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iOS Sync & Backup

Last updated: 2026-10-23

momoChef keeps your recipes, books, grocery lists, pantry, and meal plans in sync across all your devices through your momoChef account — no iCloud or third-party cloud involved.

Sync & Storage shows your sync status at a glance.

How sync works

  • Your data lives on momoChef's servers; each device keeps a local copy for speed and offline use.
  • Sync runs whenever the app is open and online, including a periodic refresh while you're using it.
  • The web app shows changes in real time; iOS pulls the latest whenever the app is open — open momoChef to sync.

What syncs

  • Recipes and recipe books
  • Grocery lists and items
  • Pantry items
  • Meal plans
  • Your settings (display preferences, notifications, theme)

Collaborative cooking sessions are live-only and aren't part of sync.

Conflicts

If the same item is changed on two devices, the server copy wins and your device updates to match. Your replaced edit isn't lost — it's kept under Review Sync (Settings → Sync & Storage), where you can view and copy it. To avoid conflicts, edit on one device at a time.

Sync & Storage settings

Find it in Settings → Sync & Storage:

  • Last Sync and Pending Changes status at a glance, with Sync Now for a manual sync
  • Enable Offline Sync — keep a local copy for offline use
  • Sync Over Cellular — allow sync on mobile data
  • Prefetch Images on Wi-Fi — download recipe photos ahead of time
  • Review Sync — anything that couldn't sync, or was replaced by the server copy, with Retry / Copy my version / Discard options

Export & backup

Go to Settings → Export Data to export your recipes as JSON, CSV, Markdown, or ZIP. For a periodic backup, export and keep a copy somewhere safe — especially before deleting the app.

Troubleshooting

  • Changes aren't appearing on iPhone — open the app while online; sync runs when the app is open. Pull to refresh on a list to force a sync.
  • Sync is slow — large libraries and image prefetching take time; with Sync Over Cellular off, sync waits for Wi-Fi.
  • An offline edit is missing — check Review Sync for anything the server overwrote; you can copy your version from there.
  • Storage questions — your library lives on momoChef's servers, and each device keeps a local cache sized to your library. There's no separate storage to manage.