Moving to a new MacBook with Migration Assistant

How to move your files, apps and settings to a new MacBook with Migration Assistant: from the old Mac, from a Time Machine backup, or by starting fresh.

30 October 20266 min read

Migration Assistant is the app that moves your documents, apps, user accounts and settings from one Mac to another, and every Mac comes with it. On a new MacBook it runs as part of the setup assistant the first time you turn it on. If you skip it then, open it later from the Utilities folder in Applications, or find it with Spotlight. It can copy straight from your old Mac or from a Time Machine backup of it, and Apple says it doesn't delete anything from the old Mac or replace macOS on the new one.

So you have three routes: Mac to Mac, from a Time Machine backup, or start fresh and bring things across yourself. Below is how to choose, Apple's steps for each (from its support article "Transfer to a new Mac with Migration Assistant" and the Mac User Guide), and what to check once the move is done.

Get both Macs ready

Apple's own checklist is short:

Update macOS on each Mac. They don't need to run the same version, but each should be up to date.
For a wireless transfer, turn on Wi-Fi on both and keep them near each other. If the old Mac runs OS X El Capitan or earlier, or you aren't sure, also put both on the same Wi-Fi network.
Turn off antivirus, firewall or VPN software on either Mac until you are done.

Apple's Mac User Guide adds one more: if you are using a laptop, connect it to power. With two MacBooks, plug in both, because a large transfer can take hours. And make a fresh Time Machine backup of the old Mac before you start, so nothing depends on the transfer going perfectly; set up Time Machine backups covers how.

Which route to take

Route	Good when	Keep in mind
Mac to Mac	The old Mac works and is next to you	Both Macs sit side by side until it finishes
From a Time Machine backup	The old Mac is gone, broken or already packed for trade-in	It copies what that backup holds
Start fresh	You want a clean Mac and will reinstall apps yourself	Slower, and you move files by hand

For Mac to Mac, Apple's MacBook Pro guide adds a useful tip: a wireless transfer works, but it is often faster to connect the new MacBook directly to the old Mac with a cable.

Mac to Mac, step by step

On the new Mac, open Migration Assistant. If the Mac is still in its setup assistant, asking about your country and network, carry on with setup, because migration is part of it. If setup is done, open Migration Assistant from Applications > Utilities and enter your administrator password if asked. In recent versions of macOS you can also go to System Settings > General > Transfer or Reset and click Open Migration Assistant.
When asked how you want to transfer your information, choose to transfer from a Mac, Time Machine, or startup disk, and click Continue.
On the old Mac, open Migration Assistant and click Continue. Choose to transfer to another Mac, and click Continue.
On the new Mac, select the old Mac's icon and click Continue.
On the old Mac, if you see a security code, check that it matches the code on the new Mac, then click Continue.
On the new Mac, wait while Migration Assistant works out how much space everything takes. Then choose what to move (see below) and click Continue.

Apple warns that large transfers might need hours and might seem to pause now and then. Leave them alone. When it is done, quit Migration Assistant on both Macs and log in to the migrated account on the new one.

From a Time Machine backup

This is the route if the old Mac is already gone, or if you made a backup the night before and would rather not tie up both Macs. Apple's steps, from its article "Restore your Mac from a backup":

Connect the Time Machine drive to the new Mac and make sure it is turned on.
Open Migration Assistant, in the setup assistant or from Applications > Utilities.
Choose to transfer from a Mac, Time Machine, or startup disk, and click Continue.
Select your Time Machine backup disk. It might take a few moments to appear. Click Continue.
Select a backup and click Continue. To use an older one, click the disclosure arrow next to the backup shown and pick it.
Choose what to move, then let it run.

Choosing what to move

Migration Assistant shows a checkbox for each category, and a disclosure arrow beside each one lets you pick specific items. The Mac User Guide lists them like this:

Applications. Apple notes that incompatible apps, or apps that already have a newer version on the new Mac, may not be transferred or may not be usable.
User accounts. Each account, with its documents, pictures, desktop, downloads folder and more.
Other Files & Folders. Documents and files outside the accounts.
Privacy & Security Settings.
System & Network. System and network settings, which you can pick through one by one.

Then come the account questions. If you move an administrator account, you are asked to click Set Password and choose a password for it; remember it, because you will need it to log in on the new Mac. A standard account gets a temporary password shown on screen, which its owner enters the first time and then replaces. If the new Mac already has an account with the same name, you choose between replacing it (with the option to keep its data in the Deleted Users folder) and renaming the incoming account so that both exist side by side.

Starting fresh instead

Starting fresh means setting the new MacBook up as a new Mac and bringing things over yourself. It takes longer, but some people like it: you reinstall only the apps you still use, and years of old settings stay behind.

Apple's MacBook Pro guide notes that if you set up as new, nothing is transferred automatically, but you can still run Migration Assistant later. When you do, you can untick whole categories, such as Applications, and pick specific items in the others. Keep the account question above in mind if the account you made has the same name as your old one. If you keep your files in iCloud Drive, signing in with your Apple Account brings those back too.

After the move: what to check

Give the new Mac a day or two before you do anything to the old one.

Read the migration summary. When a transfer finishes, the Mac restarts, and if Migration Assistant hit problems, such as documents it couldn't move or incompatible software, it shows a summary of them.
Open your main folders. Check a few recent documents, your photos and anything you rely on every day.
Check your email. Apple says Migration Assistant transfers your email, but you might need to set up your email account again in your mail app before you can get to it.
Expect some sign-ins. Apps that check a license or an account may ask you to sign in or enter your key again on the new Mac.
Check your backups. In recent versions of macOS, open System Settings > General > Time Machine and make sure the new Mac is backing up to a drive.
Leave the old Mac as it is until you are sure nothing is missing. Then what to do with your old MacBook covers trading in, selling and erasing it.

Timing it

A big move is easiest at the end of a working day: start it, leave both Macs side by side, and come back to a finished transfer. If Walter, the walrus who looks after Schedule, is in your Notchpals crew, that is about when he tells you to stop work anyway:

Walter, Schedule: **Wrap up**, 6:00 to 7:30 PM on weekdays

If Notchpals is one of the apps coming with you, its license key works on up to 3 Macs, so the same key can cover the new MacBook while the old one is still around.

If the new Mac has only just arrived, setting up a new MacBook covers the rest of the first hour: Touch ID, battery settings, the menu bar and Focus.