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Sync with iCloud

Not the same as iCloud CalDAV or Apple Reminders

This page covers 2Do's recommended iCloud sync, which signs in with your Apple Account and syncs all of your 2Do data privately. iCloud CalDAV is a separate method that signs in with an app-specific password and syncs CalDAV task lists: see Sync with iCloud CalDAV. Neither method makes your tasks appear in Apple Reminders: see Sync with Apple Reminders.

iCloud is the recommended way to sync 2Do for Android with 2Do on iPhone, iPad, and Mac. Your tasks, lists, tags, Smart Lists, and attachments sync through your iCloud account and stay private to that account.

On iPhone, iPad, and Mac, 2Do uses the iCloud account the device is signed in to. On Android, you sign in to the same Apple Account once from 2Do with your normal password. You do not need an app-specific password.

Before You Start​

iCloud sync works only when every device you sync can use it:

  • Android: a version of 2Do whose list of sync methods includes iCloud as its own entry, separate from iCloud CalDAV. In earlier versions, the only iCloud option is the CalDAV one, shown as iCloud Reminders.
  • iPhone and iPad: 2Do version 4. Version 3 and earlier cannot use iCloud sync.
  • Mac: 2Do 2026.x on macOS 14 or later. Version 2.x and earlier cannot use iCloud sync.
  • The same Apple Account on every device. On iPhone, iPad, and Mac, that is the account signed in to iCloud in the system settings. A device that uses another sync method or another account keeps a separate set of tasks.
  • 2Do Pro on Android. Sync is a Pro feature on Android. You can use it during the app's full-featured trial, and after the trial ends, syncing needs the Pro upgrade.

If 2Do for Android does not list iCloud yet, keep using Dropbox or your current method on all of your devices until an update with iCloud sync is available. Dropbox also remains the right choice when a device can't be updated, or when you don't use an Apple Account.

Setup​

  1. Open Settings > Sync.
  2. Tap Selected Account at the top. If a Dropbox or other account is connected, this row shows the account's name instead.
  3. Choose iCloud, listed under Recommended. Don't choose iCloud CalDAV, which is a different method.
  4. On the iCloud screen, tap Sign In to iCloud. Apple's sign-in page opens in your browser.
  5. Sign in with your Apple Account email address or phone number and your password. If Apple asks for a verification code, enter the code sent to your trusted Apple device or phone number.
  6. Back in 2Do, the iCloud screen shows Signed In to iCloud, and the first sync starts. See First Sync.
  7. Set up your iPhone, iPad, and Mac with the same Apple Account. See iCloud sync on iPhone and iPad and iCloud sync on the Mac.

Your current sync method stays in place until you finish signing in. If you cancel, or go back before signing in, nothing changes.

Signing in without a Google account

If Chrome opens for the first time and asks you to sign in with a Google account, you can continue without signing in. Only the Apple sign-in is needed.

First Sync​

When either this device or iCloud has no 2Do data yet, the first sync runs without asking. 2Do uploads this device's data to iCloud, or downloads the data already there. Anything you have created counts as 2Do data, including a list with no tasks in it.

When both this device and iCloud already have 2Do data, the iCloud screen shows Choose How to Start Syncing, and syncing waits until you choose one of these:

  • Combine Tasks brings the data on this device and in iCloud together. 2Do reconciles items that are the same on both sides, such as tasks that reached both through an earlier sync, and keeps items it cannot match as separate copies. Similar tasks that were created separately on each side may both remain.
  • Keep This Device's Tasks replaces the 2Do data in iCloud with the data on this device. Items that are only in iCloud are removed, and your other devices then receive this device's data.
  • Keep iCloud Tasks replaces the 2Do data on this device with the data in iCloud. Items that are only on this device are removed.

Both Keep choices ask you to confirm before anything is replaced. If you are not sure which side is complete, choose Combine Tasks: it reconciles the two sides instead of replacing one with the other. Choose Keep iCloud Tasks when iCloud already has everything this device has, for example after your other devices moved to iCloud from the same Dropbox account.

Replacing the tasks in iCloud affects every device

Keep This Device's Tasks changes the tasks in iCloud for every device that syncs with your Apple Account. Before you choose it, make a backup from Settings > Manage Backups and keep a copy off the device.

Until you choose, syncing stays paused. To choose later, open Settings > Sync > iCloud Account, or pull down on the task list.

Merging or Replacing Later​

To run one of these choices again later, for example when one device has fallen out of step, open Settings > Sync > Next sync action and choose Combine Tasks, Keep This Device's Tasks, or Keep iCloud Tasks. When you go back, 2Do asks you to confirm. The choice applies to the next sync, so pull down on the task list to start it. Afterward, the setting returns to Sync Normally.

What Syncs​

iCloud sync carries all of your 2Do data between Android, iPhone, iPad, and Mac:

  • Tasks with all their details: title, notes, dates, duration, alarms, recurrence, priority, starred state, actions, tags, and locations.
  • Projects, checklists, and subtasks, with their structure intact.
  • Lists, list groups, tags, tag groups, and saved locations.
  • Smart Lists and their search rules.
  • The manual order of your tasks, including the separate manual order of the Focus Lists.
  • Attachments. The pictures and audio recordings you add to tasks sync to all of your devices, and every attachment stays with its task when Android syncs.

Your 2Do data is stored privately in your iCloud account. It does not appear on iCloud.com or in other apps.

What Stays on This Device​

  • Lists you exclude under Settings > Sync > Exclude list from Sync, along with their tasks.
  • 2Do for Android's settings. The app settings that sync between iPhone, iPad, and Mac do not sync with Android.
  • View state, such as which projects and list groups are expanded.

Automatic Sync​

While 2Do is open, it finds out when you change something on another device and syncs soon after. In the background, 2Do syncs at the interval you choose under Settings > Sync > Sync automatically, whenever Android lets it run, so background updates arrive periodically rather than instantly. See Background Sync on Android.

With Sync automatically set to Never, 2Do syncs only when you pull down on the task list. You can pull down to sync immediately at any time.

Signing In Again or Changing Accounts​

Open Settings > Sync > iCloud Account to see whether this device is signed in.

  • Sign In Again with the same Apple Account keeps your tasks and any changes that have not synced yet. Use it when 2Do shows Sign-In Needed.
  • If you sign in with a different Apple Account, nothing changes until you choose what happens to the tasks on this device. Combine Tasks adds them to the new account alongside the tasks already there, Keep This Device's Tasks replaces the new account's tasks with them, and Use the New Account's Tasks replaces them with the new account's tasks. Keep Previous Account cancels the change. Tasks in your previous account stay there.

To stop using iCloud on this device, tap Selected Account in Settings > Sync and choose another method, or None. Your tasks stay on the device.

Moving from Dropbox to iCloud​

Choosing iCloud does not copy your tasks from Dropbox. Each device keeps its own tasks when you switch, and iCloud starts with the tasks of the first device you move. To move all of your devices:

  1. Update 2Do on every device and check that each one can use iCloud sync. See Before You Start.
  2. Sync every device with Dropbox one last time, and let each sync finish.
  3. On the device with your most complete tasks, make a backup and keep a copy off the device. On Android, use Settings > Manage Backups.
  4. Switch that device to iCloud first. If iCloud has no 2Do data yet, the first sync uploads this device's data without asking. If iCloud already has 2Do data, 2Do asks how to start; see First Sync.
  5. When that sync finishes, switch each of your other devices to iCloud with the same Apple Account. When 2Do asks how to start, choose Keep iCloud Tasks on Android, or Replace Local Data on iPhone, iPad, or Mac, because iCloud now holds the same tasks. If a device might hold tasks that never reached Dropbox, choose Combine Tasks (Merge on Apple devices) instead.

On iPhone, iPad, and Mac, unlink Dropbox in Settings > Sync before you choose iCloud. See Switching Sync Methods.

Switch every device. The same steps work when you move from iCloud CalDAV or another method.

Troubleshooting​

iCloud is not in the list of sync methods​

This version of 2Do for Android does not include iCloud sync. Update 2Do from Google Play or our website, and keep using Dropbox or your current method on all of your devices until the update is available.

Sign-In Needed​

Open Settings > Sync > iCloud Account and tap Sign In Again. Sign in with the same Apple Account to keep your tasks and any changes that have not synced yet.

Browser Not Supported​

2Do opens Apple's sign-in page in a browser on your device. Install or update a browser, such as Chrome, then tap Sign In to iCloud again.

Can't Reach iCloud​

Check your internet connection, then pull down on the task list to try again. If sync fails only on one network, such as a work network, or only while a VPN is connected, try another network, and ask the network administrator or VPN provider to allow access to iCloud.

iCloud Account Changed​

Open Settings > Sync > iCloud Account and sign in again. If you sign in with a different Apple Account than before, 2Do asks what to do with the tasks on this device before anything changes. See Signing In Again or Changing Accounts.

Tasks were replaced in iCloud, or 2Do's data is missing​

If another device replaced the tasks in iCloud, or 2Do's data is no longer in your iCloud account, syncing on this device pauses and the iCloud screen asks how to continue. It offers the same choices as the first sync.

  • If you replaced the tasks in iCloud on purpose from another device, choose Keep iCloud Tasks so this device matches.
  • If 2Do's data is missing from iCloud, start on the device with your most complete tasks, choose Keep This Device's Tasks, and let that sync finish. Then choose Keep iCloud Tasks on your other Android devices so they download that copy.

One device shows different tasks​

Sync the device with the correct tasks and let it finish. On the device that is behind, choose Keep iCloud Tasks under Settings > Sync > Next sync action, confirm, and pull down on the task list to sync. See One of my devices isn't syncing correctly.

Adding another Android device​

Install 2Do, tap Selected Account in Settings > Sync, choose iCloud, and sign in with the same Apple Account. If the new device has no 2Do data yet, the first sync downloads everything without asking. See Setting up a new device.

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