Google Authenticator iOS App Gains New Export Accounts Option - MacRumorsOpen MenuShow RoundupsShow Forums menuVisit ForumsOpen Sidebar
Skip to Content

Google Authenticator iOS App Gains New Export Accounts Option

Google has updated its 2FA Authenticator app for iOS with a new account transfer feature that makes it much easier to transfer two-factor authentication codes to a new iPhone.

google authenticator app
2FA adds an extra layer of security to your online accounts by requiring a randomly generated six-digit code after you've entered your password. Google's app generates codes for your accounts on the fly, but until now the process of transferring accounts to a new iPhone was time-consuming and involved multiple steps.

Thankfully, that's no longer the case, and you can now select which accounts to export by tapping the three dots in the top-right corner of the app and choosing Export accounts.

After you've chosen which accounts to export (you can export up to 10 accounts at a time), the Authenticator app will generate a QR code. Scan this code using the Authenticator app on your new device, and the chosen accounts will be automatically transferred.

authenticator export accounts
In addition to 2FA export, the latest update to the app also adds a refreshed interface and Dark Mode support, which respects your systemwide settings.

Remember, if you buy a new iPhone to replace your existing one and you use the Google Authenticator app, you should transfer those accounts to your new phone as soon as possible, because without the 2FA codes close at hand, you could find yourself locked out of your online accounts.

Google Authenticator is a free download for ‌iPhone available on the App Store.‌ [Direct Link]

Popular Stories

Apple Maps Google Maps Icons

Google Maps Showing 'Lake America' in U.S., Apple Maps Yet to Follow

Monday August 31, 2026 6:33 am PDT by
Google Maps users in the U.S. will now see the name "Lake America" instead of "Lake Ontario" for the Great Lake that straddles the New York—Ontario border. Google said it made this change in response to the U.S. Geographic Names Information System (GNIS) updating the name for "Lake Ontario" to "Lake America," following an executive order issued by U.S. President Donald Trump last week....
google ai student discount

College Students Can Get a Free Year of Google AI Pro

Wednesday August 19, 2026 12:00 pm PDT by
Google today said eligible college students in the United States can get a free year of Google AI Pro. Google AI Pro is normally priced at $19.99 per month, and it includes 4x higher usage limits in Gemini, access to Gemini Spark, Gemini in Google apps like Gmail and Google Docs, and 5TB of storage space. Eligible college students outside the United States can get a free year of Google AI...
iOS 27 Next to iPhone

Here's When iOS 27 Rolls Out Today in Every Time Zone [Update: It's Out]

Sunday September 13, 2026 3:00 am PDT by
Update 10:04 a.m.: iOS 27 is rolling out now, though it may take a bit for all users to see it, so keep checking! Apple is about to release iOS 27, which will finally deliver more advanced Siri AI capabilities as well as a variety of other refinements, improvements, and new features to iPhones. It's Apple's biggest software update of the year, and Apple announced at Wednesday's iPhone event...

Top Rated Comments

HQuest Avatar
76 months ago
Too few, too late. Authy has taken the spot as a decent and easy to transfer 2FA application with a much better approach of using iCloud storage for backups and restore. Move along, Google - you had your time.
Score: 22 Votes (Like | Disagree)
76 months ago
What a joke. Microsoft Authenticator has an iCloud backup that can be restored.
Score: 11 Votes (Like | Disagree)
dylanhf Avatar
76 months ago
Well that would have been useful... a week ago :rolleyes:
Score: 10 Votes (Like | Disagree)
76 months ago

Well that would have been useful... a week ago :rolleyes:
Yep - stuffed me up too
Score: 6 Votes (Like | Disagree)
76 months ago
I use Microsoft Authenticator now (I used Google Authenticator for many years and Authy for a year or two) and I'm very happy with it. Many ways to add your codes, backups (if you want, you can disable it), plus password-less login to your Microsoft account which I initially didn't think I'd use but boy is it a time-saver. You can also perform several security related tasks on your Microsoft account through the app. For someone like me with one foot in the Microsoft world and one foot in the Apple world it's perfect.
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)
mazz0 Avatar
76 months ago
Yep, I'm in the OTP Auth camp too (https://apps.apple.com/gb/app/otp-auth/id659877384). Hassle-free syncing across devices, Safari plugins to make entering the codes a doddle. I don't know why people would use Google's version. Even this solution requires that you have the new and old phone at the same time, so doesn't work for trade ins, or replacements of lost/broken phones.

I appreciate not storing the keys in the cloud is more secure, but come on, they're stored encrypted in iCloud with a key Apple don't have. I doubt anybody with the power to hack that is particularly interested in pretending to be me on MacRumors forums!
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)

🔗 Related Apple News & Rumors

Stay updated with the latest Apple ecosystem news and verified rumors