How to back up your HomeKit and Matter setup codes

A setup code is a one-time thing right up until the day you factory reset an accessory, move house, or switch hubs. Then you need it, and it is usually behind a wall plate or in a skip. Apple Home will not read it back to you, so the copy on the sticker is the only one you have.

Copy it somewhere else now, while you still can. If a code has already gone missing, that is a different job: start with finding a lost setup code.

What to write down

The code on its own is useless. In two years, 888-32-107 tells you nothing. For each accessory, record:

• Name and room, so you know which device it belongs to.
• The setup code, and the QR payload too if you can get it.
• HomeKit or Matter, or both. If you are not sure which, the difference is easy to spot.
• Model and serial number. This is what manufacturer support will ask for if a code is ever wrong or missing.

Do it before you install anything

The worst offenders for lost codes are the accessories you never see the back of again. Video doorbells and cameras often print the code on a pull-tab in the battery bay, exactly the thing you throw away at setup. In-wall switches, ceiling sensors and hardwired thermostats bury it against the wall.

The habit that fixes this is boring and it works: the moment each accessory is paired and running, record its code, then fit it.

Where to keep the codes

Roughly in order of how well each one holds up over time.

A password manager or an encrypted notes app. Synced across your devices, searchable, and it survives a lost phone. 1Password, Bitwarden and Apple Passwords all let you make a plain entry and attach a photo of the label. This is the tidiest option and the one to reach for first.

A spreadsheet or a plain note. Fine, as long as it actually syncs or gets backed up. A note that only lives on one phone is one dropped phone away from useless.

A photo of every label. Do this as well, into a single album rather than scattered through your camera roll. It is quick to capture. The catch is that a photo of digits is not searchable, so keep it paired with a written list.

The QR payload, not just the number. Scan the label with a QR reader and you get the raw string, X-HM:// for HomeKit or MT: for Matter. Save that and you can regenerate a scannable code later instead of typing eleven digits by hand. It matters more for Matter, where the QR carries routing detail the bare code leaves out.

The boxes and manuals in one drawer. A backstop for the warranty period, not a plan. Boxes get recycled, and you will not carry them to a new house.

What not to rely on

• Apple Home. It never shows the code once an accessory is added.
• The sticker by itself. That is the copy you are trying to protect.
• Memory. You will not remember eleven digits per device.