Copy Outlook Contacts From One Account to Another – 2 Top Ways
Summary: Learn about different strategies that you can adopt to copy Outlook contacts from one account to another.
Have you created a new Outlook account and want to add the contact list from the former account to the newer one? Having more than one account has become a necessity to manage your work and personal life. But whatever the reason might be, the thought of undergoing a lengthy process to copy Outlook contacts from one account to another can be daunting.
The idea of re-entering all of the contacts into the new Outlook must have crossed your mind but it’s not worth your time. So, how do we do it? In this blog, we will explain how you transfer your contacts.
How to Copy Outlook Contacts from One Account to Another?
Outlook does not provide any inbuilt feature to share its entire contact list with another account. You will be required to first convert them into a file format that is compatible with the address book. A VCF (vCard) is a virtual business card file that is exclusively developed for sharing contacts.
You can create a vCard file in two different ways. One is a professional method with the help of a tool and another one can be manually done.
Method 1: How to Copy Outlook Contacts From One Account to Another Automatically?
The transferring of contacts from one account to another requires you to convert your files in a business card format i.e. vCard file and then move it into the second outlook account that you have created.
This method is divided into two phases. In the first phase, we will show you how you can convert the contacts from the former account into vCard. In the next phase, you will get to know about how to import those vCard files into the new Outlook account.
Why prefer tool over the manual method?
- You can move multiple contacts in and out of Outlook with the help of the software which isn’t the case manually because the manual method does not support exporting multiple contacts in a single attempt.
- Even if your source file is corrupted or orphaned or protected by passwords, you can easily achieve results with the help of this tool.
- You can copy the contacts that you had formerly deleted with no extra efforts on your part.
- A contact file has attributes and details such as name, phone number, address, email ID, images, notes, etc. You can successfully copy them into your new account easily.
Steps to Copy Outlook Contacts From One Account to Another:
PHASE 1: Convert the Contacts from Former Account to vCard Files.
1: Download and install the tool and add files or folders into the tool. Users can also choose to auto-detect Outlook PST files.
2: Now, the software will scan the loaded files for any corruption or damage and will provide a preview of all the details within the file(s).
3: Now, choose the files that you want to copy and select the “vCard” file format. After this, provide a destination location to save the resultant file in your system.
4: Then, click on the Export button to save the Outlook contacts from the former account.
A business card has been created. You can use this resultant data file to move the contact list into the new Outlook.
PHASE 2: Import the Resultant vCard Files into your New Outlook Account.
5: Install and run the software and click on the “Add File/Folder” button to add the file that we created.
6: After adding the files, you can preview all details and attributes of the contacts. Now, select the files you would like to copy to another account & click on Export.
7: Then, select the Export type. You can choose to save the file in an existing contact file, a new PST file, or directly import the contacts to the default MS Outlook profile.
8: Finally, when you click on the Export button, the process to copy the contacts will begin.
Done! You have completed the job.
Method 2: How to Copy Outlook Contacts From One Account to Another Manually?
The manual method is also divided into two phases given as follows:
Phase 1: Convert Contacts to vCard Format
1: Run Outlook and click on File>> Open and Export
2: Select the Import/Export option>> Export to a File
3: Choose the Comma Separated Value (CSV)>> Next
4: Now choose the folder that has your contacts>> Next
5: Then save the file at your desired location
6: After this map the custom fields and click on Finish.
These steps will generate a CSV file for each contact. Now, perform the below-given guidelines to copy them into a new account.
Phase 2: Import the vCard Format to New Outlook Account
7: Log in to your new Outlook account, choose File>> Open & Export
8: Click on the Import/Export option and choose to “Import”
9: Select the “Import from another program or file” option>> Next
10: Choose the CSV file and select the file you want to copy
11: Select the folder to import and map the custom fields
Finish! You have successfully achieved the task to copy Outlook contacts from one account to another.
Conclusion
In this article, you learned about ways to copy Outlook contacts from one account to another account. Which is the better method to execute this task?
An automated-professional method has various advantages over manual practice. The biggest demerit of the manual procedure is the necessity to copy every contact file separately. Now in case you have hundreds of contacts to transfer, it is not very convenient to apply such a lengthy process every time.
In addition to this, the manual task requires a lot of time and sound technical knowledge to successfully execute it. Hence, using the software would be a wise choice.