How to Backup and Restore Android Apps and Data

If you’ve ever had an old phone die on you for good, you surely kicked yourself for not having a backup. Or maybe you got a new Android phone, and you want to restore your old data to it.

No matter the reason why you want to back up data, it’s fortunately really easy. Once you’ve done so, you can restore data to your Android device in the future should you need to so that you can get all your apps back.

Below are directions showing you exactly what to do. You can backup Android device data to your Google account or locally to your phone’s storage (i.e., internal storage), which you can then move elsewhere if you decide to later. These steps work on nearly any Android device, especially modern ones that run the latest Android version.

How to Backup Android Phone?

There are two methods we’ll cover here: Google’s backup feature that’s built-in to Android will backup Android apps and their data to your Google cloud storage account, and a third-party tool called Backup and Restore – APP & SMS will backup the actual Android apps (as APK files).

How to Backup Android Apps & App Data With Google’s Method

This is the easiest way to backup your Android phone’s apps because it doesn’t require you to download a separate app. All the steps take place right there on your phone, in the Settings app.

Here’s what to do:

1. Open the Settings app.
2. Go to Google > Backup.
3. Tap system backup option called Back up now, or Backup by Google One if you’ve never done an Android backup like this before.

Google will always backup your phone over a Wi-Fi network automatically whenever your phone is idle and charging. Not all your data is saved using this backup restore method, but here’s a partial list: an app’s data, texts, pictures, app settings, Google contacts, and more.

Note that you can’t restore a backup from a higher Android version onto a phone running a lower Android version. Also, not all apps will backup, depending on how you downloaded them.

How to Backup Android Apps With ‘Backup and Restore’

Another backup option is to use the Backup and Restore – APP & SMS app from the Google Play Store. Use this method if you want to make backups of your apps (not their data, just the apps). There are multiple apps that can get the job done, but we especially like this one because of how easy it is to use. And it’s totally free!

1. Install that Android backup app, open it, and choose Allow access to manage all files.
2. Select the apps you want to backup, or select the checkbox at the top right to select all your Android apps.
3. Select Backup to save those Android apps to the default path on your phone. Or, select Google Drive and give it permission to access your Google account so your Android device apps will backup to your online Google Drive account.

If you don’t want to manually upload files, you can instead set up automatic backups for your Android phone apps through app settings. Turn on Auto Backup to have every newly installed app sync automatically with the destination location. You can also pick the specific apps you want to be backed automatically.

How to Restore Data and Apps from Backup?

Now that Google is storing your apps, app settings, and app data in your Google account, you can easily restore said information if you’re setting up a new phone or performing a factory reset. Or, to restore just the apps, you can use the backup you made with Backup and Restore.

How to Recover Missing & Deleted Apps on Android

If some of your apps are gone because you accidentally deleted them, or because you had to reset your phone, you now have two ways to recover them, depending on what, exactly, you want to restore. When you’re done, all the previously backed up data will be restored.

Here’s how to restore the apps you backed up with the third-party app:

1. Open the Archived tab in the Backup and Restore phone app.
2. Select the apps you want to restore, and then tap Restore.
3. Choose YES to confirm that you want to start the restoration process.
4. If you get a security message, select Settings to open the Settings app, and then Allow from this source > Install. The app will install to your device.

To restore data you backed up to Google Drive using your phone’s built-in backup function is possible only during the initial setup process when you first are configuring your new phone. This might be the case if you’re starting fresh after a factory reset or if you just got a new device.

Just follow the on screen steps. Here’s how:

1. Tap Start when you first turn on your new phone.
2. Agree to the conditions on the screen, connect to Wi-Fi when asked, and then tap Next > Can’t use old device.
3. Sign in to the same Google account you used when you first backed up the data. This is the backup account the backup will download from.
4. Choose the backup from the list, and then tap Restore. All your apps and app data will download to your device again, just like it was at the time of the backup.

How to Recover Deleted Files on Android

There are several ways to recover important data that you didn’t have the foresight to backup, but the method you use depends on whatever it is that’s been removed. If it’s a Google Drive file, you’ll need to open that app. Otherwise, you might need to look in Google’s Files app, or Google Photos, etc. (Note that you can’t recover app settings this way, only deleted files.)

If you were working in Drive, open that app and then follow these steps:

1. Tap the three-lined button at the top left to pull out that menu.
2. Select Trash from the list.
3. Tap the three-dot button to the right of the file you want to recover. Or, select the file name to highlight more than one file simultaneously.
4. Select Restore. If you chose more than one file, use the three-dot menu at the top right of the app to recover all the deleted files at once.

Android devices with downloaded files that have been deleted or lost, can be recovered through the Files app. The process is very similar to how it’s done with Drive:

1. From any tab in the Files app, tap the three-lined menu at the top left.
2. Choose Trash.
3. Select the items you want to restore.
4. Select Restore at the bottom.

Google Photos is another place that houses backup data, specifically images and videos. If those data types are in your online backup, you can uncover them from the Google Photos app:

1. Open the Google Photos Library tab.
2. Tap Trash from the options at the top.
3. Tap-and-hold the items you want to recover from the backup, and then choose Restore.
4. Tap Restore once more to confirm.

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