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Move WhatsApp to a new phone – Android, iPhone and switching between the two

Ali Cetinkaya Last updated:

This guide is for anyone with a new smartphone who wants to take their WhatsApp chats, groups and media with them – whether from Android to Android, from iPhone to iPhone or across the border between the two worlds. We show the six routes in the order in which WhatsApp, Google, Apple and Samsung describe them on their help pages: backup and restore via your Google Account, the QR-code transfer between iPhones, the cable route from iPhone to Android, the «Move to iOS» app from Android to iPhone, preparing an end-to-end encrypted backup and the special case of a new number. To be upfront: this is not a hands-on test of our own but a review of the help pages of WhatsApp, Google, Apple and Samsung, the WhatsApp blog and a weekly review by Switzerland's National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC, known in German as BACS), all checked on 5 November 2026.

Checked with: Checked on 5 November 2026 against the Google help page «Transfer WhatsApp data to a new Android» (Android and iPhone editions) and «Switch to a new Android device», the Samsung UK help page «How to back up or restore WhatsApp data on your Samsung Galaxy phone» (updated 21 July 2026) and the Samsung Germany help page «WhatsApp Chats auf ein neues Handy übertragen» (dated 4 September 2026), the Apple support pages «Move from Android to iPhone or iPad» (UK edition, 28 October 2026) and «Use Quick Start to transfer data to a new iPhone or iPad» (UK edition, 17 September 2026), the WhatsApp help pages on chat transfer (iPhone to iPhone, Android to iPhone, iPhone to Android) and «About changing phones», and the WhatsApp blog posts of 2 September 2021 (updated 20 July 2022), 25 April 2023, 30 October 2025 and 26 March 2026. Menu names are taken from WhatsApp's, Google's, Apple's and Samsung's English help pages. Two exceptions: the local backup folder, the daily backup time and the route for changing your number («Settings» > «Account» > «Change number») are documented only on Samsung's German page, so those menu names are our rendering of the German labels and are not checked against an English help page; and WhatsApp's own page «About changing phones» was readable for us only in German, so the registration buttons are quoted from Samsung's UK page instead.

Contents

  1. 1. Step by step
  2. 2. Three rules before you start
  3. 3. What comes along – and what does not
  4. 4. Cloud backup or direct transfer?
  5. 5. Which devices and versions
  6. 6. Fraud risk around the registration code
  7. 7. DealsScout's take
  8. 8. Good to know
  9. 9. FAQ
  10. 10. Sources

Step by step

Choose your device or app:

Android → Android: Google Account backup or direct transfer

Checked against the Google help page «Transfer WhatsApp data to a new Android» (Android edition), the Google help page «Switch to a new Android device», the Samsung UK help page «How to back up or restore WhatsApp data on your Samsung Galaxy phone» (updated 21 July 2026) and Samsung's German page on the same subject (4 September 2026), all on 5 November 2026. Google and Samsung both call the backup «Chat backup» – it is the same menu item in WhatsApp.

  1. Create a backup on the old phone

    Open WhatsApp on the old phone and tap the three-dot menu at the top right («More» at Google, «More Options» at Samsung). Go to «Settings» > «Chats» > «Chat backup» and tap «Back up» – Samsung describes the fuller route «Back up to Google Drive», choosing a backup frequency and an account, then «Back up». Check which Google Account is listed for the backup: according to Google and Samsung, the same Google Account must be signed in on the new phone, otherwise WhatsApp will not find the backup later. Samsung names further requirements: enough space in Google Drive and on the old phone, and Google Play on the device. Wait until the backup has finished before you put the old phone aside.

  2. Set up the new phone and install WhatsApp

    Set up the new phone with the same Google Account and insert the SIM card or eSIM with your existing number – Samsung writes that the new phone must have the same phone number and Google Account as the original one. Install WhatsApp from the Play Store, open the app and register with the same phone number. Samsung describes the screens: «Agree and continue», enter your phone number, tap «Next», then enter the verification code – according to WhatsApp's help page «About changing phones» it is a 6-digit code. If you have two-step verification turned on, WhatsApp also asks for your PIN – not for the code from the text message.

  3. Restore: from the cloud or directly from the old phone

    After registration, Google says, WhatsApp offers two options: «Transfer from old phone» fetches the chats directly from the old device over Wi-Fi, «Restore from backup» loads them from the cloud backup in your Google Account. Google recommends the cloud if your backup is up to date. If you take the direct route, both phones must be on the same Wi-Fi network and WhatsApp must stay open on the old device until the transfer has finished. A tip from the Google help page «Switch to a new Android device»: while setting up the new phone – when you copy apps and data from the old device – you can have your WhatsApp chats and data transferred along with it.

  4. Grant permissions and wait

    WhatsApp now asks for access to contacts, photos and media – allow it, otherwise pictures and names will be missing later. Samsung describes the sequence as «Continue» in the «Contacts and media» pop-up, «Allow» on the permission prompts and then «Restore»; after that the restore runs. Keep the phone plugged in and on Wi-Fi meanwhile, and do not close WhatsApp. Messages arrive first, media follow: according to Google it can take up to 24 hours until all pictures and videos are on the new device.

  5. Check – and what to do if something is missing

    Open a few older chats and check whether messages and media are there. If messages are missing, check on the old phone when the last backup ran: anything written after that point is not in the backup. Google also warns that chat history from two devices cannot be merged – if you have already written on the new phone and still want to load the old backup, you have to uninstall WhatsApp and set it up again; the messages from the new device are lost in the process. If WhatsApp finds no backup at all, Samsung and Google name the usual causes: a different Google Account, a different number or a backup that never finished on the old device.

Three rules before you start

First: the same number. All of WhatsApp's transfer routes assume that you register the same phone number on the new phone as on the old one. Google puts it unmistakably: WhatsApp data cannot be transferred to a new phone number. If you are changing your number, change it first on the old phone in WhatsApp (tab «New number, old phone, problems») and move afterwards.

Second: a backup as a safety net, even if you may not need it. Samsung's German page says it clearly for the cable transfer with Smart Switch: a cloud backup is not technically required but strongly recommended. If something goes wrong during a direct transfer, you still have today's state. And on every route, the WhatsApp verification code remains the key to the account; if you have two-step verification turned on, you also need your PIN – have it ready. How to set up the second factor at Google, so that the account behind the backup is protected too, is in our guide (→ Set up 2-Step Verification on your Google Account – prompts, app, key or passkey).

Third: do not register WhatsApp on the new phone until the transfer is running or the backup is in place. Samsung describes in its FAQ what happens otherwise: WhatsApp starts on the new device with empty chats, and the old phone is signed out. Google adds that chats from two devices cannot be merged afterwards. So anyone who «just tries out» the new phone and activates WhatsApp in the process has to uninstall the app there and start the transfer from scratch.

What comes along – and what does not

On every route, according to WhatsApp, Google and Samsung, your account information, profile photo, individual and group chats, communities, channel updates, media and settings come along. With an iCloud or Google backup, that applies to the state of the last backup – anything written after it is missing. With a direct transfer, the state is the moment you start the transfer; while it runs, WhatsApp's help page says, sending and receiving messages is paused.

Not transferred, according to WhatsApp's help pages, are call history, payment messages and media you received from channels – that applies to iPhone to iPhone as well as to the switches between Android and iPhone. When moving from iPhone to Android, WhatsApp and Google additionally name the display name and the status, which you set afresh on the new device. Pictures and videos take time when restoring from the Google backup: according to Google, up to 24 hours can pass until all media are there.

WhatsApp Business is a special case: for the Business app, according to WhatsApp's help pages, the chat transfer between iPhones and between Android and iPhone is currently not available. Business users therefore stick to backup and restore within the same platform.

Cloud backup or direct transfer?

The direct transfer – by QR code between iPhones, by cable from iPhone to Android, with the «Move to iOS» app from Android to iPhone – runs between the two devices, according to WhatsApp. WhatsApp writes in its help page that the data is not stored in the cloud as long as you do not create an iCloud backup, and that WhatsApp itself cannot see the transferred data. The blog of 2 September 2021 puts it the same way for the cable route: the messages go directly from one device to the other, not to WhatsApp. That is why we see the direct transfer as the most convenient and at the same time most data-sparing route.

The cloud backup, by contrast, sits with Google or Apple. A normal backup there is not end-to-end encrypted; only with the «End-to-end encrypted backup» can nobody but you read it, and according to the WhatsApp blog of 30 October 2025 that now also works with a passkey instead of a password or 64-digit key. If you create the backup only as a safety net for the move, you can switch it off or encrypt it after a successful switch – or leave it running encrypted, which is what we recommend.

On storage: Google gives no figure on its help page and only requires that the storage in your Google Account is enough for the backup; Samsung writes of «enough space» in Google Drive. Before you switch, check whether there is still room in your Google Account or in iCloud, because with full storage the backup fails, and you may only notice on the new phone.

Which devices and versions

The version limits come from WhatsApp's help pages and the WhatsApp blog: for the switch from iPhone to Android, the Android device needs Android 12 or later – that has been the case since the blog post «Taking Your Chats with You» of 2 September 2021 and is unchanged in the current help page. For the switch from Android to iPhone, Android 5 or later and iOS 15.5 or later are enough; WhatsApp added this route on 20 July 2022, according to the blog. For the QR-code transfer between two iPhones, WhatsApp simply requires the latest iOS and WhatsApp version on both devices.

Both platform switches require the target device to be new or reset to factory settings, because the transfer is part of the initial setup. Google allows 3 to 7 days after setup to catch up on the WhatsApp transfer via Android Switch; Apple writes that an iPhone that has already been set up must be erased so that «Transfer Your Apps & Data» appears again. Samsung devices use Smart Switch for the cable route, Pixel and other Android devices use Android Switch – both lead during setup to the QR code the iPhone scans.

New since spring 2026: in its «New Feature Roundup» of 26 March 2026, WhatsApp writes that the chat transfer feature now also supports moving your chat history from iOS to Android, «in addition to within the same platform». How that differs from the existing cable route is not spelled out in the blog – the help page on switching from iPhone to Android still describes the route with a cable while setting up the Android device, and that is what we stick to.

Fraud risk around the registration code

When you change phones, you receive the 6-digit registration code by text message – and that very code is the target of a scam that is booming in Switzerland right now. Switzerland's National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC, known in German as BACS) reports in its weekly review 43/2026 of 27 October 2026 more than 50 reports in October alone: scammers send links to supposed votes from hijacked accounts, the victims enter their number and the code received by text message on the fake page – and hand over their account with it. A second variant has the victims scan a QR code via «Linked devices». The details and what those affected can do are in our news item (→ Fake voting links hijack WhatsApp accounts: over 50 reports in October – Switzerland's NCSC warns).

For the move, that means: the code belongs only in the WhatsApp app on your new phone, never on a website and never in a chat. With two-step verification turned on, WhatsApp asks for your PIN – that PIN is your second layer of protection if someone intercepts the text-message code. Check it right after the switch, and set up a passkey where WhatsApp offers one; how that works is in our guide to passkeys (→ Set up passkeys – sign in without a password on iPhone, Android and Windows). If you have not yet secured the sign-in details for the Google or Apple account behind the backup, do that before the move (→ Create a strong password – and what is actually secure in 2026).

A look at «Linked devices» is worthwhile after every switch: there you see which computers, tablets or second phones are connected to your account. Anything you do not recognise, sign out. And if the old phone is not wiped immediately, at least leave it locked – after the move it is a fully fledged way into your old chats until you remove WhatsApp from it.

DealsScout's take

The most convenient route is the direct transfer: QR code between iPhones, cable from iPhone to Android, the «Move to iOS» app from Android to iPhone. According to WhatsApp, the data goes directly from device to device, you need no cloud storage, and the transfer is part of the setup you go through anyway. Still: back up first. It takes a few minutes and saves you if the cable wobbles, the Wi-Fi drops or you open WhatsApp on the new phone one step too early. The backup should be end-to-end encrypted – then it is a safety net, not a plain-text archive at Google or Apple.

Two things we expressly advise against: first, third-party migration apps that promise to copy WhatsApp chats between Android and iPhone. Google writes on its help page that other data migration apps are not supported, and Samsung names only Smart Switch or WhatsApp's own routes for the switch. Such apps need full access to your chats, and what they do with them you cannot check. Second, wiping or selling the old phone straight away: check first, then wipe – and wipe completely, SD card included.

As with every guide on DealsScout: this is a review of the help pages of WhatsApp, Google, Apple and Samsung, not a hands-on test of our own. Menu names can differ slightly depending on the device maker, the Android interface and the app version; where we only had a German source, the English name is our rendering. If your screen shows something other than what is described here, searching for the word «Chat» in WhatsApp's settings usually helps.

Good to know

  • Remember the order: back up on the old phone, then set up the new phone, then register WhatsApp and restore. If you open WhatsApp on the new device too early, Samsung says, it starts with empty chats and signs the old phone out.
  • Same Google Account, same number, same SIM: according to Samsung and Google, those are the three most common reasons when WhatsApp reports «no backup found».
  • Keep both devices plugged in and on Wi-Fi until the bar has finished – WhatsApp, Google and Apple all require that on every direct route. If the connection drops, restart both devices and begin again.
  • Media arrive later: according to Google, it can take up to 24 hours after restoring from the Google backup until all pictures and videos are there – do not wipe the old phone straight away.
  • Turn on the encrypted backup: «Settings» > «Chats» > «Chat Backup» > «End-to-end encrypted backup». Store the password or 64-digit key in your password manager; according to the WhatsApp blog of 30 October 2025, it is gradually becoming possible with a passkey too.
  • Never pass on the 6-digit code – not on a voting page, not in a chat. NCSC Switzerland counted more than 50 reports of hijacked accounts in October 2026 (→ Fake voting links hijack WhatsApp accounts: over 50 reports in October – Switzerland's NCSC warns).
  • Changing your number? Always do it first on the old phone under «Settings» > «Account» > «Change number» – otherwise the chats stay tied to the old account, which according to WhatsApp is deleted after 45 days of inactivity as soon as someone activates the number again.
  • A second phone instead of a move: up to four additional devices can be connected to the account via «Linked devices», according to the WhatsApp blog of 25 April 2023 – handy if the old phone stays in use for a while.

FAQ

Can I move WhatsApp to a new phone without a backup?

Yes, with the direct transfer: between two iPhones by QR code («Settings» > «Chats» > «Transfer Chats to iPhone»), from Android to Android via «Transfer from old phone» over Wi-Fi, from iPhone to Android by cable while setting up the Android device, and from Android to iPhone with the «Move to iOS» app. According to WhatsApp, the data goes directly from device to device. Samsung still strongly recommends a cloud backup as a safety net – and so do we, because without a backup there is no second attempt if something breaks off.

Do I need the same number on the new phone?

Yes. All of WhatsApp's transfer routes require the same phone number; Google writes expressly that WhatsApp data cannot be transferred to a new phone number. If you want to change your number, change it first on the old phone under «Settings» > «Account» > «Change number» and move afterwards. If you skip that, WhatsApp starts empty with the new number, and the old account is deleted, according to WhatsApp, after 45 days of inactivity as soon as someone activates the old number again.

What do I do if WhatsApp reports «no backup found»?

Check the points Samsung and Google name: is the new phone signed in to the same Google Account as the one you backed up to? Are you using the same phone number? Did the backup on the old phone really run to the end – under «Settings» > «Chats» > «Chat backup» you can see the time? And is there enough storage? If everything is right, uninstall WhatsApp on the new phone and set it up again; WhatsApp only looks for the backup during setup. On Android, the emergency route is the local backup, which according to Samsung you copy from the folder «Android\media\com.whatsapp\WhatsApp» to the new phone via a PC.

How long does the transfer take?

According to Apple and WhatsApp, that depends on the amount of data and the connection – the help pages give no fixed figure. With the direct transfer you see a progress bar, and WhatsApp pauses sending and receiving messages meanwhile. With the Google backup, text messages come first; pictures and videos can take up to 24 hours according to Google. In any case, leave the devices plugged in and on Wi-Fi until everything has finished.

Do photos, videos and voice messages come along?

Yes, media are included on every route according to WhatsApp, Google and Samsung – with a backup, the state of the last backup; with a direct transfer, the state at the start. Not transferred, according to WhatsApp's help pages, are media from channels, call history and payment messages; when switching from iPhone to Android, also the display name and status. Make sure there is enough free storage on the new phone so that the restore does not fail.

Can I move WhatsApp from iPhone to Android if the Android phone is already set up?

Only to a limited extent. The transfer is part of the Android device's initial setup. If you skipped it, Google says you have 3 to 7 days to catch up under «Settings» > «Accounts & backup» > «Android Switch» or with Samsung Smart Switch – provided WhatsApp has not yet been activated on the new device. After that, only a factory reset and a fresh start will help. A Google or iCloud backup does not help here, because the two clouds do not fit each other.

Does the switch also work with WhatsApp Business?

Not via chat transfer. On the help pages for all three direct routes – iPhone to iPhone, Android to iPhone, iPhone to Android – WhatsApp writes that WhatsApp Business is currently not supported. Within the same platform, the Business app is left with backup and restore via your Google Account or iCloud.

Is the cloud backup at Google or Apple secure?

Only with end-to-end encryption. A normal backup sits in your Google Account or in iCloud and is not protected there with a key only you know. If you turn on the «End-to-end encrypted backup» under «Settings» > «Chats» > «Chat Backup», WhatsApp secures it with a password, a 64-digit key or – according to the blog of 30 October 2025, rolling out gradually – with a passkey. Do not forget the key: without it, the backup cannot be restored. The direct transfer bypasses the cloud entirely; according to WhatsApp, the data does not end up in the cloud as long as you do not create an iCloud backup.

What do I do with the old phone?

Check first, then wipe. According to WhatsApp, the chats remain on the old device after every transfer until you remove WhatsApp there or reset the device – that is your safety net in case something is missing on the new phone. If you want to sell the old phone or pass it on, WhatsApp advises deleting all data, including on the SD card. Until then: leave it locked, because with the app on the old device your old chats remain readable. If you want to keep the old phone as a second device, link it via «Linked devices» – according to WhatsApp, up to four additional devices per account.

Our verdict
New phone, old number: your eSIM moves too

Our explainer on eSIM shows how your mobile profile gets onto the new phone – by transfer during setup or with a new QR code from your carrier – and what applies at your carrier, in Switzerland, say, Swisscom, Sunrise or Salt, and where changing devices costs something.

Read the eSIM explainer

Sources

Ali Cetinkaya
Founder & editor

Ali Cetinkaya is a business IT specialist with more than 15 years of experience in IT and online marketing. For DealsScout he evaluates plans, tools and deals – honestly, transparently and without jargon.

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