Switching to a new smartphone is always an exciting moment. But the joy of a new thing can be overshadowed by the thought: "How can I transfer all my data now?" Photos from the last 5 years, saved passwords from social networks, the history of correspondence in instant messengers, favorite playlists and application settings - all this needs to be transferred to a new device. without loss and failures.

Fortunately, Android offers several reliable ways to migrate data. However, not all of them are equally effective. For example, synchronization via Google Account does an excellent job with contacts and calendars, but is helpless in front of local files or corporate mailboxes. And the transfer by Bluetooth can take hours if we are talking about tens of gigabytes of media files. In this article we will look at all current methods —from standard tools to little-known life hacks—and also tell you how to avoid common mistakes.

⚠️ Important: Before starting the transfer, check whether there is enough space on the new device. For example, if the old phone has 64 GB of memory, and the new one has only 32 GB of memory, some of the data will have to be transferred selectively or use cloud storage.

Also note that some manufacturers (Samsung, Xiaomi, Huawei) offer proprietary utilities for migration (for example, Smart Switch or Mi Mover). They are often more effective than universal solutions, but only work within one ecosystem. This is discussed in a separate section.

1. Method: Synchronization via Google Account (the simplest, but not universal)

If you actively use services Google, this method will save you a lot of time. The data is synchronized automatically, and on the new phone you just need to log in to your account. However, the method has critical limitations:

✅ What is transferred:

  • 📇 Contacts (including numbers, email and notes)
  • 📅 Calendars and reminders
  • 📝 Notes from Google Keep
  • 🎵 Music and podcasts from YouTube Music/Google Play Music
  • 📁 Files from Google Drive (if they were stored there)
  • 🔑 Passwords from Google Password Manager
  • 📍 Data Google Maps (favorite places, travel history)

❌ What NOT is transferred:

  • 📷 Photos and videos (if they are not uploaded in Google Photos)
  • 🎮 Game saves (except for games with cloud saving)
  • 📱 System settings (wallpaper, sound profiles, gestures)
  • 💬 History of correspondence in instant messengers (WhatsApp, Telegram, Viber)
  • 📄 Local files (documents, archives, APK)

🔹 How to enable synchronization on an old phone:

  1. Open Settings → Accounts → Google.
  2. Select your account and click Account synchronization.
  3. Activate the switches next to the desired categories (contacts, calendar etc.).
  4. Wait for synchronization to complete (you can check manually by clicking More → Synchronize now).

🔹 How to restore data on a new phone:

  1. When you turn it on for the first time, select the option Copy data i log in to the same Google Account.
  2. If the phone is already set up, go to Settings → Accounts → Add account → Google and log in.
  3. Wait for the data to automatically load (it may take from a few minutes to an hour).
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If you do not see some contacts on the new phone, check if they are displayed in another account (for example, SIM cards or Samsung AccountTo do this, open the application Contact). click on the three dots in the upper right corner and select Display contacts from

2. Method: Transfer by cable (fast and reliable, but requires adapters)

Use USB cable. data-i="104">no dependence on the Internet (or adapter USB-C/USB-OTG) is one of the fastest ways to transfer large amounts of data. Suitable for photos, videos, music, documents and even some applications. The main advantage is no internet dependency, and the transfer speed is 10-50 times higher than with Bluetooth or Wi-Fi Direct.

🔹 What you will need:

  • 🔌 Cable USB-C — USB-C (or USB-A — USB-C with adapter OTG)
  • 📱 Both phones with at least a charge 50%
  • 🛠️ There should be enough space on the new phone

🔹 Step-by-step guide:

  1. Connect the old phone to the new one using a cable. On the screen of the old device, select the mode File transfer (MTP).
  2. On the new phone, open the notification USB connection and select File transfer.
  3. Open any file manager (for example Files by Google or a standard application Files).
  4. In the section Devices or USB drive you will see the folders of the old phone. Copy the necessary data (usually these are folders DCIM for photos, Download for downloads, Pictures for images).
  5. Insert the files into the appropriate folders on the new phone.

⚠️ Attention: Some manufacturers (for example, Huawei or Xiaomi) block access to system folders through MTP. In this case, you will have to use alternative methods - for example, SD card or FTP server.

DCIM folder (photos and videos)|Download folder (downloads)|WhatsApp folder (backups correspondence)|Documents folder|Ringtones folder

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🔹 How to transfer applications:

APK files of applications themselves can be copied, but they are not available. will work for a complete transfer, use:

  • 📲 Google Play: on the new phone, go to Library → Installed and click Install for the desired applications.
  • 🔄 Titanium Backup (requires root): creates backup copies of applications with data.
  • 📦 APK Extractor: extracts APK files from installed applications (but without data!).
📊 Which data transfer method do you use most often?
Via Google Account
By cable
Via SD card
By Bluetooth/Wi-Fi
Special applications

3. Method: Using an SD card (for phones that support memory expansion)

If both of your phones support microSD, this method will be an excellent solution for transfer large amounts of data without depending on the Internet or cables. However, keep in mind that modern flagships (for example, Google Pixel or OnePlus) often lack a slot for memory cards.

🔹 Advantages of the method:

  • 🚀 High transfer speed (up to 90 MB/s on UHS-I cards).
  • 🔄 You can use the card as temporary storage.
  • 📱 Suitable for phones without USB-OTG.

🔹 Disadvantages:

  • 💾 A free memory card or the ability to format is required.
  • 📁 Not all data can be transferred (for example, system settings).
  • ⚠️ Risk of data loss when removing the card during recording.

🔹 Instructions:

  1. Insert microSD into the old phone.
  2. Open the file manager and copy the necessary folders (DCIM, Download, WhatsApp etc.) to the card.
  3. Remove the card and insert it into the new phone.
  4. Copy the data from the card to the internal memory of the new device.

⚠️ Attention: If you are transferring data WhatsApp, do not just copy the folder WhatsApp, and follow the official instructions of the messenger. Otherwise, the chat history may not be restored!

How to transfer WhatsApp from one SD card to another?

1. Make a backup of your chats in WhatsApp (⋮ → Settings → Chat → Backup).

2. Copy the folder WhatsApp from the internal memory to the SD card.

3. Insert the card into the new phone and transfer the folder back to the internal memory.

4. Install WhatsApp on a new phone and restore chats from a backup.

4. Method: Wireless transfer (Wi-Fi Direct, Bluetooth, NFC)

If you don’t have a cable or SD card on hand, you can get by wireless technologies. However, this method is only suitable for small amounts of data (up to 1–2 GB), since the transfer speed leaves much to be desired.

🔹 Comparison of technologies:

Technology Speed Max. volume Energy consumption Suitable for
Wi-Fi Direct 5–10 MB/s Unlimited Average Photos, documents, music
Bluetooth 5.0 1–2 MB/s ~500 MB Low Contacts, small files
NFC ~400 KB/s ~10 MB Minimum Contacts, links, text

🔹 How to transfer data via Wi-Fi Direct:

  1. Enable on both phones Wi-Fi i Wi-Fi Direct (usually in Settings → Connections → Wi-Fi → Wi-Fi Direct).
  2. On the old phone, select a new device from the list of available devices and confirm the connection.
  3. Open the file manager, select the required files and select the option Send → Wi-Fi Direct.
  4. On the new phone, confirm reception files.

🔹 How to transfer contacts via Bluetooth:

  1. Open the application Contact on your old phone.
  2. Click on the three dots (⋮) and select Import/Export → Export.
  3. Select format .vcf and send the file via Bluetooth.
  4. On the new phone, accept the file and import contacts.

⚠️ Attention: When transferring via Bluetooth file names may be truncated, and some characters (for example, Cyrillic) may not be displayed correctly. Before sending important documents, rename them to Latin.

5. Method: Special applications for migration (for advanced users)

If standard methods are not suitable, they come to the rescue third-party applications. They allow you to transfer not only files, but also messages, calls, application settings and even game data. However, be careful: some utilities require root access or may contain advertising.

🔹 Top 5 applications for transfer data:

  • 📲 Cloneit - copies contacts, messages, multimedia, calendars and even data WhatsApp (requires installation on both phones).
  • 🔄 Send Anywhere - transfers files of any size via Wi-Fi Direct or the cloud (generation of a 6-digit code for synchronization).
  • 📦 Xender - free application for transferring files, photos and applications (without root).
  • 🖥️ Samsung Smart Switch - official solution for phones Samsung (even transfers wallpaper and screen settings).
  • 📱 Mi Mover - utility from Xiaomi for migration between devices of this brand (includes data Mi Account).

🔹 How to use Cloneit:

  1. Install the application on both phones from Google Play.
  2. On the old phone, select Sender, on the new one - Receiver.
  3. Connect to the same network Wi-Fi or create a point access.
  4. On your old phone, select categories of data to transfer (messages, contacts, photos, etc.).
  5. Wait for the process to complete (may take up to 30 minutes depending on the volume).

Important: Applications like Cloneit or Smart Switch can transfer data WhatsApp, but only if the messenger is not yet installed on the new phone. If you are already logged into your account, the chat history will not be restored!

💡

Proprietary utilities (for example, Samsung Smart Switch or Huawei Phone Clone) often work faster and more reliably than universal applications. If both of your phones are the same brand, use the official software.

6. Method: Cloud storage (for backup and synchronization)

Cloud services like Google Drive, Yandex Disk or Dropbox are convenient because they allow you to save data on the Internet download them to a new phone at any time. However, this method has two disadvantages: limited space (usually 5-15 GB for free) and dependence on Internet speed.

🔹 How to transfer data via the cloud:

  1. On an old phone install a cloud storage application (for example, Google Drive).
  2. Upload the necessary files to the cloud (you can archive folders to speed up).
  3. On the new phone, log in to the same account and download the files.

🔹 Life hack to save traffic:

If you have slow Internet, upload data to cloud at night or through Wi-Fi in public places (cafes, libraries). You can also use Google Photos to automatically download photos and videos to compressed quality (free and without volume limitations).

⚠️ Attention: Some files (for example, backups WhatsApp) can weigh tens of gigabytes. Before downloading, check if you have enough space in your cloud storage. In Google Drive only 15 GB is available for free, and in Yandex Disk - 10 GB.

7. Transferring data from specific applications (WhatsApp, Telegram, games)

Some applications store data locallyand need to be transferred separately. Let's look at the most popular cases.

🔹 WhatsApp:

To transfer correspondence history:

  1. On your old phone, open WhatsApp and make a backup: ⋮ → Settings → Chat → Backup.
  2. Copy the folder WhatsApp (located in the internal memory) to the new phone.
  3. Install WhatsApp on the new phone, log in and restore chats from the backup copies.

🔹 Telegram:

The Telegram chat history is stored in the cloud, so you just need to log into your account on a new phone. However local files (downloaded media) will have to be transferred manually through the folder Telegram.

🔹 Games:

Game saves are transferred in different ways:

  • 🎮 Games with cloud saving (for example, Clash of Clans or Brawl Stars): just log into the same account Google Play Games or Game Center.
  • 💾 Games with local saving (for example, Minecraft): you need to copy the folder games or Android/obb.
  • 🔧 Games with root access: use Titanium Backup to create a backup copy of application data.

8. What to do if the data is not transferred or is lost?

Even with the most careful transfer, problems may arise. Let's look at typical situations and their solutions.

🔹 Problem: Contacts are not displayed on the new phone.

Solution:

  • Check whether contact synchronization is enabled in Settings → Accounts → Google.
  • Make sure that the contacts are saved in Google Accountand not on the SIM card or in the phone memory.
  • Import contacts manually from a file .vcf (if you did export).

🔹 Problem: Photos and videos are not copied or are damaged.

Solution:

  • Check the file format (some phones do not support HEIC or RAW).
  • Use a file manager that supports integrity checking (for example, Solid Explorer).
  • Transfer files in small batches (500-1000 pieces) to avoid failures.

🔹 Problem: Applications are not restored from backup.

Solution:

  • Make sure that the same one is on the new phone version Android (or later).
  • Check if it is blocking Google Play Protection installation from unknown sources (Settings → Security).
  • For games with local saves, copy the folders Android/obb and Android/data manually.

⚠️ Attention: If you use Titanium Backup or other applications with root-rights, be careful: restoring system data on a phone with a different firmware may lead to crashes!

— Battery charge on both phones (at least 50%).|— Availability of free space on the new device.|— Compatibility of Android versions (for example, a backup from Android 12 may not be restored to Android 9).|— Availability of backup copies of important data (in case of failure).

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FAQ: Answers for frequently asked questions

🔹 Is it possible to transfer data from Android to iPhone?

Yes, but the process is more complicated. Use the application Move to iOS from Apple (available in Google Play). video, email accounts and calendars. However, applications and their data will have to be installed again.

🔹 How to transfer SMS from one Android to another?

Standard tools Android do not synchronize SMS. Use applications like SMS Backup & Restore:

  1. Install the application on the old one. phone.
  2. Make a backup copy of your messages.
  3. Transfer the backup file to a new phone (via cable, cloud or SD card).
  4. Install the application on the new phone and restore SMS.

🔹 Why are some applications not installed on the new phone?

Possible reasons:

  • 📱 Incompatibility with the version Android (check in Google Play).
  • 🌍 Regional restrictions (some applications are not available in your country).
  • 🔒 Blocked by the manufacturer (for example, Huawei without Google Services).
  • 📦 Damaged APK file (download the application again).

🔹 Is it possible to transfer data from a broken phone?

If the screen does not work, but the phone turns on, connect it to the PC via USB and copy the data manually. If the phone does not turn on, try:

  • 🔌 Connect to charging and hold the power button. 20–30 seconds (sometimes it helps to start the device).
  • 📱 Extract SD card (if the data is on it) and read it on another device.
  • 🔧 Contact the service center to extract data from the internal memory.

🔹 How to transfer Wi-Fi settings and passwords?

Passwords from Wi-Fi can be transferred in several ways:

  • 🔄 Via Google Account: if enabled on the old phone synchronization Wi-Fi Settings, passwords will be automatically updated to the new device.
  • 📋 Manually: look at the password in the router settings or on the sticker on it.
  • 📱 Using applications like WiFi Password Viewer (requires root).