How to back up a Mac with Time Machine

2 min read · 5 steps · Updated 2 October 2026

Time Machine is the Mac's built-in backup. It saves a copy of everything and keeps older versions of files, so you can recover a single deleted document or a whole Mac.

These steps are for recent versions of macOS, where the settings app is called System Settings. The pictures are simplified diagrams, not screenshots.

Step by step

1. Get an external drive

   Choose one at least twice the size of the storage in your Mac. Time Machine may need to erase the drive when you set it up, so do not use one with files you need.

   Done

2. Connect the drive and open System Settings

   Click the Apple menu, System Settings, then General.

   Done

3. Click Add Backup Disk

   Select the drive and click Set Up Disk. Switch on Encrypt Backup and choose a password, so nobody can read your files if the drive is lost. Write the password down.

   Done

4. Let the first backup finish

   The first one can take hours. You can keep working. Later backups only save what changed and are quick.

   Done

5. Restore a file when you need to

   Open the folder where the file was, click the Time Machine icon in the menu bar and choose Browse Time Machine Backups. Go back in time with the arrows, select the file and click Restore.

   Done

Good to know

With a laptop, plug the drive in at least once a week. Time Machine reminds you if it has been a long time.

One backup in the same room does not protect against fire or theft. Keep important files in a cloud service as well, or rotate a second drive kept elsewhere.

To show the Time Machine icon in the menu bar, open System Settings, Menu Bar (Control Centre on macOS Sequoia and earlier) and switch on Time Machine.

In short: External drive, System Settings, General, Time Machine, Add Backup Disk.