How to export Health app data on iPhone and iPad

If you use the Health app on your iPhone or iPad to track data such as steps walked, calories burned, heart rate info, etc., you’ll want to make sure you have a backup in case things go awry. Currently, the only way to do this is to export Health app data somewhere else. Here are two different options I’d recommend:

If you switch devices, the only option you currently have if you want to take that data with you is to restore from backup, which holds all of your health data. Not only that, if you back up to your Mac, your backup must be encrypted, or no Health app data will be restored.

Sometimes this isn’t always possible though and you may want to start fresh. Here’s are two ways you can export Health app data for historical reference:

How to export Health app data on iPhone and iPad

Option 1:

This option has it’s limitations but is an easy way to get all of your data out of the Health app, it provides you with an XML file of all of your health data.

1. Launch the Health app on your iPhone.
2. Tap on Health Data at the bottom on the screen.
3. Tap All.
4. Tap on the Share button.
5. Tap Export
6. Select your app of choice. In this instance, I’ll email myself a copy.

Option 2:

QS Access is a third party app that allows more granularity in your export and produces a more readable formatted output file.

It is available for free in the App Store.

• Free – Download

Once you’ve installed QS Access, follow these steps to export Health app data:

1. Launch QS Access on your iPhone.
2. Select the columns that you want to export and tap Create Table.
3. Grant access to the data by tapping the slider and then tapping Allow.
4. A table of your data is then displayed on screen. You can share this via the Share button.
5. I decided to export in this case to the Notes app.

Numbers is also a great way to export as it keeps the formatting and produces the output in columns and rows within a Numbers sheet.

These are two of the best methods I’ve found for getting data out of the Health app. Give either of these methods a try and let me know in the comments how it worked for you!