How to Manually Trigger an iCloud Backup on iPhone and iPad?

Shreyas Patil SEO
Shreyas PatilUpdated :
How to Manually Trigger an iCloud Backup on iPhone and iPad?

Backing up your iPhone or iPad to iCloud is one of the best ways to protect your data. iCloud automatically backs up your device each day when it's charging, on WiFi, and locked. However, you may want to manually trigger a backup before updating your iOS version, before erasing your device, or just for extra peace of mind. Luckily, it only takes a few taps to manually start an iCloud backup on your iPhone or iPad.

iCloud.com


When You Should Manually Trigger a Backup

  • Before installing a major iOS update
  • Before erasing or replacing your device
  • Before sending your device in for repair
  • When you haven't backed up in awhile and want to update your backup

Requirements for iCloud Backups

To manually trigger an iCloud backup, you need:

  • An iPhone or iPad running iOS 5 or later
  • iCloud Backup turned on in Settings
  • Your device connected to a WiFi network
  • Enough available iCloud storage for the backup size
  • Your device locked and plugged in to power

How to Check Your iCloud Backup Status

Before manually forcing a backup, you should check the status of your last backup. Here's how:

  1. Open the Settings app on your iPhone or iPad.
  2. Tap your name at the top of the screen.
  3. Tap iCloud.
  4. Tap iCloud Backup.

This will show you the date and time of your last successful iCloud backup, the total size of your backup, and what apps are included.


Starting a Manual iCloud Backup

If your last backup is out of date, you can force your device to back up immediately by following these steps:

  1. Plug your iPhone/iPad into power and connect to a WiFi network.
  2. Go to Settings > [your name] > iCloud > iCloud Backup.
  3. Tap "Back Up Now".
  4. Stay plugged in with the screen locked until the backup completes.

Your device may estimate how many minutes or hours until the backup is complete based on your connection speed and backup size.


Checking Backup Progress

To check the progress of your on-demand backup:

  1. Go to Settings > [your name] > iCloud > iCloud Backup.
  2. Look under "Backing up" to see the progress wheel and time remaining.

Don't unplug your device until the progress reads "Last Backup: Just now" and shows a green dot next to it. This confirms your new up-to-date iCloud backup is complete.


Troubleshooting Backups

If your on-demand backup won't start or complete, try these troubleshooting tips:

  • Check that you have enough iCloud storage available. Upgrade your plan if needed.
  • Make sure your device is plugged into power. It needs to stay plugged in to complete.
  • Connect to a better WiFi network or use ethernet if possible.
  • Restart your device and try the backup again.
  • Toggle iCloud Backup off and then on again.
  • Update your iOS software in case of a bug with backups.

Quick Tip to ensure your videos never go missing

Download PicBackMan

Videos are precious memories and all of us never want to ever lose them to hard disk crashes or missing drives. PicBackMan is the easiest and simplest way to keep your videos safely backed up in one or more online accounts. Simply Download PicBackMan (it's free!), register your account, connect to your online store and tell PicBackMan where your videos are - PicBackMan does the rest, automatically. It bulk uploads all videos and keeps looking for new ones and uploads those too. You don't have to ever touch it.


Alternative Backup Methods

If iCloud backups aren't working, you can also back up your iPhone or iPad using iTunes on a computer. Simply connect your device to your computer and click "Back Up Now" in iTunes. This will save a backup of your device data to your computer instead of iCloud.


Conclusion

Backing up your iPhone or iPad before making any major changes ensures you have a recent copy of your important data. Manually forcing an iCloud backup only takes a minute and provides peace of mind. Now you know how to check your last backup status, start an on-demand backup, monitor progress, and troubleshoot any issues.



Frequently Asked Questions

Q: How do I make sure my photos are included in my iCloud backup?

A: Go to Settings > [your name] > iCloud and make sure Photos is toggled ON under Apps Using iCloud. This ensures your entire iCloud Photos library is included in backups.

Q: Can I back up while my iPhone is still in use?

A: No, your iPhone needs to have the screen locked and be connected to power for a manual iCloud backup to run. This prevents interruption of the backup process.

Q: What takes up the most space in my iCloud backup?

A: Photos and videos usually make up the bulk of an iCloud backup. You can check your storage under Settings > [your name] > iCloud > Manage Storage to see what's using space.

Q: How can I speed up my iCloud backups?

A: Back up over WiFi instead of mobile data for faster throughput. Also close all apps on your iPhone before backing up so the backup isn't interrupted.

Q: What if I need more iCloud storage for backups?

A: You can upgrade your iCloud storage plan at any time to allow for larger device backups. Just go to Settings > [your name] > iCloud > Manage Storage > Buy More Storage.

Q: Can I back up my iPhone without iCloud?

A: Yes, you can backup to a computer instead using iTunes. Connect your iPhone, open iTunes, and click "Back Up Now". This saves backups locally rather than to iCloud.

World's #1 Photo/Video Uploader

Backup & Transfer your Photos in Minutes

Automate backup & migration of your photos & videos with support for all top services.

(283 reviews)

Trusted by users in 125+ countries.

95,000+ PicBackMan Users

95,000+ Users Trust PicBackMan To Backup Precious Memories

money back guarantee
Kip Roof testimonial Kip Roofgoogle photos flickr
PicBackMan does exactly what it's supposed to. It's quick and efficient. It runs unobtrusively in the background and has done an excellent job of uploading more than 300GB of photos to 2 different services. After having lost a lot of personal memories to a hard drive crash, it's nice to know that my photos are safe in 2 different places.
Julia Alyea Farella testimonialJulia Alyea Farella smugmug
LOVE this program! Works better than ANY other program out there that I have found to upload thousands of pictures WITH SUB-FOLDERS to SmugMug! Thank you so much for what you do! :) #happycustomer
Pausing Motion testimonialPausingMotionsmugmug
I pointed PicBackMan at a directory structure, and next time I looked - all the photos had uploaded! Pretty cool. I use SmugMug and while I really like it, the process of creating directories in is pretty laborious when you need to make 80+ at a time. This was a breeze. Thank you!
Gavin Whitham testimonialGavin Whithamflickr
PicBackMan was really easy to setup and has been running for 3 days now backing up all my locally saved photos to Flickr. My photos are really valuable to me so it's great to be able to have them easily backed up to a secure location.
 Jim Griffin testimonialJim Griffinsmugmug
It's AWESOME!! I have tens of thousands of pictures...and they are now successfully uploaded to SmugMug, where they are safely backed up, and I can edit and organize them. If you are hesitating about using PicBackMan, hesitate no longer...try it...and you'll be glad you did!!
close icon
World's #1 Photo/Video Uploader

World's #1 Free Photo/Video Uploader

PicBackMan has everything you've ever wanted to backup your photos or migrate/transfer from one account to another. No feature left behind!

(283 reviews)
Trusted by users in 125+ countries.
  • Maintain Folder StructureMaintain Folder StructureUpload to your online accounts & keep your folder structure as you have it.
  • Sub-folder SupportFolders & their sub-folders are automatically picked up.
  • Smart De-dupeDe-dupes photos before uploading so you don’t have duplicate copies.
  • AutomaticPicBackMan monitors & automatically uploads from connected folders.
  • PrivacyPrivacyAll uploaded photos & videos are always marked as private by default.
  • RAW FilesComes with support for RAW files for uploads as well as transfers.

“Your pictures are scattered. PicBackMan helps you bring order to your digital memories.”

the wall street journal
close icon
One Uploader for All Services

One Uploader for All Services

PicBackMan is the only tool you will need to backup to one or more of the top online photo and video services.

(283 reviews)
Trusted by users in 125+ countries.
Google Photos

Google Photos

Flickr

Flickr

SmugMug

SmugMug

Dropbox

Dropbox

Google Drive

Google Drive

pCloud

pCloud

OneDrive

OneDrive

youtube

Youtube