How Can I Transfer Messages From Iphone To Iphone

How to Transfer Messages from iPhone to New iPhone

You can transfer messages to a new iPhone 13 with 5 proven ways here. Transfer messages from iPhone to iPhone with or without backup, with or without iCloud/iTunes.

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iPhone to iPhone Transfer Tips

I have a brand-new iPhone. How can I transfer messages from my iPhone X to iPhone 13, because I don't want to lose the text messages? Is it possible to transfer only messages instead of the whole backing up and restoring process?" Thanks for sharing.

— A User from Apple Support Communities

Apple released the new iPhone 13. When you get a new iPhone, the first thing you need to do is to transfer data from the old iPhone to the new one. And of course, text messages (SMS) or iMessages are always something you don't want to leave behind. In this tutorial, we will share with you 5 ways to move messages from iPhone to iPhone wholly or selectively: including the iCloud & iTunes way, as well as AnyTrans.

Export iPhone Messages/iMessages with AnyTrans
Transfer Text Messages to New iPhone with iCloud Backup
Transfer Text Messages from iPhone to iPhone without Backup
Copy Messages between Two iPhones with iTunes
Transfer Messages to New iPhone With Phone to Phone Tool
Trouble Shooting: Messages Didn't Transfer to New iPhone

How to Transfer Messages from iPhone to iPhone without iCloud

This is a new way to get old messages on the new iPhone, the tool we will use is AnyTrans. It works on both Mac and Windows PC, and it's compatible with all iPhone models including the latest iPhone 13, as well as iOS 15. Check some of its main features on iPhone Messages management:

AnyTrans – iPhone Message Transfer

Copy messages from iPhone to iPhone without iCloud.
Fix messages didn't transfer to a new iPhone quickly and easily.
No harm to the existing content. No need to erase anything.
Export iPhone messages to computers for print and backup.

Now, free download AnyTrans on your computer firstly, then follow the simple steps below totransfer text messages to new iPhone without iCloud/iTunes, or any backup:

Step 1. Launch AnyTrans > Connect your two iPhones to the computer with USB cables. AnyTrans will detect the two devices automatically > Click the "Phone Switcher" button > Choose Phone to iPhone.

Choose Phone to iPhone to Migrate

Step 2. Make sure the transferring is correct by checking the target device (the right one). And then click "Next".

Transfer Data from One iPhone to Another with AnyTrans

Step 3. Choose Message among various types of data, and click "Next" to transfer all messages to your new iPhone. (Or you need to update backup first.)

Select Messages to Transfer

Tip: View and Export Messages from iPhone to Computer

How do I transfer messages from iPhone to computer? For those who want to save iPhone text messages to a computer as a backup, iTunes is helpful. You can make an iPhone backup with iTunes on the computer, and it will include messages. However, it's impossible to open and view those iPhone text messages from your iTunes backup.

A new way to try is using AnyTrans. It helps transfer iPhone messages to PC or Mac, and in a readable format like PDF, HTML, TXT. With the one-click export feature, all iPhone messages with attachments will be exported to the computer in different folders as you need. Here is a step-by-step tutorial that tells you How to Save iPhone Messages to PC/Mac Computer >

Save iPhone Text Messages to PC/Mac

[Video Tutorial] Transfer Messages from iPhone to iPhone with AnyTrans

Transfer Messages from iPhone to iPhone with iCloud Backup

Does iCloud backup messages? The answer is YES. The messages, including text messages and iMessages, are all included. To transfer messages from iPhone to iPhone with iCloud please follow the steps below:

Connect both your old iPhone and new iPhone in charge and Wi-Fi connection.
On your old iPhone, go to Settings >[Your Name] > Tap iCloud.
Turn on iCloud Backup (for iOS 10 & ealier: Settings > iCloud > Storage & Backup).
Tap on the Back Up Now option to backup your old iPhone including messages.
On your new iPhone. If it is a new one and hasn't been activated, tap Restore from iCloud Backup.
If it has already been set up, you need to ease all the content and settings on your iPhone: Settings > General > Reset > Erase All Content and Settings > Erase iPhone > Set up and activate your iPhone again > Select Restore from iCloud Backup > Select the back you just created.
Wait for the restoring process to finish, and all the messages on your old iPhone will be transferred to the new one.

Restore Photos from iCloud Backup

You should know:

Transferring messages from iPhone to iPhone 12 highly depends on a Wi-Fi connection. If your iPhones are under poor Wi-Fi connection, the transferring process may be quite time-consuming, or worse, the transferring process gets interrupted.
the iCloud restoring process involves erasing all existing contents from your new iPhone. That's to say, if there are some data on your new iPhone, they will be deleted during the transfer.
Besides messages, all other unwanted content like contacts, settings will also be transferred to your new iPhone.

Also Read: What Does iCloud Backup Include >

Transfer Text Messages from iPhone to iPhone without Backup

Besides, since iOS 11.4 was released, Apple has already brought back the Message in the iCloud feature. This feature enables users to share messages across different devices. So you can also apply this feature to transfer messages from the old iPhone to the new iPhone with the iCloud syncing feature (for iOS 12 and later). Here are steps on how to transfer iPhone messages to iPhone without backup:

On one iPhone, go to Settings > Click the account name > Choose iCloud.
Scroll down to locate Messages > Toggle it on if it is not, then all iMessages on it will be synced to iCloud.
Please make sure your iPhone has connected with stable Wi-Fi.
On another iPhone, do the same as above. And then both devices will share all the iMessages.

One thing that needs to mention is that iCloud won't inform you when the sync process is finished, so you need to check the process by yourself.

Sync iMessages from iPhone to iPhone with iCloud Syncing

You should know:

This method only works for those iPhones that are running iOS 12 or later.
With this method, only the iMessages can be synced to another iPhone. In other words, the messages sent by other iPhone users can be moved, if some of your friends or family working with Android devices, their messages won't be moved.

How to Transfer Messages from iPhone to iPhone with iTunes

Detailed steps below to backup and transfer text messages to new iPhone with iTunes:

Make sure that you have the latest version of iTunes > Connect your old iPhone to your computer via USB cable > Launch the iTunes.
Select your iPhone when it appears in iTunes > Click on the Back Up Now option to back up your old iPhone.
After the process completes, you can see if the backup finished successfully on the Summary screen in iTunes.
Open your new iPhone and reach the App & Data screen > Tap on Restore from iTunes Backup. If you already set up your new device, you need to erase it first.
Connect your new iPhone to your computer with a USB cable > Open iTunes on your computer and select your device.
Click on the Restore Backup option > Choose the backup that contains the messages you want to transfer.

Restore from iTunes Backup Screen

You should know:

It backs up the whole device, and restores the whole backup file to the new iPhone. You can't restore only messages via iTunes, it will be a full restore.
Like restoring from iCloud, the files on your target iPhone will be erased firstly. All the data on your target iPhone will be replaced with the files in your iTunes backup.
To transfer messages from iPhone to iPhone 12 with iTunes, you need to back up messages from the old iPhone, and then restore your messages to the target iPhone.

How to Transfer Messages to New iPhone with PhoneTrans

PhoneTrans is a phone to phone data transfer tool. It provides you three modes to quick transfer, clone iPhone, or merge iPhones. And you can full backup or selective backup iPhone and restore them. What's more, PhoneTrans allows you to transfer WhatsApp/Line/Viber data and more apps to your new iPhone.

To transfer messages to the new iPhone with the phone to phone app:

Step 1. Back-Up Old iPhone

1. Get PhoneTrans installed on computer > Launch it and tap on Phone Backup > Here you can choose to selectively back up messages only or full back up iPhone, we take full backup as an example to avoid data loss.

Choose to Full Backup your Device

2. Confirm the device you need to back up and click Back Up button. Then you can view the types of data that will be backed up on your old iPhone and head to Back Up Now.

Full Backup your Old iPhone

3. Then you can view the types of data that will be backed up on your old iPhone and head to Back Up Now.

View the Data Type and Back Up Now

Step 2. Restore Messages to New iPhone

1. Once the backup is finished, go to Phone Restore > Confirm the backup data and your new iPhone's name > Click Selective Restore.

Confirm the Backup and your Target Device to Selective Restore

2. Now, you can select messages to sync to your new iPhone.

Select Messages to Transfer to New iPhone

Trouble Shooting: Messages Didn't Transfer to New iPhone

I am transferring my iPhone X to iPhone Xs Max. My messages on the new phone stop about six weeks before today. All of the messages prior to that did transfer. The missing messages are still on my iPhone X and on my iMac. How do I get them back on my new phone?

— A User from Apple Support Communities

Some users report that messages on their old iPhone didn't transfer to the new iPhone. And here are some tips you can try if you have the same problem:

Make sure you have turned on iMessage sync in the iCloud preferences: Go to Settings on iPhone > Tap your Apple ID > iCloud > Turn on Messages.
Make sure both iPhones are logged in with the same iCloud account.
Enable Wi-Fi on both iPhones. It may take some time if there are lots of data to sync.
Try resetting iPhone: Go to Settings app > General > Reset > Reset All Settings.

Also Read: How to Transfer Messages from iPhone to iPhone without iCloud >

The Bottom Line

As you can see, that's all about transferring messages between two iPhones. In addition, if you want to transfer more data to your new iPhone, or to the computer, and vice versa, you can download the free trial of AnyTrans to give it a try. If you have any problems with iPhone transferring, please leave a comment and we are happy to help.

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Member of iMobie team as well as an Apple fan, love to help more users solve various types of iOS & Android related issues.