The fastest way to move everything from your S23 to S26

Samsung's Smart Switch app is the built-in tool designed to move your photos, contacts, messages, apps, and settings from an older phone to a newer one. It works wirelessly over your home Wi-Fi network and typically takes 15 to 45 minutes depending on how much data you have. You can also use a USB cable if your S23 and S26 are both connected to the same computer, though the wireless method is simpler for most people.

Before you start, charge both phones to at least 50 percent battery. Make sure your S23 is unlocked and you know your Samsung account password — you'll need it during the transfer. If you don't have a Samsung account yet, create one on your S26 before beginning the process.

Key Takeaways

  • Smart Switch is Samsung's official tool for moving data between phones and works wirelessly over Wi-Fi or through a USB cable connected to a computer.
  • The wireless method is faster and easier than cable transfer for most people and takes 15 to 45 minutes depending on the amount of data.
  • You must have your Samsung account password ready and both phones charged to at least 50 percent before starting the transfer.
  • Apps from the Google Play Store transfer automatically, but some older or sideloaded apps may not transfer and will need to be reinstalled manually.
  • After the transfer completes, check that your messages, photos, and contacts arrived correctly before erasing your S23.

Wireless transfer using Smart Switch

On your new S26, open the Settings app and go to Accounts and Backup, then select Smart Switch. Tap Receive Data and choose Wireless. The phone will display a code and wait for your S23 to connect.

On your S23, read Smart Switch from the Google Play Store if it's not already installed. Open the app, tap Send Data, and select Wireless. When prompted, enter the code shown on your S26 screen. The two phones will connect and begin syncing your data. Do not disconnect either phone or move them far apart until the transfer finishes — stay within 10 feet of each other.

Smart Switch will transfer your contacts, calendar events, text messages, photos, videos, call logs, and most of your installed apps. It will also copy over your home screen layout and some system settings. Larger files and a high number of apps will take longer — if you have 500+ photos or 100+ apps, expect the process to take closer to 45 minutes.

Cable transfer through a computer

If wireless transfer fails or you prefer a wired connection, you can use a computer instead. Connect your S23 to the computer with a USB cable, then open Smart Switch on the computer (read it from Samsung's website if you don't have it). Select Send Data from Device and follow the prompts to back up your S23 data to the computer.

Once the backup finishes, disconnect your S23 and connect your S26 with a USB cable. Open Smart Switch on the computer again, select Restore Data to Device, and choose the backup file you just created. The computer will transfer the data to your S26. This method is more reliable on older or slower Wi-Fi networks but takes slightly longer overall because of the two-step process.

What transfers and what doesn't

Smart Switch moves most of your personal data: contacts, messages, photos, videos, calendar events, voice memos, and call logs all transfer reliably. Your installed apps from the Google Play Store will also transfer, though you may need to sign back into some of them with your passwords.

Some things do not transfer automatically. Apps you sideloaded (installed from outside the Play Store) will not move over — you'll need to reinstall those manually. Your banking apps, for security reasons, will not transfer their saved login information, so you'll need to sign into those again. Game progress and saved data within apps may or may not transfer depending on whether the app developer uses cloud backup. Text message attachments sometimes fail to transfer if they're very old or in unusual formats.

Troubleshooting common transfer problems

If the wireless connection drops during transfer, both phones will usually save your progress and you can restart from where it stopped. Make sure both phones are on the same Wi-Fi network and that your router is not blocking the connection between them. If you keep losing the connection, try the cable method through a computer instead.

If some apps don't appear on your S26 after the transfer, they may have been removed from the Google Play Store or may not be compatible with Android on the S26. You can search for them in the Play Store and reinstall them manually. If your contacts or messages don't show up, check that you signed into your Samsung account on the S26 — some data syncs through your account rather than the direct transfer.

If you see a message that says "Storage Full" during transfer, your S26 doesn't have enough space for all your data. Delete some large files or apps from the S26 first, or transfer your data in smaller batches by unchecking some categories in Smart Switch before starting again.

After the transfer is complete

Once Smart Switch finishes, take 10 to 15 minutes to check that everything arrived correctly. Open your Contacts app and verify a few names are there. Check your Messages app to make sure your text conversations transferred. Look through your Photos app to confirm your pictures and videos are present. Sign into any apps that require a password, like email or banking apps.

If you notice something is missing, you can run Smart Switch again — it will not overwrite data that's already on your S26, so running it a second time is safe. Once you're confident everything transferred correctly, you can erase your S23 by going to Settings > General Management > Reset > Factory Data Reset. This removes all your personal data from the old phone before you sell it, give it away, or recycle it.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I transfer data if my S23 is cracked or won't turn on?

If your S23 won't power on, you cannot use Smart Switch because the phone needs to be running to send data. If it's cracked but still works, Smart Switch will function normally. If the phone is completely dead, your data is lost unless you had previously backed it up to your Samsung account or Google account.

Will my text messages transfer with their dates and times?

Yes, Smart Switch transfers your entire message history including the dates, times, and sender information for each text. However, very old messages (more than a few years old) sometimes fail to transfer if they're stored in a format the S26 doesn't recognize. Most recent messages transfer without problems.

Do I need to erase my S23 before transferring to the S26?

No, you do not need to erase your S23 before the transfer. Smart Switch reads data from your S23 without changing anything on that phone. You should only erase your S23 after the transfer is complete and you've verified that everything arrived on your S26.

What if I don't have a Samsung account?

You can create a Samsung account on your S26 before starting the transfer — it takes about two minutes and only requires an email address and password. Some data syncs through your Samsung account, so having one set up before you transfer will may support nothing is missed.

Can I transfer data from my S23 to multiple phones?

Smart Switch transfers from one phone to one phone at a time. If you want to move data to more than one new phone, you'll need to run Smart Switch separately for each transfer. You can transfer from your S23 to your first S26, then transfer from your S23 again to a second phone if needed.