How to sync iPhone and iPad while securing your data

Keeping your iPhone and iPad in sync makes it easier to access your data across devices, including emails, files, calendars, and passwords. While iCloud is designed for this, it’s not truly private since Apple can access most your data if required.

Luckily, you can easily sync the same data on your Apple devices using Proton’s apps. That way, your personal information is always secure on the cloud.

In this guide, we’ll show you how to sync your iPhone and iPad easily using iCloud and how to do it securely with Proton. You’ll learn how to keep your photos, videos, files, calendars, contacts, and passwords fully private and easy to access beyond the Apple ecosystem.

How to sync iPhone and iPad using iCloud

Since iCloud is tightly integrated into Apple devices, it’s the simplest way to keep everything synced across iOS and macOS. Here’s what you need to do:

1. Sign in on your iPhone and iPad using the same Apple Account.

2. Open the Settings app, tap your name, and select iCloud.

3. You’ll see a list of all apps using iCloud. Tap See All if you want to view more apps and data types.

4. Turn on the toggle next to each app you want to sync with iCloud.

Despite being easy to set up, iCloud isn’t truly secure or private. Apple holds the decryption keys(nuova finestra) for data like iCloud Mail, Contacts, and Calendars, meaning they can always access that information.

While the company offers Advanced Data Protection (ADP) for optional end-to-end encryption of some data types, it’s not enabled by default. And because it’s not part of iCloud’s core design, it can be revoked, as seen when Apple disabled ADP in the UK.

How to sync iPhone and iPad using Proton

Proton provides a secure ecosystem to keep your data synced across iOS devices, using end-to-end encryption (E2EE) to ensure only you can access your information. Unlike iCloud’s ADP tool, our E2EE is not a feature you can switch off — you’re always protected. Plus, the Proton apps work beyond the Apple ecosystem, so you can stay connected on iOS, macOS, Android, Windows, and web app.

Syncing files, photos, and videos with Proton Drive

If you want to sync files, photos, and videos between your iPhone and iPad without relying on iCloud or AirDrop, Proton Drive provides a secure alternative. Here’s what you need to do:

1. Set up Proton Drive for iOS

• Create a Proton Account if you don’t already have one.
• Install Drive(nuova finestra) on your iPhone and iPad.
• Log in with your Proton Account on both devices.

2. Upload files to Proton Drive

• Tap + at the top right.

• Tap Import file or Upload a photo.

• Select your files and tap Add to upload them.

3. Enable automatic camera uploads

• In the Drive app, go to Photos.
• Tap Turn on backup.

• When prompted, tap Allow access to all photos.
• All photos and videos from your device’s library will immediately start syncing to your encrypted cloud storage.

Find out more about importing files from iCloud.

What else can you do with Proton Drive?

• Securely store files and recover previous file versions.
• Automatically back up files, including photos and videos in original quality.
• Free up space on your device when your iPad or iPhone storage is full.
• Create, edit, and collaborate on encrypted documents with Proton Docs.
• Make files available offline, so you can always access them.
• Share files securely with end-to-end encrypted links, add password protection, set expiration dates, and revoke access anytime.
• Keep your metadata encrypted, including filenames, sizes, and modification dates.

Sync emails and contacts on iPhone and iPad with Proton Mail

Proton Mail can privately sync your emails and contacts across all your devices, including iPhone and iPad. Here’s what you need to do:

1. Set up Proton Mail(nuova finestra) on both your iPhone and iPad.
2. Log in with your Proton Account on both devices.
3. If you’re moving away from another email provider, use Easy Switch to securely import your data.
4. All your Proton emails and contacts are automatically synced and encrypted.

Find out more about importing contacts from iCloud.

What else can you do with Proton Mail?

• Send password-protected emails with expiration dates to control who sees your message and for how long.
• Keep your inbox clean and private — without spam, hidden trackers, or ads.
• Stay organized using folders, labels, and swipe-gestures.
• Use conversation view to keep email threads easy to follow.
• Use a mobile signature when emailing from your iPhone or iPad.
• Manage contacts and groups securely.

Sync calendars on iPhone and iPad with Proton Calendar

Your calendar holds the details of your life, so it should be fully protected. Proton Calendar provides a private alternative to iCloud Calendar, and it integrates with Proton Mail — you can also manage it independently through its dedicated iOS app.

Here’s how to import your iCloud Calendar data to Proton Calendar and keep your data synced:

1. Download a calendar from iCloud Calendar.

• Go to iCloud Calendar(nuova finestra) and log in with your Apple Account.
• Hold the pointer over the calendar you want to share in the sidebar, then click the account button.

• Turn on Public Calendar.

• Select Share the calendar with a link and click Copy.
• Paste the URL of the shared calendar in the browser address bar but don’t tap Return yet.
• Change the “webcal” to “http” and tap Return. An ICS file will download.

2. Import data into Proton Calendar

• Subscribe to Proton Calendar if you haven’t already.
• Open a browser and to the Proton Calendar web app(nuova finestra).
• Go to Settings → All settings.

• Open the left sidebar and select Import/export.

• Tap Import from ICS and choose the ICS file you previously downloaded.

• Delete the ICS file after Calendar finishes imported its contents.

3. Use Proton Calendar on iPhone and iPad

• Set up the Proton Calendar app(nuova finestra) on your iOS devices.
• Sign in with the same Proton Account.
• All your Proton calendars are automatically synced and encrypted.

What else can you do with Proton Calendar?

• Automatically add invites and events from your Proton Mail inbox.
• View and respond to event invites directly from your calendar.
• Separate your work and personal schedule by managing multiple, color-coded calendars.
• Set a secondary time zone when traveling or coordinating with international teams.
• Create recurring events and set multiple reminders.

Sync passwords on iPhone and iPad with Proton Pass

Proton Pass is an end-to-end encrypted password manager that — unlike iCloud Keychain — lets you access your passwords and other saved data on all your devices, not just within Apple’s ecosystem.

Here’s how you can migrate your passwords from Safari into Proton Pass and keep data synced on iPhone and iPad:

1. Export Safari passwords on iOS

• On your iPhone or iPad, go to Settings > Apps > Safari.
• At History and Website Data, tap Export.
• Select Passwords and tap Save to Downloads.
• Tap Done.

2. Import Safari passwords into Proton Pass

• Sign up for Proton Pass if you haven’t already.
• Open a web browser on your iPhone or iPad.
• Visit the Pass web app(nuova finestra) and sign in with your Proton Account.
• Go to Settings > Import.

• Select Safari and add the CSV file you exported earlier.

• Once your passwords are imported, delete the CSV file from your device.

3. Use Proton Pass on iOS devices

• Set up Proton Pass(nuova finestra) on your iPhone and iPad.
• Log in with your Proton Account.
• Proton Pass keeps your passwords synced and end-to-end encrypted.

What else can you do with Proton Pass?

• Generate strong, unique passwords and store them securely.
• Sign in faster and safer using autofill for passwords or passkeys for passwordless logins.
• Protect your online identity with aliases, so you never have to share your real address.
• Besides passwords, you can store sensitive information like credit cards, encrypted notes, and identity details in secure vaults.
• Securely share vaults with passwords and other sensitive data using end-to-end-encrypted links.
• Stay ahead of threats with Pass Monitor.

Keep your data synced across your iPhone and iPad with Proton

Making the switch from iCloud to Proton is a straightforward process and gives you the power to protect your data and gain more control over your information.

Proton provides a secure, privacy-first ecosystem where end-to-end encryption is built in and always on — not an optional feature. Everything you store or share through Proton, whether it’s emails, files, calendars, contacts, or passwords, is protected so that only you can access it — not even we can see your data.

All Proton apps are open source and independently audited, so anyone can inspect our security model to verify our claims. Plus, unlike Big Tech companies that profit from your personal data, Proton is funded entirely by its community of users — not advertisers. This means we have no interest in tracking you, analyzing your behavior, or selling your information.

Start syncing your data the private way by creating a free Proton Account.