iPhone 12 Pro Max backup too large for iCloud (5GB)

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iPhone 12 Pro Max backup too large for iCloud (5GB)

Recently switched from Android to Apple and am having a **** of a time trying to figure out why my iPhone backup is 6 GB with nothing selected but contacts (50 KB).

I made sure to deselect all the apps' data from being backed up. No photos or any other media is being backed up. No messages are being backed up. No Siri data. Only contacts.

I asked a friend with an iPhone 11 and his is only 2 GB to backup.

I gave in and did a backup to my computer and it came out to be 6.5 GB.

Thoughts? Suggestions?

iPhone 12 Pro Max, iOS 14

Posted on Dec 16, 2020 8:33 AM

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Answer 1

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FoxFifth

Level 10

472,095 points

Dec 16, 2020 8:59 AM in response to Rex5600

Are you aware of the difference between iCloud Backup and syncing data to iCloud?

The options to not include data in an iCloud Backup are at Settings > [username] > iCloud > Manage Storage > Backups > [device name] > Choose Data to Back Up.

The options at Settings > [username] > iCloud > Photos, Mail, Contacts, Calendars, etc are for synced data.

Differences include:

You can view synced data using a computer internet browser and logging into www.icloud.com
You cannot view the contents of an iCloud Backup.
Synced data is synced dynamically as changes occur (e.g., when a new contact is added).
iCloud Backup happens periodically (e.g., when you select Backup Now or daily (usually) when charging (if wi-fi is connected and if the iCloud Backup option is on)

If data is synced it is not also included in an iCloud Backup.

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