Three ways from your old iPhone to your new one: Quick Start, an iCloud backup or your computer. Plus: moving your eSIM and WhatsApp, and what to sort out before you sell your old phone.
Door The Phone Shopper
Gepubliceerd: 2026-10-02
A new iPhone is only really ready once everything is on it: photos, apps, your phone number and your WhatsApp chats. When you move from iPhone to iPhone, the phone does most of the work itself. Below you'll find the three ways to transfer, how to bring your eSIM, how WhatsApp comes along and what to sort out before you sell or trade in your old iPhone.
| Method | Handy when | What you need |
|---|---|---|
| Quick Start (iPhone next to iPhone) | Your old iPhone still works and is right there | Wi-Fi and Bluetooth on, both phones on the charger |
| iCloud backup | Your old iPhone isn't at hand, or you want to get going straight away | A recent iCloud backup and a good Wi-Fi connection |
| Backup on Mac or PC | Your iCloud storage is too small or your internet is slow | A cable and a Mac, or a Windows PC with the Apple Devices app |
Apple recommends updating both devices to the latest version of iOS. With a refurbished iPhone this matters even more, because it may arrive on an older iOS version than your old phone. If your backup was made on a newer iOS, you'll see a message asking you to update first. Just follow the steps on screen.
Apple calls this feature Quick Start. It works if your old iPhone runs iOS 11 or later, and for most people it's the fastest route. Pick a moment when you won't need your old iPhone for a while.
Keep the phones close together and plugged in until the transfer is complete. How long it takes depends on the amount of data and your network, so don't start just before you need to leave.
First make a fresh backup on your old iPhone. Open Settings, tap your name, then iCloud, iCloud Backup and Back Up Now. Stay on Wi-Fi until it's done.
After that, photos, apps and music keep downloading in the background, which can take hours or days. So leave your new iPhone on the charger and on Wi-Fi overnight. Already set up your new iPhone? Then you'll need to erase it before you can restore an iCloud backup.
Useful if your iCloud storage is too small. Connect your old iPhone with a cable and open Finder on a Mac, or the Apple Devices app on a Windows PC (iTunes on older systems). Make a backup and turn on encryption for the local backup, so your Health and Activity data come along too. Remember the password: without it you can't restore the backup.
Then connect your new iPhone, select it and choose Restore Backup. Pick the right backup, confirm, and keep the iPhone connected until it has finished syncing after the restart.
During setup, your new iPhone usually asks whether you want to transfer your phone number. Follow the onscreen steps with your unlocked old iPhone nearby. This works for a physical SIM and for an eSIM. With iOS 26 you can also bring more than one number.
You can also do it later, if your network provider supports eSIM Quick Transfer. Apple's requirements: the same Apple Account on both phones, Bluetooth on, and iOS 18.4 or later on both.
As soon as the plan is active on your new iPhone, the SIM in your old phone stops working. If a banner asks you to finish setting up your provider's plan, tap it; you'll be taken to your provider's website.
Then you arrange the eSIM through your provider. This is also the route if either iPhone runs a version older than iOS 18.4, because transferring through the iPhone won't work then. You'll get a QR code to scan with the Camera app, a link, or you activate the eSIM in your provider's app. If that doesn't work, contact your provider. After activating, make a quick call to check that everything works.
Some of our refurbished iPhones are US models without a SIM tray, so your plastic SIM card won't fit. Some providers let you convert your SIM to an eSIM during the switch; otherwise, request an eSIM from your provider. Read more in eSIM-only iPhone from the US: what to watch for and in our eSIM explainer.
Our advice: only erase your old iPhone once you can make calls and use mobile data on the new one. That way you still have a working phone if something goes wrong.
WhatsApp has its own transfer. Install WhatsApp on your new iPhone, sign in with the same phone number and choose to transfer your chat history. A QR code appears. On your old iPhone, open WhatsApp, go to Settings and Chats, choose the option to transfer chats to iPhone and scan the code. Keep both phones unlocked and close together, and stay in WhatsApp until the bar is full. Update iOS and WhatsApp on both phones first.
Prefer iCloud? Then make a chat backup in WhatsApp on your old iPhone, under Settings and Chats. Install WhatsApp on your new iPhone, use the same number and the same Apple Account, and choose to restore.
Coming from Android? Use Apple's Move to iOS app. Your iPhone has to be new or erased. During setup, on the Transfer Your Apps & Data screen, choose From Android. WhatsApp messages and media are among the things you can bring. Then install WhatsApp on your iPhone, sign in with the same number and follow the steps to bring in your chats. According to Apple, with Android 17 or later on compatible devices you can also do it without the app, using a QR code.
Your old phone is then ready for a new owner. On Sell your device you can see what your iPhone is worth.
If the screen of your old iPhone no longer works, or it keeps shutting down because of a worn battery, the transfer often fails. You need to be able to unlock the phone and it has to stay on for the whole transfer. In that case, drop by our shop in Nijverdal (the Netherlands). We'll check whether a can make your old iPhone usable again, so you can still transfer your data.
Browse our refurbished iPhones: 2-year warranty, 30-day returns, insured shipping. You can also sell or trade in your old phone with us.
Refurbished iPhones met 2 jaar garantie. Elk toestel doorloopt ons 50-punts inspectieproces en wordt geleverd met 2 jaar garantie.
Every refurbished phone is sold in one of four conditions:
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