How to Make an iTunes Backup on Windows & Where Is It Stored

This post will share details on how to make an iTunes backup on Windows. Also, you will know where the iTunes backup location is and how to change it on Windows. Please keep reading!

By @May Last Updated November 1, 2024
 

How to backup iPhone to iTunes on Windows?

I have used iTunes for years to back up my iPhone/iPad. I do this mostly because I sync calendars and contacts at the same time. What if I don’t have a Mac or other Apple device to back it up?

- Question from Apple Community

How to Back Up iPhone with iTunes on Windows

If you don’t have a Mac or other Apple device to back up your iPhone, trying to back it up on Windows PC will be a good idea. The way to back up your iPhone using iTunes on Windows is quite simple. Here is how to do that:

Step 1: Download the latest iTunes on your Windows PC and connect your iPhone to your PC with a USB cable. Once iTunes recognizes your iPhone, click the phone-shape icon near the top left corner.

Step 2: Choose Summary. Under the Backups section, choose This Computer and then click the Back Up Now button to back up your iPhone.

★Tips:
1. If you want to encrypt your iPhone backup, you can choose Encrypt local backup under Backups and set a passcode for the backup.
2. Please remember the passcode you set. You will be asked to enter the passcode when restoring the backup.

Where Is the iTunes Backup Location on Windows

After backing up your iPhone with iTunes, where to find the iTunes backup Windows location? Since there is a large distribution of Windows users in 7/8/10/11, here are the corresponding paths for different computer models.

iTunes Backup Location on Windows 10/11:

C:\Users\user-name\AppData\Roaming\Apple Computer\ MobileSync\Backup OR C:\Users\\user-name\Apple\MobileSync\Backup

iTunes Backup Location on Windows 7/8:

C:\Users\user-name\AppData\Roaming\Apple Computer\MobileSync\Backup

If you cannot find AppData, it may be hidden. You need to click View > check Hidden items in the toolbar of Windows Explorer.

How to Change iTunes Backup Location on Windows

Modern iPhones and iPads have hundreds of GBs of internal storage space. If you need to make a full iPhone backup but you don’t have enough space on your disk, iTunes will fail completely to back up anything. Therefore, some users want to make an iTunes backup Windows location change. How to do that? Here is a full guide:

Step 1: Locate your current iTunes backup folder and cut the whole file of MobileSync to your wanted destination.

Step 2: Hold down the Shift key and right-click in the File Explorer pane of the folder (MobileSync). Then, choose Open Command Window Here to open a command prompt that is focused on the current directory.

Step 3: At the command prompt, make sure you’re in the MobileSync directory. Then, enter mklink /J “C:\Users\user-name\AppData\Roaming\Apple Computer\MobileSync\Backup” “D:\MobileSync” and press Enter.

After changing the iTunes backup location, when you back up your iPhone with iTunes, you will see iTunes backup in C:\Users\user-name\AppData\Roaming\Apple Computer\MobileSync\Backup and D:\MobileSync MobileSync. In fact, it only exists in D:\MobileSync.

Bonus: Alternative Way to Back Up iPhone to PC

As you see, it is not very easy to change the iTunes backup location. If you worry about your PC becoming slow due to many backups on drive C:, you can use a backup tool to make an iPhone backup. It is strongly recommended to use FoneTool in this case.

FoneTool is free and reliable iPhone management software that allows you to choose a storage path before backing up. Why use FoneTool? Some benefits of using FoneTool are as follows:

Free to Choose Backup Location: FoneTool allows you to back up your iPhone to your PC, external hard drive, or USB flash drive. You can easily change the path by one-click the storage path to choose a location to store your backup files. Fast Backup Speed: Compared with other backup tools (such as iTunes, iCloud, and more), FoneTool lets you process a backup in a very short time. Full and Selective Backup: You can choose Full Backup to make a full iPhone backup or choose Selective Backup to selectively back up iPhone. Preview and Restore Backups: Unlike iTunes, FoneTool allows you to preview and select your backup to restore with one click.

So, how to back up your iPhone with FoneTool? Please follow the steps below to do that:

Step 1: Free download FoneTool and install it on your PC. Connect your iPhone to your PC and tap Trust.

Download Freeware Win 11/10/8.1/8/7/XP
Secure Download

Step 2: Launch FoneTool to its main interface. Choose Phone Backup > Selective Backup. (If you want to create a full iPhone backup, please choose Full Backup.)

Step 3: Choose the files you want to back up and click OK to continue. Then, click Backup Storage Path to choose a location to save your iPhone backups > Click Start Backup.

Once your iPhone is complete, you can choose Backup History to view the backup files. On this page, you can also delete the backup files and restore the backup files.

In addition to using FoneTool to back up your iPhone (including apps or data), you can also transfer WhatsApp from iPhone to iPhone at super-fast speed, back up your photos, messages, contacts, and more.

The Bottom Line

Making an iTunes Backup for Windows is one of the best ways to protect your data from being lost in any adverse situation. However, using iTunes need to make a full of iPhone backup, which will take a long time to finish the backup process.

If you only want to back up a part of your iPhone apps or data (such as WhatsApp backup, etc.), you can use the free and safe backup tool – FoneTool to back up your iPhone to your PC or external hard drive. Download and use it at once!