How to Back Up Contacts to Google

Don't lose your contacts when you get a new phone

By
Stefanie Fogel
Stefanie Fogel
Stefanie Fogel
Writer, Editor, Commerce Producer
  • University of Central Florida
Stefanie Fogel has written about consumer technology since 2009. Her work has appeared on Variety, Engadget, Polygon, and many other online publications.
lifewire's editorial guidelines
Updated on October 21, 2021

What to Know

  • Go to Settings > Accounts > [your account] > Account sync > More (three vertical dots) > Sync now.
  • To export contacts, open the Contacts app and select Menu > Settings > Export. Select Save to download the .vcf file.
  • To import a .vcf file, open the Contacts app and go to Settings > Import > .vcf file. Navigate to the file and select it.

If you own an Android phone, Google automatically backs up your contacts, app data, call history, and more to Google Drive. This feature is turned on by default. When you log in to your Google account on a new phone, it syncs your data automatically. If you want to manually sync your contacts or export contacts into a separate file, you can upload the data to Google yourself. We show you how.

How to Sync Contacts to a Google Account Manually

Follow these steps to sync your contacts manually.

Manual syncing refreshes your account data for all Google apps, including apps that have auto-sync turned off.

  1. Open your smartphone's Settings.

  2. Select Accounts. 

  3. If you have multiple accounts, select the one you want to update.

  4. Select Account sync > More (three vertical dots) > Sync now.

    The Account Sync option and "Sync Now" button

How to Back Up Contacts on Android by Exporting Them

You can take the contacts stored on your device's hard drive or SIM card and export those contacts into a .vcf file. This lets you import those contacts to a new phone.

  1. Open the Contacts app on your Android phone.

  2. Select Menu > Settings > Export.

  3. If you have multiple accounts, choose the one you want to export your contacts from.

  4. Select Save to download the .vcf file.

    The Settings, Export, and Save buttons in Google

  5. Once you have the .vcf file, store it in a safe place, either on removable storage like a SIM or memory card or in the cloud via services like Google Drive or Gmail.

How to Import Contacts From a VCF File

To upload your saved .vcf file to a new phone:

  1. Open the Contacts app and select Settings > Import > .vcf file.

  2. In the Downloads manager, select the Menu icon and navigate to where you saved the file (such as Google Drive or an SD card).

  3. Once you select the .vcf file, Google automatically imports the data to your phone.

Was this page helpful?