Mac iphone backup location

Locate backups of your iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch

Find a list of your iOS or iPadOS backups on your Mac, PC, and iOS or iPadOS device. Learn how to delete backups, copy them, and more.

Find backups stored on Mac or PC

Delete or copy backups stored on Mac or PC

Find and manage backups stored in iCloud

Find backups stored on your Mac or PC

To avoid ruining any of your backup files, here’s what you should know:

• The Finder and iTunes save backups to a Backup folder. The location of the Backup folder varies by operating system. Though you can copy the Backup folder, you should never move it to a different folder, external drive, or network drive.
• Don’t edit, relocate, rename, or extract content from your backup files, because these actions might ruin the files. For example, to restore from a relocated backup file, you need to move it back or the file won’t work. Backups serve as a safe copy of your entire device. So while you might be able to view or access a backup file’s contents, the contents usually aren’t stored in a format that you can read.

Search for the backup folder on your Mac

To find a list of your backups:

1. Click the magnifier icon in the menu bar.
2. Type or copy and paste this:

/Library/Application Support/MobileSync/Backup/

Press Return.

To find a specific backup:

1. On a Mac with macOS Catalina 10.15 or later, open the Finder. On a Mac with macOS Mojave 10.14 or earlier, or on a PC, open iTunes. Click your device.
2. In the Finder, under the General tab, click Manage Backups to see a list of your backups. From here, you can right-click on the backup that you want, then choose Show in Finder, or you can select Delete or Archive. In iTunes, choose Preferences, then click Devices. From here, you can right-click on the backup that you want, then choose Show in Finder, or you can select Delete or Archive.
   
3. Click OK when you’re finished.

Search for the backup folder on Windows 7, 8, or 10

1. Find the Search bar:
   • In Windows 7, click Start.
   • In Windows 8, click the magnifying glass in the upper-right corner.
   • In Windows 10, click the Search bar next to the Start button.
2. In the Search bar, enter %appdata%. If you don’t see your backups, enter %USERPROFILE%.
3. Press Return.
4. Double-click these folders: «Apple» or «Apple Computer» > MobileSync > Backup.

Delete or copy backups on your Mac or PC

Don’t edit, relocate, rename, or extract content from your backup files, because these actions might ruin the files. Use the following sections to make copies of your backups or delete backups that you no longer need.

Copy backups to another location

If you need copies of your backups, you can find the Backup folder and copy the entire folder (not just part of it) to another place, like an external drive or network-storage location.

When you use Time Machine, it automatically copies your Backup folder when you back up the Home folder on your Mac.

Delete backups

1. On a Mac with macOS Catalina 10.15 or later, open the Finder. On a Mac with macOS Mojave 10.14 or earlier, or on a PC, open iTunes. Click your device.
2. In the Finder, under the General tab, click Manage Backups to see a list of your backups. From here, you can right-click on the backup that you want, then select Delete or Archive. In iTunes, choose Preferences, then click Devices. From here, you can right-click on the backup that you want, then choose Delete or Archive. Click OK when you’re finished.
3. Click Delete Backup, then confirm.
   

Locate and manage backups stored in iCloud

If you use iCloud Backup, you won’t find a list of your backups on iCloud.com. Here’s how to find your iCloud backups on your iOS or iPadOS device, Mac, or PC.

On your iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch:

• Using iOS 11 or later and iPadOS, go to Settings > [your name] > iCloud > Manage Storage > Backups.
• Using iOS 10.3, go to Settings > [your name] > iCloud. Tap the graph that shows your iCloud usage, then tap Manage Storage.

Tap a backup to see more details about it, choose which information to back up, or delete the backup.

You can choose which content to back up only from the Settings menu of the device that stores that content. For example, while you can view your iPad backup from your iPhone, you can choose which iPad content to back up only from the Settings menu of your iPad.

On a Mac with macOS Catalina 10.15 or later:

1. Choose Apple () menu > System Preferences.
2. Click Apple ID.
3. Click iCloud.
4. Click Manage.
5. Select Backups.

On a Mac with macOS Mojave 10.14 or earlier:

1. Choose Apple () menu > System Preferences.
2. Click iCloud.
3. Click Manage.
4. Select Backups.

1. Open iCloud for Windows
2. Click Storage.
3. Select Backup.

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Where are iPad and iPhone backups stored on PC or Mac?

If you accidentally deleted some information from an iOS device and hope to recover it, an iTunes backup can be a great help.

iTunes backups happen automatically, each time you connect your iPad or iPhone with iTunes (if you didn’t turn on the iCloud Backup option), or manually, when you right-click the device in iTunes and choose ‘’Back Up’’. They are saved on your computer and contain important data, such as contacts, text messages, calendar, notes, call history and app data.

So where are iPhone or iPad backups stored? It depends on which operating system your computer is using, although the default backup location is the same between iOS versions.

Where is the iTunes backup folder on Windows?

iTunes backups are stored in %APPDATA%\Apple Computer\MobileSync on Windows.

On Windows 10, 8, 7 or Vista, this’ll be a path like \Users\[USERNAME]\AppData\Roaming\Apple Computer\MobileSync\Backup .

With Windows XP that’d be similar to \Documents and Settings\[USERNAME]\Application Data\Apple Computer\MobileSync\Backup .

The Microsoft Store version of iTunes is a little different: it stores its backups under %HOMEPATH%\Apple\MobileSync . That’ll be a path like \Users\[USERNAME]\Apple\MobileSync\Backup .

Where is the iTunes backup folder on macOS / OS X?

iTunes backups are stored in

/Library/Application Support/MobileSync on macOS.

That folder is typically at /Users/[USERNAME]/Library/Application Support/MobileSync/Backup .

In macOS 10.15, Finder creates iPhone backups, instead of iTunes. However, these backups are stored in the same location.

How to find the iTunes backup folder automatically

iPhone Backup Extractor automatically finds the iTunes backup folder for you, and can open it with a click. This functionality is in the free version, so this won’t cost a thing.

1. Download and install iPhone Backup Extractor
2. Open the Preferences window from the app’s pull-down menu
3. Select the Backups tab.
4. Where the window says «We always look for backups in your default folder», click the «default folder» link. Easy!

iPhone Backup Extractor showing the default iTunes backup folder

Opening the iTunes backup folder on Windows

Open the default Backup location in Explorer using the Windows Run command. Press ⊞ Win + R and the Run window should appear. Enter %APPDATA%\Apple Computer\MobileSync and press ⏎ Enter .

For the Microsoft Store version of iTunes, you could do this: Press ⊞ Win + R and the Run window should appear. Enter %HOMEPATH%\Apple\MobileSync and press ⏎ Enter .

Here’s what this looks like on Windows 10:

Find iTunes backups on Windows 10

The Explorer window that opens will show a folder named «Backup». This contains any iTunes backups which are already present on the computer.

Finding the iTunes backup folder on macOS

The default backup location can be shown in Finder using Spotlight. Pressing ⌘ Cmd + and type

/Library/Application Support/MobileSync before pressing ⏎ Enter .

The Finder window that opens will show a folder named «Backup». This contains any iTunes backups which are already present on the computer.

Changing the iTunes backup folder location?

If you’d like to change the folder that iTunes backups up to by default, we have a handy guide in our support centre.

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How to Find and Change iPhone Backup Location on Mac

Written By Chloe Turner Last updated: September 1, 2021

Technical Writing Specialist who creates different types of articles, from reviews to how-to types of articles for Mac.

For Mac OS X, an iPhone’s backup file by iTunes constitutes of your photos, media, and identifier data. iTunes harvests backup files in the future to reinstate or synch the iOS device. The mass backups created by the iTunes’ syncs gobble up significant disk space.

Mac users who have put a premium on space thirst for tricks to thwart this usage of the local drive. It entails changing the default backup directory to another location.

This detailed guide will walk you through tricks to change iPhone Backup Location on Mac to back up your iOS to iCloud or iTunes.

Part 1. Where Is iPhone Backup Location on Mac

iPhone Backup Destination for Mac OS X

Where are iPhone backups stored on Mac Catalina? For all versions, Mac, iPhone, iPad, and iPod backup files can be found at

/Library/Application Support/MobileSync/Backup/ . The

sign symbolizes your home directory, the same place where all your personal documents are held.

A backup directory has an esoteric name of hexadecimal; If you want to change iPhone backup location on Mac, do not attempt to change these names mentioned because they may fail in iTunes. You may want to store your own backup clones for jailbreaking. You only need to create backups by duplicating this folder.

The flight path in OS X is by pressing Command+Shift+G key button shortcut and pasting this directory command in the Go To Folder screen. To free more storage space on your Mac, you can relocate old iTunes elsewhere, for example, an external drive.

Warning Tip: Editing or erasing these files may lead to dysfunctional or malformed backups.

Easily Tidy Up Your Mac to Wipeout Duplications in iTunes

Pairing these tricks with a powerful cleaner forges a multi-care arsenal to eliminate iTunes backup remnants. If you want a well-designed tool, give iMyMac PowerMyMac developed for iMac, iMac Pro, MacBook, MacBook Air, and MacBook Pro a try. It’s a quick method to spruce up and organize the iTunes library. It helps you to quickly hunt down and wipe out duplicates in iTunes.

It clears up to 100GB+ iTunes junk on Mac such as outdated iOS device backups, broken downloads, and other pieces of worthless data. Removing clutter frees up the storage space for high dynamic performance. PowerMyMac will do the job without erasing your critical files on Mac. After the scanning, preview to erase useless items like junk, photo litter, mail attachments, iTunes garbage, large, and obsolete files.

Part 2. How to Change iPhone Backup Location on Mac Catalina?

Method 1: Trick iTunes into Storing Backups on An External USB/eSATA Drive

How do I change my iPhone backup location? You can change iTunes backup location to an external hard drive or eSATA drive. To do this, the default location requires a link to a folder titled “Backup” in the external drive. Once you rename the old backup directory, move it to the external drive to save extra storage on the computer. Follow the steps to backup iPhone to external hard drive Mac:

Navigate to the MobileSync directory on Mac by punching out the following path at the Terminal prompt- cd

/Library/Application\ Support/MobileSync .

Retitle the existing iTunes backup directory with the command- mv Backup old-itunes-backup .

Create another iTunes backup folder on the external drive. Substitute «pingo/ios-backup» with the name of the drive and directory- mkdir /Volumes/pingo/ios-backup/Backup .

Enter a symbolic link with the path- ln -s /Volumes/pingo/ios-backup/Backup

/Library/Application\ Support/MobileSync/Backup .

To free up additional disk space, move the old iTunes backup from your Mac to the external drive- mv old-itunes-backup /Volumes/pingo/ios-backup/ .

Next, launch an iTunes backup of your iPhone.

Open Finder and scroll to the external drive. Examine the newly-created backup folder to ensure iTunes successfully processed backup to the new destination.

Method 2: Backing Up to iCloud

Use iCloud if you want to change iPhone backup location on Mac and avoid backing up your iOS to iTunes.

1. Go to your iPhone settings on your home screen while connected to a Wi-Fi network. You need a fast internet network.
2. Tap your name or Apple ID at the top of the display.
3. Tap iCloud near the center of the screen.
4. Enable the iCloud Backup button by turning On. This automatically resets your device to store backups in the cloud.
5. Tap OK to verify. Once authorized, the “Back Up Now” prompt will appear.
6. Tap “Back Up Now” to stream in data to your iCloud account.

Method 3: Change the iTunes Backup Location on A Mac

You can change the iTunes backup location Mac follow these steps:

1. Open iTunes on Mac to back up your iOS to a different directory.
2. Click on the iTunes menu at the top of the screen.
3. Click Preferences to access the Devices Preferences dialog box.
4. Select Preferences for a list of backups to pop up.
5. Press Control and select your iPhone backup. A menu will enlarge.
6. Click “Show in Finder” to show where you have saved backups. A backup folder titled “Backup” or a chain of letters and numbers.
7. Close iTunes by tapping the red circle at the upper left corner.
8. Open a new Finder window to the folder chosen as a backup.
9. Drag the existing folder to the new destination. This is the directory dubbed “Backup” or series of many numbers.
10. Type your admin password to verify. This will duplicate the folder to a new location.
11. To retitle the new backup, right-click the directory, select Rename and enter iOS backup. Press Return to save.

Part 3. Tips to Change iPhone Backup Location on Mac

Tip #1 Reset Terminal Security

You need to authorize the Terminal app permission to implement changes to your Mac before you proceed. Go to the menu; click System Preferences and Security & Privacy. Select Privacy followed by Click the lock to make changes. Choose Full Disk Access in the left panel and hit the + button beneath the app list on the right. Enter terminal into the search field. Select Terminal in the results and click on Open to make your changes.

Tip #2 Link the New Backup Destination

Create a link to the newly-created backup location. Enter a command that signals iTunes to store your backups to the new destination. Enter ln -s /Volumes/NAMEOFHARDDRIVE/ios_backup

/Library/Application\ Support/MobileSync/ at the prompt and hit Return. This generates a folder link in the existing iTunes backup directory titled iOS backup.

Tip #3 Reset Default Location

In order to change iPhone backup location and prevent your iOS from backing up automatically, if you’ve chosen an external hard drive that is detached from your Mac, go to iTunes, click the menu and choose Preferences. Click Devices and access the bar near «Prevent iPods, iPhones, and iPads from syncing automatically«. Click OK and you’re good to go.

Part 4. In Conclusion

In all, it’s possible to tweak iTunes to relocate backups elsewhere. You’ll only need to implement the methods above to store all iOS backup data to the new location. For iTunes, changing the default location has more intensive steps.

Remember not to tamper with the folders by editing or deleting pieces of data. Also, ensure you have the external drive mounted to the computer before processing iTunes backup.

If you have questions or doubts on how to change iPhone backup location on Mac, please drop us a line below, we’ll reply and share with our readers.

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