How to Enable and Use Handoff on iOS Devices

Authored by: Support.com Tech Pro Team

1. Introduction

Start a task on one Apple gadget—Mac, iOS, or Apple Watch—and pick up on another. Here’s how to use Apple Handoff to continue tasks between devices. 

2. How to Use

You have a Mac, and maybe another Apple device like an iPhone, iPad, or Apple Watch. If you've started a certain task on one device and want to continue on another, you can do that with Handoff.

In order to use Handoff, each device must be connected to the same Wi-Fi network and be signed in to iCloud with the same Apple ID. Here's how to set up and use Handoff.

The process is simplified on iOS devices, so you can follow the same process for iPhones and iPad. On your iOS device, open Settings > General > Handoff. Turn on the switch for Handoff if it's not already on.

Switching From iOS to Desktop

You can also go in the opposite direction. Again, let's use Safari as an example. Open it on your iOS device and surf to a particular webpage.

On your Mac, the Handoff icon should appear to the left of the Dock. In this case, the icon is for Safari but with the smaller attached icon that looks like an iPhone or iPad. Hover over that icon, and a message pops up that it's for Safari from iPhone or iPad. Click that icon to view the same webpage from your iPad.