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Considering how much important data is on modern smartphones, you might not think to put your SMS messages into your backup. However, losing them because your phone was smashed or stolen can make a stressful situation worse. That’s why we put together this guide on how to backup text messages on Android.
Written by Sapphire Fox (Editorial Assistant)
Reviewed by Jackie Leavitt (Editor at Large)
Last Updated:
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The best way to backup your texts on Android is to use Google Drive:
Facts & Expert Analysis: How to Save Text Messages on Android
Whether you’re clumsy and lose phones all the time, or are looking to get a new phone soon and want to move all of your data across, you shouldn’t leave your messages behind. By learning how to backup text messages on Android, you’ll be able to keep any message, call log or contact safe from a disaster.
Before you begin making a backup, you should consider getting one of the best backup apps for Android. We’ll be sure to give recommendations as we go, but following the 3-2-1 rule and having both local and cloud storage space to put your SMS backup is generally a good idea.
If you have a rooted device, you should first look for your messages in the “com.android.providers.telephony” folder. However, for the vast majority of people who don’t root their phones, you’re going to need to use some kind of backup software to protect your messages.
Sapphire Fox (Editorial Assistant)
Sapphire Fox is a seasoned expert in online backup and cloud storage with nearly four years at Cloudwards, combining her extensive engineering background with editorial skills. Her work is informed by a lifelong passion for technology, evidenced in her keen evaluation and recommendation skills. Sapphire’s diverse interests in continuous learning, ranging from baking to sports and DIY projects, add a unique depth to her technical insights, making her a valuable asset to the Cloudwards team and its readers.
Jackie Leavitt (Editor at Large)
Jackie Leavitt is a co-chief editor at Cloudwards, where she has been leading the editorial team for over three years, bringing 12 years of diverse experience in professional communications and editing. Her expertise is rooted in a solid educational background with a Master’s in Strategic Communications and Bachelor’s degrees in Journalism and European Culture Studies. Leavitt’s career spans various sectors, including international journalism and publishing, and she is recognized for her skill in enhancing editorial systems and digital content quality. In addition to her professional life, she is passionate about sailing, dancing (especially salsa and swing) and outdoor activities like running and camping.
Learn more about our editorial team and our research process.
Cloudwards updated this article with new information and rearranged to a step-by-step structure.
If you don’t want to download a third-party app and don’t mind using Google Drive to store the backup, then the backup feature built into Android will work fine. (Read our full Google Drive review if you want to learn more about this service.) It’ll also backup your call history, device settings, contacts and app data alongside your messages for a more complete backup. For more info on how you can use Google Drive as an Android user, check out Google’s guide.
Although you won’t be able to access this backup directly, you will be able to restore your messages on any Android device. You can do this by logging in to your Google account on a second phone and choosing the “restore” option.
Launch the settings app, then scroll down and tap “Google.”
In the “services on this device” list, select “backup.”
With the “back up to Google Drive” option enabled, tap “back up now.”
Although simply moving files shouldn’t require software, without a rooted device, you’ll need third-party apps to access your SMS messages in the first place. Luckily, with the right software, you can save this backup anywhere you want, including an SD card or online backup service.
We’ll use the “SMS Backup & Restore” app for this guide, as it’s a popular, easy-to-use program. However, options like “SMS Backup+” and “Super Backup & Restore” are also great ways to create your backups.
Here is how to save text messages to an SD card on Android:
First, you’ll need to go into the Google Play Store, install the free “SMS Backup & Restore” app and launch it.
In order to access your messages and call logs, the app will need several permissions. Tap “get started” and allow these permissions to continue.
On the home screen, click the large green button labeled “set up a backup.”
Here you can choose to backup SMS, MMS and call logs. If you can’t see MMS messages, make sure you tap “advanced options.” When you’ve selected what you want, tap “next.”
There are options to save the backup to Google Drive, Dropbox or OneDrive. However, to save it to an SD card, you need to tap “your phone.”
Tap “your own folder” and select your SD card. You can also save it to your internal storage, which will allow you to upload it to the cloud or your computer.
“SMS Backup & Restore” lets you update your backup hourly, daily or weekly. Simply select your choice and tap “back up now” to begin the backup.
You could also use software like “SMS Backup & Restore” to save your messages to any cloud storage — including our favorites, Sync.com and pCloud. However, online backup providers like IDrive have Android apps that can backup messages without needing a second app (you can read our full IDrive review here). This is how you backup messages through IDrive.
In the Google Play Store, find IDrive and tap “install.”
You can either sign in to an existing account or create a new one. Remember to enable “private encryption” for extra security.
Tap the big red “backup” button in the middle of the screen to go to the “backup your device” section.
Make sure you select “SMS” and “call logs” before you begin the backup. However, if you’ve forgotten to add either of these, you can simply add it to the backup by going through this process again.
To get IDrive to start the backup, tap “backup now.”
To view your SMS backup, tap “access and restore” and then “my device backup.”
In the “my device backup” screen, you can tap “SMS” to see all of your backed-up SMS text messages and conversations. You can use this to find out if the backup got everything successfully or if you’ll need to run it again.
Backing up text messages on Android might not be a flashy process or immediately useful, but you’ll thank yourself if you ever have to recover the data from a broken phone. An SMS backup can also be useful if you want to move message files to a new phone and continue where you left off, with all of your conversations kept intact.
You can even backup other data from your Android phone with these techniques, thanks to excellent services like IDrive including options to backup your music, calendar, documents, photos and more. Also, you can read our full guide on how to backup Android if you want to keep everything safe, as well as our guide on the best cloud storage services out there if you wish to keep your data extra protected.
Do you like to keep your data safe? Have you backed up text messages on Android? Did you use any of these methods? Let us know your thoughts in the comments section below, and if you decide to switch devices, we also have a guide on how to backup text messages on iPhone.Thanks for reading.
The easiest way to make backups of text messages is to use Android’s integration of Google Drive, which will let you automatically save any texts to the cloud. However, you can also use third-party services like IDrive to save your data to the cloud.
To transfer your text messages on a new Android phone, move the backup file over to the new device, download the service you used to create the backup, connect your new device to your old account (if necessary) and find the “restore” setting in the app’s menu.
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3 thoughts on “How to Backup SMS Text Messages on Android in 2025: Save Your Texts on the Cloud”
Very useful and interesting information. i always looked up for this type of information thanks once again
Thank you
Is there a way to back up selected contacts or messages?
I cannot see the point of using Google Drive if all you can do is view the contents of a backup or delete it. There seems to be no in-built way of restoring what Google has backed up!
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How to Backup SMS Text Messages on Android in 2025: Save Your Texts on the Cloud – Cloudwards.net
