HOLIDAY70% OFFHow to back up and restore your notes
Your notes live only on your phone. A backup is the copy you can bring back after losing, resetting or replacing it. MemoKey offers three kinds: a cloud backup in your own iCloud or Google Drive, backups in a folder you choose, and a file you export yourself.
How backup works
Cloud backup saves a copy of your notes and tags in your own cloud account: iCloud on iPhone, Google Drive on Android. Homielab has no server that receives it and never sees the files.
Nothing is uploaded until you tap Back Up Now or turn on automatic backup.
Turn on cloud backup
1. Open the Cloud Backup screen
In MemoKey, open Settings → Data Management and tap Manage Cloud Backups. The screen shows your cloud provider: iCloud on iPhone, Google Drive on Android.
2. iPhone: use your iCloud account
On iPhone, MemoKey uses the iCloud account your phone is signed in to, so there is nothing to sign in to in the app. If it says Cloud Storage Not Available, sign in to iCloud in the iPhone Settings and check your internet connection.
3. Android: sign in to Google
On Android, tap Sign in to Google, choose your account and allow MemoKey to use Google Drive. It gets only its own hidden app folder, not your other files. Google Sign-In is used only on Android.
4. Back up now
Tap Back Up Now. The backup appears in the Backups list with its date and the device it came from.
5. Turn on automatic backup
Turn on Auto-backup when app opens. MemoKey then backs up when you open or return to the app, at most once an hour, and skips it when you have no notes.
6. The 10 most recent backups are kept
MemoKey keeps the 10 most recent backups of each device and removes that device’s older ones by itself. You can also delete a backup from the list.
Back up to a folder instead
1. Choose the folder option
In Settings → Data Management, tap Manage Cloud Backups. Under Back up to, choose Folder on this device on Android, or Folder in Files on iPhone and iPad. Use it if you have no Google account or iCloud, or want your backups somewhere else.
2. Pick the folder once
Your phone’s folder picker opens once. On Android, pick a folder on the phone or an SD card. On iPhone and iPad, pick any folder Files shows: on the device or in a cloud app such as Google Drive, Dropbox or OneDrive. The folder’s name shows on the Cloud Backup screen; Change Folder picks another.
3. Back up as usual
Back Up Now and Auto-backup when app opens (at most once an hour) now write there. Each backup is a JSON file named like memokey_backup_….json. The Backups list, Restore, Delete and the 10 most recent backups per device work the same as with the cloud.
4. Copy the folder elsewhere if you like
On Android, a sync or file app such as Syncthing or Nextcloud can copy the folder to a computer or a server, and the files stay when MemoKey is uninstalled. On iPhone, a folder inside Google Drive or Dropbox in Files is synced by that app.
5. Keep the folder private
The backup files are plain JSON and not encrypted: anyone or any app that can open the folder can read your notes, locked notes too. Choose a folder only you can reach.
6. If the folder goes away
On Android, if the folder is moved or deleted or MemoKey can no longer open it, MemoKey says Folder not available and asks you to choose it again. On iPhone and iPad, a moved or renamed folder is still found; only a deleted folder, or a cloud app that was removed or signed out, brings that message. Automatic backup turns off until you choose a folder again. Switching back to iCloud or Google Drive keeps the folder for later.
See when you last backed up
From MemoKey 3.6, the first row of Settings → Data Management shows your last backup: where it went (iCloud, Google Drive, folder or exported file) and when, or No backup yet. An export counts once the file is saved or shared; a cancelled share does not.
30 days after your last backup, a Back Up Now row with “It’s been a while since your last backup” appears under it. With automatic backup on, it runs a backup; otherwise it opens the JSON export. It goes away after a backup. There is no popup or notification.
Restore your notes on a new phone
1. Install MemoKey and open it
Install MemoKey on the new phone and open it once.
2. Use the same cloud account
On iPhone, sign in to the same iCloud account as before. On Android, open Settings → Data Management → Manage Cloud Backups and sign in to the same Google account. Cloud backups stay on their platform: to move between iPhone and Android, use an exported file instead.
3. Choose a backup
In Settings → Data Management → Manage Cloud Backups, find the backup in the list by its date and device, and tap Restore.
4. Confirm the restore
Confirm. The backup is merged with the notes already on the phone, and this cannot be undone. If Lock Individual Note is on, MemoKey asks for your passcode first. When it is done, it tells you how many notes and tags were restored.
Export and import a backup file
1. Export your notes
In Settings → Data Management, tap Back Up Data and choose a format. JSON keeps everything; CSV opens in a spreadsheet and keeps your notes and tags. If Lock Individual Note is on, MemoKey asks for your passcode first.
2. Save the file
Choose where the file goes with your phone’s share or save options, for example Files or an email to yourself. It is named like memokey_backup_2026-01-31_203000.json.
3. Keep it somewhere safe
The file holds your notes as plain text, locked notes included. Store it where only you can open it.
4. Import the file
In Settings → Data Management, tap Restore from Backup, confirm, then pick the JSON or CSV file. Like a cloud restore, it is merged with your current notes and cannot be undone.
What a restore does
A restore adds, it does not replace: the notes on your phone stay, and a note that is already there is not added a second time.
Tags are matched: a backup tag that already exists on the phone is reused, keeping its name on the phone, and MemoKey’s starter tags match their English or Vietnamese counterpart. A CSV file carries tag names only, so its tags are matched by name.
Locked notes come back locked. Their text is hidden while a passcode is set and Lock Individual Note is on, so on a new phone set a passcode and turn on Lock Individual Note (MemoKey Pro) to hide them again.
If some notes cannot be restored, MemoKey says how many were restored and how many failed. The backup itself is not changed.
Stop backups or remove Google Drive access
Turn off Auto-backup when app opens to stop automatic backups. Delete backups you no longer want from the list on the Cloud Backup screen, or in your iCloud or Google account. Backups in a folder are ordinary files: you can also delete them there.
On Android, Sign out on the Cloud Backup screen signs MemoKey out of Google. To remove its access to your Drive, open your Google Account, go to Security, then your connections to third-party apps and services, choose MemoKey and delete its connection. Delete the backups first if you do not want to keep them.
Still stuck? See the FAQ or Support page.