Your Mac: Time Machine
Plug in an external drive (ideally at least twice the size of your Mac's storage), then open System Settings → General → Time Machine and add it as a backup disk. That's it — it backs up every hour while connected, and you can bring back a single file or the whole Mac.
- For a MacBook, plug the drive in once a week, or use a network drive that supports Time Machine.
- Tick the option to encrypt the backup, and keep the password somewhere safe.
Your iPhone and iPad: iCloud Backup
Go to Settings → [your name] → iCloud → iCloud Backup and turn it on. It backs up overnight when the phone is charging, locked and on Wi-Fi. Check the date of the last backup there now and again.
If you see “not enough storage”, a small iCloud+ upgrade costs less than a coffee a month and is worth it for the peace of mind.
Sync isn't the same as backup
iCloud Photos and iCloud Drive keep your devices in step — which means if you delete something on one, it goes from all of them (after a short grace period in “Recently Deleted”). A Time Machine copy on your Mac, or an occasional export of your photo library to a separate drive, protects you from accidental deletion.
Check it works
Every few months, open Time Machine and restore a file you changed recently. If it comes back, you're covered.
