What is iCloud?

iCloud lets you access your music, photos, documents, and more from whatever device you’re on. It’s easy to set up and use.

iCloud also backs up your iOS devices, helps you find lost devices, and makes photo sharing simple. These features make iCloud useful whether you have one Apple device or more.

iCloud upload image.

iCloud features

Here are the features of iCloud, iCloud.com, and some apps that use iCloud. Some features have minimum system requirements.

  • Content everywhere: Anything you purchase from the iTunes Store, App Store, and iBooks Store is automatically available on all your devices. You can also access past purchases from any of your devices.

  • Photos: Share photos and videos with your favorite people when you create a shared photo stream. They can also post photos, videos, and comments to your streams, and changes appear automatically on everyone’s devices. You can quickly and easily see the latest updates from all your shared streams in the Activity view on your device. iCloud also stores all photos recently added to your devices in My Photo Stream.

  • Documents in the Cloud: If you have apps that support Documents in the Cloud on more than one device, iCloud automatically keeps your documents up to date across your devices.

  • Pages, Numbers, and Keynote for iCloud beta: Create and edit Pages, Numbers, and Keynote documents using a web browser on a Mac or Windows computer. Your documents are automatically available in the Pages, Numbers, and Keynote apps on your Mac and iOS devices. Beta versions of these web apps are available in English only on iCloud.com.

  • iMovie Theater: Watch your finished movies and trailers on all your devices. For more information, see iMovie Help for iPhone, iPad, or Mac.

  • Bookmarks, Reading List, and iCloud Tabs: iCloud stores and updates bookmarks, Reading List, and the iCloud Tabs list for Safari on your iOS devices and Mac computers. iCloud also stores and updates bookmarks for Internet Explorer, Firefox, and Chrome on your Windows computer.

  • iCloud Keychain: Keeps website, credit card, and Wi-Fi account information up to date across your iOS devices and Mac computers. It also keeps Internet account names, passwords, and settings up to date on your Mac computers. For more information, use the Help menu on your Mac to search for iCloud Keychain, or see your device’s iOS user guide in Safari bookmarks or on the Apple Support website.

  • Backup and restore: iCloud automatically backs up your iOS device daily over Wi-Fi when your device is turned on, locked, and connected to a power source. You can use your iCloud backup to restore your iOS device or set up a new one.

  • Mail, Contacts, and Calendar: Create and edit contacts and calendars using the iCloud Contacts and iCloud Calendar web apps, and iCloud automatically keeps them up to date across your devices. With iCloud, you also get an @icloud.com email address, and your iCloud Mail inbox and mail folders are always up to date across your devices.

  • Notes and Reminders: Create and edit notes and reminders using the iCloud Notes and iCloud Reminders web apps, and iCloud automatically keeps them up to date across your devices.

  • Find My iPhone, iPad, iPod touch, or Mac: If you misplace your iOS device or Mac computer, you can use the Find My iPhone web app to help you find its location on a map, play a sound at full volume, send a message, lock the screen, or erase its data. Activation Lock makes it harder for anyone to use or sell your iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch if it’s ever lost or stolen. You can use the Find My iPhone web app on iCloud.com on any computer, or download and use the free app on your iOS device.

  • Back to My Mac: Use Back to My Mac to connect securely to your remote Mac from another Mac over the Internet. You can use the keyboard and mouse or trackpad on your local Mac to control your remote Mac as if you were sitting in front of it. You can also copy files between your remote Mac and local Mac. For more information, go to the Finder on your Mac, then use the Help menu to search for Back to My Mac.

To get started, you need to set up iCloud on your iPhone, iPad, iPod touch, or Mac. Then you can use the iCloud.com web apps from your computer’s web browser.

For more information about the web apps, Photos, and Storage and Backup, select a topic in the table of contents or search for more information in this help. If you don’t see the table of contents, click the icon in the upper left or make this iCloud Help window wider.

Note: When accessing iCloud.com, make sure you use a recommended browser.