- The February 2026 update adds local file back to Android using Google Drive
- It is unclear if this is a one-way backup or live sync
- iPhones can already sync Downloads file with iCloud Drive
Google has confirmed that it is adding local file backup to Google Drive with its latest February update (Google Play Services v26.06, 2026-02-16), which means your Downloads folder will now sync with Google Drive and be available for access from other devices.
This is on top of Android’s existing Google Drive backup service, which covers system items like apps, calls and settings to preserve your phone’s essentials when you switch devices or restore after a factory reset.
At this point, it’s unclear how the feature might work, and whether Google Drive will open a new downloads folder than sync between devices, or whether locally downloaded files will just be backed up in case of an emergency.
Google Drive backs up your local Android downloads
“With the new local backup feature, you can automatically save your downloaded documents to Google Drive and ensure they’re safe and accessible from any of your devices,” Google’s release notes read.
Most importantly, this is an Android update, so it’s not available to iOS fans who have the Google Drive app installed. But iPhone users can already download files directly to iCloud Drive, where those files become available anywhere users can access iCloud Drive.
It would make sense for Google’s local file backup to work this way, rather than as device backups that don’t offer live sync.
Although the actual feature is not available yet, the underlying update can be downloaded from System Services under Settings. It should go live when Google turns it on on the server side.
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