Syncing with Google Drive and backups: what’s saved and where

4 min read

Setting up your lists, sorting your favorites and tweaking the player takes time, and nobody wants to do it all over again when they change phones. Whatplay has two tools so you don’t lose anything: sync with your Google Drive, which keeps all your devices the same, and backups to a file, which you can keep wherever you like. They complement each other: the first is automatic; the second is a snapshot you can store separately.

Sync

How to turn it on

Go to Settings › Sync and tap “Sign in with Google”.
Do the same on each device, with the same Google account.

You don’t need to create a Whatplay account. With automatic sync, Whatplay syncs when you open the app, a few seconds after each change and, while the app is open, every fifteen minutes. If you want to sync right away, there’s “Sync now”.

What syncs and what doesn’t

Yes: your lists (including provider accounts), your favorites lists, browser bookmarks, TV guides and settings.
No: the parental controls PIN, which has to be set on each device, nor Recents, “Continue watching” or history.

Large lists downloaded from an address travel with just their address, and each device downloads them on its own. Lists without an address, such as the ones created in the app or imported from a file, travel in full; if one is huge, Whatplay tells you which one doesn’t fit and syncs everything else.

If you change the same thing in two places

Each device remembers how everything looked the last time it synced, and compares. Anything that changed on just one device stays as it is there; anything added on any device is combined; and anything removed on one is removed on the others too. If you change the same thing on two devices before they sync, the most recent change wins. Anything you add on one device is never lost.

Where it’s stored and who can see it

Everything goes to a hidden folder in your Google Drive reserved for the app. It doesn’t appear among your files and only Whatplay can open it; no other apps or people can see it. In turn, Whatplay only asks for permission for that folder, not for the rest of your Drive: it can’t read your documents or your photos. Your lists don’t go through any Veltrix Studios server: they go from your device to your Drive, and from your Drive to your other devices. They do count toward your Google account’s storage, though; if it fills up, Whatplay lets you know.

Stop syncing or delete it

“Sign out”: this device stops syncing. What’s on it and what’s saved in Drive both stay put.
“Disconnect from Google”: also removes Whatplay’s permission from your Google account, for your other devices as well, until you sign in again.
Delete the copy in Drive: in Google Drive › Manage apps › Whatplay › Delete hidden app data.

The help explains it in Can I delete my sync account?

Backups

A backup is a file with your lists and their content, your favorites, your bookmarks, the guides (their address) and your settings. It doesn’t need an account or internet, so it also works on devices without Google services, such as some TV boxes.

Go to Settings › Backup › “Create a backup”.
Choose where to save it. The suggested name includes the date, like whatplay-backup-2026-11-06.json.
To get it back, tap “Restore a backup” and choose the file.

Restoring adds what’s in the backup to what you already have, without deleting anything, so you can safely restore on a phone that already has lists. TV guides are downloaded again separately, and the backup never includes the parental controls PIN. More in How do I make a backup?

Store it carefully

The backup is an unencrypted text file (JSON). If you’ve added your TV provider’s account, the backup also contains its login details. Keep it somewhere that’s yours, like your computer or your personal cloud, and don’t share it as if it were a list.

Which one should I use?

Several devices with the same Google account: sync. Change something on one and it shows up on the others.
You’re changing phones: either one. With sync, just sign in on the new one.
A device without Google services: the backup. Whatplay suggests it if it can’t sign in.
Before a clear-out or deleting lists: a backup, just in case. Sync copies deletions too, so it won’t save you from a mistake.

Good habits with your data

Keep at least one backup off the device, and make a new one when you make big changes.
If you share the tablet or the TV, remember that sync brings your stuff to every device signed in with your account. For a children’s device, you might prefer not to sign in and give it only what you want with a backup.
The parental controls PIN has to be set on each device: it doesn’t travel with sync or with backups. We cover it in parental controls at home.
If one day you see “What’s saved in your Drive is from a newer version of Whatplay”, update the app on that device to keep syncing.