You can use your computer to transfer contacts to another email account.

Android

You can back up the contacts stored on your phone or SIM card. If you lose or need to replace your phone, you can restore these contacts on the new phone.

Restoring data varies by phone and Android version. You can't restore a backup from a higher Android version onto a phone running a lower Android version.

If you save your contacts to your Google Account, they automatically show on your phone after you sign in. You won’t need to restore contacts this way. Learn about syncing.

Export contacts

  1. On your Android phone or tablet, open the Contacts app .
  2. At the bottom, tap Fix & manage and then Export to file.
  3. Choose one or more accounts to export contacts from.
  4. Tap Export to .VCF file.

Turn automatic backup off or on

When you first set up your Google Account on your phone, you’ll be asked if you want to back up your data. To change this setting: 

  1. Open your phone’s Settings app.
  2. Tap System and then Backup.
  3. Turn Back up to Google Drive on or off.

Restore contacts from backups

Important: You can't restore a backup from a higher Android version onto a phone running a lower Android version. Learn how to check and update your Android version.

  1. Open your phone's Settings app.
  2. Tap Google.
  3. Tap Set up & restore.
  4. Tap Restore contacts.
  5. If you have multiple Google Accounts, to choose which account's contacts to restore, tap From account.
  6. Tap the phone with the contacts to copy.
  7. If you don’t want to copy contacts from your SIM card or phone storage, turn off SIM card or Device storage.
  8. Tap Restore, then wait until you see "Contacts restored."
  9. To avoid duplicates, your phone restores only contacts that it doesn't already have. Your restored contacts also sync to your current Google Account and other devices.

Tip: To restore contacts from other apps, like Outlook or WhatsApp, you’ll need to re-install those apps.

More ways to back up & restore

Learn more about how to back up or restore data on a Pixel phone or on an Android phone.


Computer

Export contacts

To add your contacts to another email account, first download them as a CSV or vCard file. To clear up storage, export and then delete contacts you don't need.

  1. Go to Google Contacts.
  2. Select one of the following:
    • A single contact: Check the box next to the contact name.
    • Multiple contacts: Check the boxes next to all the contacts you want to export.
    • All contacts: Check the box next to any contact and in the top left, click Selection Actions and then All.
  3. In the top left, click More actions and then Export.
  4. To back up your contacts, select Google CSV.
  5. To save your file, click Export.
Tip: If you use Google Contacts for work or school, you can’t select all contacts in the Directory.