How to Set Up Apple ID on New iPhone: Your Apple Account and iCloud, Step by Step

Language, Wi-Fi and a passcode go by quickly, and then setup stops on a screen asking for your Apple Account. If you've never had one, or you made one years ago and the password is long gone, that's where setup tends to stall. Here is how to get past it, plus the iCloud switches worth turning on before you put the phone down.

To set up an Apple ID on a new iPhone, sign in on the Apple Account screen during setup with your email address or phone number and your password. If you don't have an account yet, tap "Forgot password or don't have an account?", choose "Create a Free Apple Account" and follow the onscreen steps: birthday, name, email, password, country or region, and two-factor authentication. You can also skip this step and do it later.

What Is an Apple ID? (Apple Calls It an Apple Account Now)

An Apple ID is the single account that connects you to Apple's services: iCloud, the App Store, Messages and Find My. Apple now calls it an Apple Account, and older guides may still say Apple ID. Both names mean the same account.

The easiest way to picture it: the account is the key to a house, and your iPhone is one room. If you replace the phone, the same key opens the house again on the new one, with your photos, contacts and purchases waiting inside. If you lose the key, the rooms get much harder to reach, which is why the password section further down matters. You pay nothing for the account itself unless you buy something or choose more iCloud storage.

Create a New Apple ID During Setup

If you've never had an Apple Account, the simplest place to create one is the setup screen itself. Have these ready before you start:

• A Wi-Fi Connection: setup needs to reach Apple.
• An Email Address You Can Open: Apple sends a verification code there.
• A Phone Number That Gets Texts: it's used for two-factor authentication.

1. Tap "Forgot Password or Don't Have an Account?"

On the Apple Account screen, this gives you three choices: recover an account, create a new one, or set it up later.

2. Choose "Create a Free Apple Account"

Tap Continue on each screen as you go.

3. Enter Your Birthday and Name

Use your real information here. Apple uses your birthday to apply age rules, and a birthday under 13 in the US sends you down the child account route covered below.

4. Pick the Email Address You'll Sign In With

Any email address you already use will work. If you'd rather keep things separate, choose the option for a free iCloud email address instead.

5. Verify Your Email and Create a Password

Enter the verification code Apple sends to your email, then create a password. Keep a written copy somewhere safe at home.

6. Set Your Country or Region and Turn On Two-Factor Authentication

Pick your country or region, confirm your phone number, and enter the code that arrives by text. This means a new sign-in needs your password plus a code sent to a device or number you trust, so a stolen password alone isn't enough.

Not ready yet? Choose to set it up later. The iPhone works without an account, and you can sign in afterward from the top of the Settings app. You can also create an account from the App Store: tap the account icon, then "Create New Apple Account."

Already Have an Apple ID? Sign In and Bring Your Things Across

If you already have an account, enter its email address or phone number and password on the setup screen, then type in the verification code Apple sends. That one sign-in connects the new iPhone to your iCloud, your purchases and Find My.

If you use more than one account, look for "Use Multiple Accounts" under Other Sign-In Options.

Next, setup asks how to bring your information over. If your old iPhone is nearby, Quick Start can copy it across directly; if not, you can restore from an iCloud backup made on the old phone. Our guide to transferring data to a new iPhone walks through both.

What iCloud Is and What It Costs

iCloud is Apple's online storage for your photos, backups, passwords and contacts, and each Apple Account comes with 5 GB free. If you need more, Apple sells iCloud+ plans. These are Apple's US monthly prices as listed in October 2026:

• 50 GB: $0.99
• 200 GB: $2.99
• 2 TB: $9.99
• 6 TB: $29.99
• 12 TB: $59.99

Apple sets these prices and can change them, and some US states add tax to the monthly payment.

In yearly terms, 50 GB comes to about $12 a year and 200 GB to about $36. When the free 5 GB fills up, you'll see a storage warning, not a bill. You're only charged if you choose a plan.

Turn On These Five iCloud Settings First

Five switches cover most of what protects a new iPhone: Find My, iCloud Backup, Passwords, Photos and Contacts. Here is how to find each one (the labels can differ a little between iOS versions):

• Find My iPhone: Settings > [your name] > Find My > Find My iPhone. This lets you see the phone on a map if it goes missing.
• iCloud Backup: Settings > [your name] > iCloud > iCloud Backup, then turn on Back Up This iPhone. Backups run on their own when the iPhone is charging, locked and on Wi-Fi.
• Passwords: Settings > [your name] > iCloud > Passwords (on some versions, "Passwords & Keychain"), then turn on Sync this iPhone. Your saved logins follow you to your next device.
• Photos: Settings > [your name] > iCloud > Photos. Photos count toward your storage, so this is the switch most likely to fill the free 5 GB.
• Contacts: Settings > [your name] > iCloud > See All > Contacts. Your contact information then lives in iCloud, not only on the phone.

Forgot Your Password? Here Is How to Get Back In

The fastest fix is "Forgot Password?" on the sign-in screen: choose it and follow the prompts to set a new password. If that doesn't work, there are other routes:

• On the Web: open iforgot.apple.com in Safari and follow the steps there.
• On Someone Else's Device: in the Apple Support app, go to Support Tools > Reset Password > Help Someone Else.
• With a Recovery Contact: if you've set one up, that person can give you a 6-digit code to get back in.

If none of those can confirm it's you, Apple starts account recovery. Apple says it "could take a while" (several days or more). A confirmation arrives within 72 hours by email (or by iMessage for accounts that use only a phone number) saying when you can expect access. Apple Support can't shorten the wait. When it's over, Apple emails you and calls or texts the number you used to start recovery. If nothing arrives, go to apple.com/recover after the time shown in the email.

This means the best moment to add a recovery contact is right now, while you can still sign in.

Setting Up an iPhone as a Gift (Including for a Kid)

The account should belong to the person who will use the phone, not the person who bought it. Purchases stay with the account that made them, so signing a gifted phone into the giver's account ties the recipient's apps and storage to someone else.

A child is the exception, and Apple's rules here are specific. In the US, children under 13 can't create their own account. A parent or guardian creates it through Family Sharing, and only the Family Sharing organizer or a parent or guardian in the group can do it. Set up Family Sharing first, then go to:

Settings > Family > Add Member > Create Child Account > Continue

Enter the child's real name and birthday. For the sign-in, you can use the child's own email, a suggested @icloud.com address, or a Game Center nickname. On iOS 26, the setup screen also offers "Set Up for a Child." Apple's family pages say Ask to Buy is on by default for children under 13, and parental controls live under Settings > Family. Age rules vary by country or region.

If a gifted or pre-owned iPhone asks for someone else's Apple Account, that's Activation Lock. Apple designed it "to prevent anyone else from using your iPhone or iPad if it's ever lost or stolen." Hand the phone back to the previous owner so they can enter their password, or if they aren't with you, ask them to remove the device from their account in a web browser. Our guide to checking Activation Lock on an iPhone covers how to spot it.

When Apple Won't Let You Create an Account

Apple's support pages list a handful of common reasons account creation fails, and most have a quick fix:

• Email or Phone Number Already Used: that address belongs to an existing account. Sign in with it, or use "Forgot Password?" to get back into it.
• Verification Code Didn't Arrive: check your spam folder and make sure the phone can receive texts, then request a new code.
• Weak Connection or an Apple Service Problem: try a different Wi-Fi network, or wait a little and try again.
• Outdated iOS: update the iPhone in Settings > General > Software Update, then try again.
• Still Signed In to iCloud: if you're creating the account from the App Store, being signed in to iCloud already can block it.
• "The maximum number of free accounts have been activated on this device": create the account on another Apple device, then sign in with it on this iPhone.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is my Apple ID my email or my password?

Neither one alone. Your email address works like a username and the password like a lock, and the account holds your information behind both. Per Apple's account pages, each sign-in contact saved to the account works, which helps if you've switched providers since you made it.

Can I create an Apple ID for free?

Yes. When you create one from the App Store, you can choose "None" as the payment method, so you don't need to add a card. Money only comes into it if you buy an app, a subscription or a movie, or choose an iCloud+ plan for more storage.

Can I have two Apple IDs?

Yes, but most people are better off with one. Apple documents using one account for iCloud and another for purchases, yet anything you buy stays with the account that bought it. Apple doesn't recommend treating two accounts as one, so apps bought on one won't simply move over to the other.

When I set up a new iPhone, does everything transfer?

Most of it does, not all. You'll usually need to set up Face ID or Touch ID again and add your Apple Pay cards again, and some apps will ask you to sign in once more. Apps may download again in the background, and photos and messages kept in iCloud reappear after sign-in rather than being copied.

Can I create an Apple ID without an iPhone?

Yes. Apple's own steps cover creating an account on a Mac, a Windows PC or in a web browser, as well as on an iPhone. Once it exists, sign in with it on the iPhone's setup screen. That route is handy when you'd rather type a long email address on a full keyboard.

Once You're Signed In

With the account created and the five iCloud switches on, the phone is backed up, findable and holding your passwords. Our guide to setting up an iPhone you got as a Christmas gift covers the rest of the first day, and our guides to activating a new iPhone and setting up eSIM cover getting it onto your carrier.

Two quick checks are worth doing once you're set up: where to find battery health on a new iPhone, and how to tell if an iPhone is unlocked.

If you're still choosing the phone itself, Plug Certified iPhones arrive unlocked, with Plug's 12-Month Warranty and 30-day returns.