Celestial Infosoft
Phone calls and messages

How to back up and restore contacts on Android

Updated 1 min readCelestial Infosoft

Back up your contacts with your Google account or a VCF file, restore them on a new phone and avoid duplicates and lost numbers.

Illustration for the guide: How to back up and restore contacts on Android
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Your contact list is hard to rebuild. Two minutes of setup protects it.

Option 1: sync with your account

  1. Open Settings → Accounts and make sure your Google (or manufacturer) account is added.
  2. Open the account and turn on Contacts sync.
  3. In the Contacts app, check that new contacts are saved to that account, not only to the phone.

On a new phone, sign in with the same account and contacts return after sync.

Option 2: export a VCF file

  1. Open Contacts → Settings → Export (names differ slightly by phone).
  2. Choose the contacts and save the .vcf file.
  3. Copy it to a computer or cloud storage.

To restore, open Contacts → Settings → Import, select the file and choose which account to save to.

Clean up duplicates

Use Fix and manage → Merge duplicates (or similar). Check the preview before merging.

Tips

  • Keep one main account for contacts.
  • Export a fresh VCF before changing phones or resetting.
  • Check a few important numbers after restoring.

Related: choose your default phone app and recognising callers.

Frequently asked questions

What is a VCF file?

A vCard file that stores contacts. You can export it from one phone and import it into another phone or an email account.

Are contacts on my SIM card backed up?

Not automatically. Import SIM contacts into your account and then back up.

Why do I see duplicate contacts?

Several accounts or an old import can create copies. Use the merge or fix duplicates option in the Contacts app.

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