “Copy Apps & Data,” tap Next Copy your data.
2. When asked to “Use your old device,” tap Next.
3. Plug one end of your Android charging cable into your previous Android device.
4. Plug the cable's other end into your new Pixel phone.
   • If you use a Quick Switch Adapter, plug the adapter into your Pixel phone.
5. On your previous Android device, tap Trust.
6. On your new Pixel phone, choose how to transfer your data.
   • To transfer your Google Account and backed up data, tap Express.
   • To only transfer select data, tap Customize.
     1. Turn off what you don't want.
     2. Tap Copy.

If you're on a new Pixel phone, click here for support:

Contact Pixel onboarding help

• Google Messages: It can take up to 24 hours for the Google Messages app to fully index and display your history. Keep the phone plugged in during this "post-transfer lag."
• Google Photos: Check if they were stored in the cloud. To find synced content, log into the same Google Account in the Google Photos app.
• WhatsApp: If history didn't transfer, make sure you use the same phone number. On your old device, turn on the cloud backup within the WhatsApp app.

If you encounter issues during transfer, try these steps:

• Check for app updates: On both devices, update Google Messages to the latest version. On your old device, set it as your default messaging app.
• Use a cable for iOS: To transfer messages (including text messages and iMessages) and apps, use a cable. Wireless transfers that use the Android Switch app from the Apple App Store won’t include messages.
• Wait for indexing: It can take up to 24 hours for a large volume of messages to fully index and appear in the app list. To verify if the data has arrived, you can search for a known message by keyword.
• Check storage: Data transfer may pause if your new Pixel phone's storage is full.
• Retry with Android Switch: To copy any missing data after setup, use the Android Switch tool in settings.

When prompted to transfer data, tap Skip. Learn how to set up a child account on your Pixel device.

If you don’t have a compatible cable, you can still transfer some of your data from your iPhone and use the Switch to Android app. Learn how to use the Switch to Android app to transfer without a cable.

If your device is an iPhone X or earlier, you can use a USB-C to Lightning cable or a Quick Switch Adapter. Learn how to request and use a Quick Switch Adapter.

Learn how to use dual SIMs on your Google Pixel phone.

Fix issues with data transfer on a new Pixel phone.

If you can't use your previous device or don't have a cable that fits, learn how to fix issues with data transfer.

If you didn't transfer your data when you first turned on your device, learn how to fix issues with data transfer.

• Finish setup notification: If it has been less than 72 hours since setup and you get a “Pixel setup isn’t done” notification, tap it to complete the process.
• Restore anytime: You can transfer data and merge it with your current device content without a factory reset.
  1. On your new Pixel phone, open the Settings app.
  2. With Android Switch, tap Back up or copy data Copy data.

If you skipped the transfer or need to try again because it failed:

1. On your new Pixel phone, open the Settings app.
2. Tap Back up or copy data Copy data (Restore Anytime).

Tip: If you transfer from iOS, to make sure messages are included, use a cable.

To make sure all photos, including those in iCloud optimized storage, transfer correctly:

• Sync through Google Photos app: On your previous iPhone, install the Google Photos app and turn on backup. This syncs both local device photos and iCloud photos to your Google Account, which makes them visible on your new Pixel phone.
• Apple data transfer:
  1. Sign in with your Apple ID at privacy.apple.com.
  2. To move your media directly to Google Photos, select Request to transfer a copy of your data.
     • This process typically takes 3–7 days.

Important: RCS is now available for Android and select iPhone devices, provided by Google or your carrier under your carrier's terms of service.

Rich Communication Services (RCS) is a modern industry standard for messaging and enables more dynamic and secure conversations than SMS and MMS. Learn how to turn RCS chats in Google messages on or off.

If you use Google Password Manager, it’s already installed on your new device. Learn more about Passkeys.

If you use iCloud to store your passwords or Passkeys, you need to log in to your apps and services manually.

Export passwords to another password manager on iPhone.

• Deregister iMessage: Before the transfer, you must turn off iMessage and FaceTime in your iPhone settings. If you’ve already completed the transfer, deregister your phone number at selfsolve.apple.com/deregister-imessage. This makes sure that new messages reach your Pixel phone instead of disappearing into the Apple cloud.

• Cable connection: For iPhone-to-Pixel transfers, WhatsApp history requires a cable connection during initial setup. You must choose to transfer apps and make sure to select WhatsApp.
• App backup: On your old device, in the WhatsApp settings, turn on cloud backups. Then you can restore your history when you first launch WhatsApp on your new Pixel.

• Google Play Store only: Only apps installed from the Google Play Store will transfer. Sideloaded apps or those from other stores (like the Galaxy Store) must be installed manually.
• iOS app matching: If a direct match isn't found for an iOS app, you can search the Google Play Store for the app or a comparable alternative.
• Paid apps: Paid apps from the Apple App Store won’t transfer. You'll need to repurchase them from the Google Play Store.

Tip: For transfers that involve more than 60 GB of data, make sure both devices are fully charged and connected by a USB cable. This is to prevent connection drops or battery depletion during the process.