How to Back Up Your Android Phone Without Root (2026)

Originally written by Teja, updated by Dibyajyoti Kabi. First published April 16, 2017. Updated October 24, 2026.

To back up your Android phone without root, turn on Google backup in Settings and tap Back up now. That saves your apps, app data, call history, contacts, texts and settings to your Google account. Add Google Photos for your pictures, and you’re covered.

Samsung Galaxy owners also get Samsung Cloud and Smart Switch, which save even more. I’ll show you every method, what each one saves and what it misses, and how to keep an offline copy on your PC.

Back up your Android phone without root

Key points

Google backup is built into every Android phone with Play services. It saves apps, app data, call history, contacts, SMS and MMS, and device settings.
Google backup doesn’t save your photos and videos. Turn on backup in Google Photos for those.
Samsung Smart Switch on a PC makes a full offline backup of a Galaxy phone, including photos, messages and home screen layout.
You can’t restore a backup made on a newer Android version onto a phone running an older one.
The old adb backup command is limited since Android 12 and isn’t a reliable way to back up anymore.

What does Google backup save on Android?

Google backup saves your installed apps and their data, call history, contacts, SMS and MMS messages, device settings like Wi-Fi networks and wallpaper, and photos and videos if Google Photos backup is on. It’s free and uses your Google account storage. Some apps opt out, so not every app’s data comes back.

Here’s a quick look at what each method covers.

Method	Apps and app data	Contacts	Texts	Photos and videos	Needs a PC
Google backup	Yes, for most apps	Yes	Yes	Only with Google Photos	No
Google Photos	No	No	No	Yes	No
Samsung Cloud	Some	Yes	Yes	No	No
Smart Switch on a PC	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
Copying files to a PC	No	No	No	Yes	Yes

The full list is on Google’s Android backup help page.

How do I back up my Android phone to Google?

Open Settings, find Backup, turn on Backup and tap Back up now. On a Pixel, the path is Settings > Google > All services > Backup. On a Samsung Galaxy, it’s Settings > Accounts and backup > Google Drive > Back up data. The first backup takes a few minutes over Wi-Fi.

Here’s how it goes on a Google Pixel.

Open Settings and tap Google.
Tap All services, then tap Backup.
Turn on Backup if it’s off.
Tap Back up now.
Wait until the screen shows the time of your last backup.

And on a Samsung Galaxy phone.

Open Settings and tap Accounts and backup.
Under Google Drive, tap Back up data.
Turn on Backup if it’s off.
Tap Back up now.

If you can’t find the menu, search for “Backup” in the Settings search bar. The exact name shifts a little between Android versions and phone makers.

How do I back up my photos and videos?

Open Google Photos, tap your profile picture, then tap Photos settings > Backup and turn Backup on. Every photo and video in your camera folder uploads to your Google account. To include WhatsApp images or screenshots, tap Back up device folders and pick those folders too.

Choose Storage saver if you’re short on Google storage. It shrinks the files a little but saves a lot of space. Original quality keeps every pixel and counts against your 15 GB of free Google storage the same way.

Google explains both options on the Google Photos backup help page.

How do I back up my contacts?

Contacts saved to your Google account sync on their own, so there’s nothing to back up. Check by opening contacts.google.com on a PC. For an offline copy, open the Contacts app and export everything to a .vcf file, then save that file somewhere safe.

To make a .vcf file in Google Contacts on a Pixel:

Open the Contacts app.
Tap Fix & manage at the bottom.
Tap Export to file.
Pick the Google account and save the file.

On a Samsung Galaxy phone, open the Contacts app, tap the menu, then Manage contacts > Import or export contacts > Export. You can also export from the web, as Google’s contacts export page shows.

Contacts saved only to the phone or SIM don’t sync to Google. Move them to your Google account in the Contacts app, or they won’t come back after a reset.

How do I back up my text messages?

Google backup already saves your SMS and MMS messages, so most people don’t need anything else. If you use Google Messages with RCS, your chats come back from the same backup. Samsung Messages users can also back up texts to Samsung Cloud.

Want a copy you can open on a PC? SMS Backup & Restore saves your texts and call logs as a file on your phone or in Google Drive. It’s handy when you switch to a phone from a different maker.

WhatsApp is separate. Open WhatsApp > Settings > Chats > Chat backup and tap Back up, or your chats won’t move with the rest of your data.

How do I back up a Samsung Galaxy phone?

On a Galaxy phone, go to Settings > Accounts and backup > Back up data under Samsung Cloud, choose what to save and tap Back up now. For a full backup with your photos and home screen, use Smart Switch on a Windows PC or Mac. Both work without root.

Samsung Cloud saves your call log, messages, contacts, calendar, settings and home screen layout. It doesn’t keep your Gallery photos, and Samsung Gallery’s direct OneDrive sync ended on September 30, 2026, as Microsoft’s notice explains. Use Google Photos or Camera backup in the OneDrive app for your pictures.

Smart Switch on a PC is the most complete backup you can make on a Galaxy phone. Here’s how.

Install Smart Switch for PC or Mac from Samsung’s site.
Connect the phone with a USB cable and tap Allow on the phone.
Click Backup in Smart Switch.
Choose what to back up, or leave everything ticked.
Wait until Smart Switch says the backup is done.

To restore, connect the phone again and click Restore. Samsung explains both methods on its backup and restore page.

How do I copy files from my phone to a PC?

Connect the phone to your PC with a USB cable, pull down the notification shade and tap the USB notification. Choose File transfer, then open the phone in File Explorer on Windows. Copy the DCIM, Download, Documents and Pictures folders to your PC. On a Mac, use Android File Transfer or OpenMTP.

This is the simplest offline backup there is. It doesn’t save apps or settings, but it keeps a copy of your photos and files that doesn’t depend on any cloud account.

If Windows doesn’t see the phone, install the USB driver for your phone and try a cable that carries data.

Can I use adb backup to back up my phone?

Not really. Google deprecated adb backup years ago, and since Android 12 it no longer copies app data for most apps. The Android 12 behavior changes page explains the restriction. Use Google backup, Smart Switch or a manual file copy instead.

adb is still useful to pull files off a phone with a broken screen, as long as USB debugging was already on. My guide on Minimal ADB and Fastboot shows how to set it up.

How do I restore my backup on a new phone?

Sign in with the same Google account during setup on the new phone and pick your backup when the phone asks. Your apps, contacts, texts and settings come back on their own. On a Samsung phone, you can also restore from Samsung Cloud or Smart Switch during setup or later.

You can only restore a backup onto the same or a newer Android version. A backup from a phone on Android 16 won’t restore onto a phone still on Android 15, so update the new phone first if the option doesn’t show up.

What if I have root or TWRP?

If your phone has an unlocked bootloader and TWRP, a Nandroid backup saves the whole system, including your ROM and every app exactly as it is. My guide on making a Nandroid backup with TWRP walks you through it.

For everyone else, the methods above cover what matters. Most people never need more than Google backup and Google Photos.

FAQ

Does Google backup save my app data?

For most apps, yes. Google backup saves app data for apps that support Android backup, which covers most popular apps. Some apps opt out, like banking apps and a few games, so check those apps for their own backup or cloud sync before you reset the phone.

How much storage does Google backup use?

App data, settings, contacts and texts usually take less than a gigabyte. Photos and videos are what fill up your storage. Google gives you 15 GB free, shared across Gmail, Drive and Photos, and Google One plans add more.

Is Samsung Cloud free?

Yes. Samsung Cloud backup is free on Galaxy phones for things like contacts, messages, call logs and settings. Photos aren’t part of it, so use Google Photos or Camera backup in the OneDrive app for your pictures.

Do I need root to back up my Android phone?

No. Google backup, Google Photos, Samsung Cloud, Smart Switch and copying files to a PC all work on a phone without root. Root only matters for a full system backup like a Nandroid backup in TWRP.

That’s it. Turn on Google backup, turn on Google Photos, and copy your files to a PC now and then, and you’ll never lose much when a phone dies.

Not sure your backup worked? Leave a comment with your phone model (like SM-S938B or Pixel 9 Pro) and what you see on the Backup screen, and I’ll help you check it.

How to Back Up Your Android Phone Without Root