CardBackup

Simple, reliable photo backups from your camera to your iPhone. Or iPad. Or Mac.

One-time purchase. No subscriptions. No ads. Ever.

Buy Now on the App Store

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Plug in and back up

Connect your SD card or camera. Pick a source and destination folder. CardBackup does the rest.

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Smart deduplication

Uses partial file hashing and EXIF metadata to skip files you've already backed up - no accidental duplicates.

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Verified copies

Every file is hash-verified after copying. CardBackup detects corruption before you find out the hard way.

Frequently asked questions

What is this for?: Sometimes I want to take my camera on a trip, shoot a few hundred photos, and not spend the whole time worrying about losing them if my SD card dies before I get home. So whenever I get a quiet moment I plug in my card-reader, tap back up, and that's it - and because CardBackup skips files it's already copied, I can do it as many times as I like as the card fills up.

Even better: if I back up to an iCloud folder, it syncs automatically overnight using hotel wifi, and I know my shots are waiting for me on my Mac at home.
Does it import photos into my iPhone's Photos library?: No. CardBackup copies files to a folder of your choosing - it doesn't touch the Photos library. Your files stay exactly as they are on the card, just copied to a new location.

The intended workflow is to back up first, then cull and process at your leisure before importing the keepers into Photos.
Does it work with any camera or SD card?: If your camera or card appears as a folder when connected to your iPhone, CardBackup can read from it. It works with any source that iOS exposes through the standard Files interface.

You'll need a Lightning or USB-C card reader to connect an SD card, or a cable to connect your camera directly - the same adapters you'd use with the iOS Files app work fine.
Will it create duplicate files if I run it more than once?: No. CardBackup uses file hashing and metadata to identify files it has already copied and skips them automatically.
Does it delete anything from my camera or SD card?: Never. CardBackup only reads from the source - it never modifies or deletes source files.
What file types does it support?: All of them. CardBackup copies files without inspecting their contents, so it works with RAW files, video, JPEGs, or anything else on your card.
Can I back up to iCloud Drive?: Yes. You can choose any folder accessible through the iOS Files app as your destination, including iCloud Drive.
Where can I get it?: CardBackup is available now on the App Store.