Back up your Mac

15 min · essential · HomeOS can check this for you

Why this matters. A backup is a separate copy you can go back to. Time Machine backs up the whole Mac to an external drive, hourly, and keeps older versions, so it's a true backup. iCloud Drive's 'Desktop & Documents Folders' keeps those folders in iCloud and on your other devices, but it's syncing: delete a file and it's deleted everywhere (you get about 30 days to recover it from Recently Deleted). Syncing protects you from a dead Mac; only a backup protects you from mistakes.

Set up Time Machine

Plug in an external drive. Apple menu, then System Settings, then General, then Time Machine, then Add Backup Disk. Choose the drive.

System Settings › General › Time Machine

Time Machine backs up your Mac hourly, daily and weekly.

Add Backup Disk…

Pick your external drive

Illustration. Your screen may look a little different.

Leave the drive plugged in (or plug it in regularly) so backups keep happening.

Optionally, sync Desktop & Documents to iCloud

Apple menu, then System Settings, then your name, then iCloud, then Drive. Turn on Desktop & Documents Folders.

System Settings › Your name › iCloud › Drive

Sync this Mac

Desktop & Documents Folders

Synced, not a backup

Illustration. Your screen may look a little different.

Check your understanding

Is iCloud Drive syncing a backup?

Not quite. If you delete a synced file, it's deleted everywhere. Time Machine keeps older versions separately.

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Checked against: Apple: Back up your Mac with Time Machine · Apple: Store Desktop and Documents files in iCloud Drive · last reviewed 2026-09