How to Back Up or Move Calendar Data to a New Mac

Easily back up or move Calendar data to a new device

by
Tom Nelson
Writer
Tom Nelson is an engineer, programmer, network manager, and computer network and systems designer who has written for Other World Computing,and others.
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Tom Nelson
Updated on September 12, 2020

Apple provides a simple way to back up Calendar data, which can then be downloaded or transferred to a separate macOS or iOS device. With this feature, you can save all of your Calendar data—including events, notifications, and subscribed calendars—to a single file.

In this guide, we provide three sets of instructions. The first set should be used to create the backup file containing all of your Calendar data. The second set of instructions will teach you how to restore your Calendar data on a separate device. The final set of instructions tells you how to restore synced Calendar from Apple iCloud.

How to Back up Calendar Data on a Mac or iOS Device

Follow these steps to save all of your Calendar data to a single backup file.

  1. Launch Calendar by selecting the Calendar icon in the Dock. Alternatively, use Finder and navigate to the Applications folder.

  2. From the menu bar, select File > Export > Calendar Archive.

    Exporting a calendar archive

    If you have an earlier version of macOS, you may need to select File > Back Up Database.

  3. Choose a destination for the backup file, then select Save.

    Choosing a Save location

How to Restore Calendar Data on a Separate Mac or iOS Device

Follow these steps to upload your archived Calendar data to a new or separate device.

To access the Calendar archive file on your new device, you must transfer the file from the original device to the new one using a flash drive, cloud storage service, email message, or a file transfer app like WeTransfer.

  1. Launch Calendar by selecting the Calendar icon in the Dock. Alternatively, use Finder and navigate to the Applications folder.

  2. From the menu bar, select File > Import.

    File > Import

    If you have an earlier version of macOS, you may need to select File > Revert to Database Backup.

  3. Locate and select the archive file, then select Import.

    Importing calendar

  4. You will be asked to confirm that you want to import the backup file, which replaces the existing Calendar data. Select Restore to confirm or Cancel to opt out.

    Cancel or restore

    If you have already created calendar entries on your new Mac, importing your old data will erase the current calendar data.

The new Mac or iOS device will now contain the same Calendar data as your original.

How to Restore Calendar Data Using iCloud

You can also use Apple's cloud storage service, iCloud, to sync or download Calendar data between Mac and iOS devices. Here's how:

  1. Use a web browser to log in to your iCloud account.

    Sign into iCloud

  2. From the drop-down menu in the top-right corner, select Account Settings.

    iCloud Account Settings

  3. Scroll down to Advanced > Restore Calendars.

    Restore Calendars

  4. You will see a list of archived calendar data sorted by date. Select the archive file you wish to use to restore your Calendar data.​

    Selecting an archive to restore

  5. You will be asked to confirm that you want to import the backup file, which replaces the existing Calendar data. Select Restore to confirm or Cancel to opt out.

    Restore calendar confirmation

    If you have already created calendar entries on your new Mac, importing your old data will erase the current calendar data.

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