Intro to syncing your Windows computer and Apple devices
Syncing means transferring items and keeping them up to date between your Windows computer and your iPhone, iPad, or iPod. You sync items—such as music, movies, and TV shows—on your Windows computer to your Apple devices. For example, when you add a movie to your Windows computer, you can sync so that the movie appears on your iPhone.
When you connect an iPhone, iPad, or iPod to your Windows computer using a USB or USB-C cable, the device appears in the sidebar In the Apple Devices app . Select the device in the sidebar to see options for managing your device software and syncing items with your Windows computer.
You use the sidebar to turn on syncing for each type of content, such as music, movies, or TV shows.
Select General in the sidebar to manage the software and data on your device. For example, you can:
Check for the latest software for your iPhone, iPad, or iPod and update it.
Backup the data on your Apple device to your Windows computer or to iCloud.
Restore the data on your device from a backup and manage multiple backups if you need them.
Do I have to sync?
If you have iPod classic, iPod nano, or iPod shuffle: You have to sync your device with your Windows computer. There’s no other way to add content to it.
If you have an iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch: You only need to sync with your Windows computer when you have new or updated content on your Windows computer that you wish to add to your iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch.
If you prefer not to sync your iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch, you don’t have to. You can download items from the Apple iTunes Store, the App Store, Apple Books, and other Apple services directly to your devices. You can also use iCloud to keep items up to date across your devices.
Should I choose to automatically sync all my content or only specific items?
Automatically sync all content: This is the quickest and easiest option. Simply select the “Automatically sync when this [device] is connected” checkbox in the General pane, then turn on syncing for each type of content you want to sync. Your Windows computer and iPhone, iPad, or iPod update to matching content whenever you connect them.
Sync specific items: You can also select specific items to sync. For example, to save storage space, you can sync just certain movies to your iPhone. You can still automatically sync all items for other types of content, such as TV shows.
What’s the difference between using iCloud and syncing?
Use iCloud to transfer files: When you use iCloud, files transfer automatically and effortlessly between your Windows computer and iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch. With iCloud turned on, your Windows computer and iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch are continuously updated as content changes—and you don’t have to do a thing. For example, when you use iCloud Photos and take a picture on your iPhone, the picture soon appears on your Windows computer and other Apple devices. To learn more about using iCloud on your Windows computer, see the iCloud for Windows User Guide.
Use syncing to manage the files on your device: Syncing provides great control over what content is transferred to your device. You can sync all or only a selection of specific files from your Windows computer. For example, when you go on a trip, you can sync a selection of TV shows to your iPhone to watch while traveling. With syncing, you can easily transfer just the files you want.
Note: When using Sync Library or iCloud to update music or photos, syncing options (like Sync Music or Sync Photos) is turned off for those items. You can turn on Apple Devices syncing for those items by turning off Cloud Music Library or iCloud Photos. See Change General settings in Apple Music on Windows or Set up Photos in iCloud for Windows.
With either iCloud or syncing, you can connect your Apple device to your computer to charge your device, update to the latest iOS, backup to your computer or allow it to backup to iCloud, and, if you need to, use a backup to restore information on your Apple device.