01/27/2015 Updated on  03/28/2018|Verizon News Archives

How to transfer contacts & photos to your new phone

Easily transfer contacts, photos, messages and more to your new phone using Verizon’s Content Transfer app.

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UPDATE: Motorola Migrate does not work with the latest versions of Android. Keep reading to learn how to easily transfer your files no matter which type of device you have.

Ah, those exciting first few moments with a brand new phone. You’ve removed it from the packaging, charged it up and activated it on Verizon. Then, you go to make your first call or send your first text and you realize... your contacts aren’t there!
 
In the past, you’d have to re-enter your contacts one by one and transfer pictures from one phone to the other individually by using picture messages. What a pain.
 
These days, whether you’re switching from Android to iOS on an iPhone or vice versa, it’s easy to transfer contacts, call logs, photos, videos, music files and messages to your new phone.
 
In this article we’ll explain how to move contacts, messages and media the easiest way possible depending on your situation.
 

If you’ve been backing things up to the cloud, you should be good to go.

If you’ve been backing up your contacts and media to a cloud service, like Verizon Cloud, iCloud or Google Cloud, then accessing content from your new phone will be super easy. 
 
Any content that you've already backed up to the cloud will be accessible on your new phone once you log back in to your cloud. Simple as that.
 

Don’t have a cloud account? Then use the Content Transfer app to transfer contacts, photos and other files.

Android and iOS both have native services that will assist you in moving your files between devices when you power up the device for the first time. But Verizon also makes it easy to move content from your old phone to your new phone with the Content Transfer app. 
 
The Content Transfer app lets you move personal media (photos/videos/music), as well as contacts, call logs, calendars, reminders and text messages quickly and easily from your old device to a new one. 
 
You can transfer files for free using Wi-Fi.* There’s no need for special wires or a mobile data connection.
 
It works whether you’re transferring iPhone to iPhone (like from the iPhone 6s to the iPhone 8) or from Android to Android (like from the LG V30 to the Samsung S9) or a combination of the two (like from the Google Pixel to the iPhone X).
 

Here’s how to use Verizon’s Content Transfer app:

Before you start, make sure you've backed up your old device. Then activate your new device. And then…
  1. Download the Content Transfer app on both your old phone and your new phone. (Your old device will still be able to connect to its app store via Wi-Fi.)
  2. Open the app on each device, choose your device types and follow the steps to link your phones.
  3. Select the content you’d like to transfer – contacts, messages, pictures, music, etc.
  4. That’s it. Grab a snack while the app does its thing.
It’s as easy as that. Within just a few moments, you’ll have all your important files, contacts, and whatever else you transferred available on your new phone.
 
Then you can make calls to your contacts, listen to your music and text away using your brand new device.
 

Tips for moving files from your old phone to your new phone using Verizon’s Content Transfer app:

  • Make sure both phones are plugged in – or charged up – before you start the transfer.
  • Depending on the amount of data you're about to move, this can take a few minutes. So find a place where you and your phones won’t be disturbed.
  • If you’re using a microSD storage card with your new phone, save a step by inserting the card and setting it as the default storage location on your new phone before you transfer your files.
 

What about transferring content between basic phones that don’t have Android or iOS?

If you have basic phones, you can use the Verizon Wireless Backup Assistant and Backup Assistant Plus to transfer, backup and restore content.
 
For more information, go to our Backup Assistant Plus FAQs.
 

How to transfer personal data if you’re not a Verizon Wireless customer

Not a Verizon customer? You can use an app from your device’s manufacturer. Although Motorola Migrate is no longer supported for the latest versions of Android, Samsung and LG both offer content transfer apps for Android. Specific features vary, but both apps are similar to Verizon’s Content Transfer app.

 

*Data usage applies for app download and use if transferring files over Verizon's network.

 
 

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