# How to import contacts from Excel, CSV or vCard

Source: https://exportcontacts.com/import/
Updated: 2026-11-14 · By the Contaxo team

> Open **Contaxo**, tap **Import Contacts** and choose an Excel (.xlsx, .xls), CSV or vCard (.vcf) file. Contaxo matches the columns (name, phone, email, company and more), shows every contact with a tick, and adds only the ones you keep ticked to your address book.

## What you need

- iPhone or iPad with iOS 16 or later, or an Android phone with Android 7.1 or later
- An Excel, CSV or vCard file in Files, Google Drive, Mail or another app
- The free Contaxo app (free for files with up to 5 contacts; Pro imports any size)

## Step by step with Contaxo

1. **Tap Import Contacts and choose the file.** In Contaxo, tap **Import Contacts**, then **Choose a file**. On iPad you can also drag a file onto the Import screen. On Android you can also open a .vcf file directly with Contaxo.
2. **Check the columns.** For Excel and CSV files, Contaxo reads the header row and matches each column to a field. Column names from Google, Outlook and iCloud exports and in 30 languages are recognised. Tap **Edit** to fix a column.
3. **Pick the contacts.** Every contact is ticked. Untick the ones you don't want, or search by name, phone or email.
4. **Save.** Tap **Save** to add the ticked contacts to your address book.

## Getting the file onto your phone

- **From a computer:** email it to yourself, or put it in iCloud Drive, Google Drive or OneDrive.
- **From Google Contacts:** on contacts.google.com choose **Export › vCard** and open the file on your phone.
- **From an old Android phone:** export a .vcf from the Contacts app and send it to yourself.

## If a file won't import

- **Save it as .xlsx or .csv.** Files from Apple Numbers, OpenDocument or password-protected workbooks need to be saved in one of these formats first.
- **Files from old phones and other languages are fine.** Contaxo reads vCards from older Android and Samsung phones and contact files with accents and non-Latin letters. If one card in a vCard is damaged, the rest still import.
- **Columns in the wrong place?** Tap **Edit** on the file card and choose what each column contains.
- **Can't find the file?** Make sure it is in Files (iPhone) or your Downloads or Drive (Android). On a Mac, drop it on the Contaxo window.

## The built-in way (without an app)

- **iPhone:** a vCard opened from Mail, Messages or Files shows **Add All Contacts**. iPhone cannot import CSV or Excel files.
- **Android:** Google Contacts imports .vcf files (**Fix & manage › Import from file**). CSV files can be imported on contacts.google.com from a computer.

Contaxo adds Excel and CSV import on the phone itself, column matching and the choice of who to add.

## Frequently asked questions

### Which file types can I import?

vCard (.vcf), CSV and tab-separated text, and Excel workbooks (.xlsx, .xlsm, .xls), including the ".xls" files that many web tools export. Apple Numbers and OpenDocument files must be exported as Excel or CSV first.

### Which fields are imported?

Full name or first and last name, phone numbers, emails, company, job title, address and website. Several phone or email columns are fine.

### My file has no header row

Turn off **First row has column names** and choose a field for each column yourself.

### Will importing create duplicates?

Import adds the contacts you tick and does not check them against your address book. If some may already exist, run [Duplicates](https://exportcontacts.com/duplicates/) afterwards to merge them.

### Is importing free?

Files with up to 5 contacts are free. Larger files need Pro. Contaxo tells you before you tap Save.

## Related

- [How to export your contacts to Excel](https://exportcontacts.com/to-excel/)
- [How to find and merge duplicate contacts](https://exportcontacts.com/duplicates/)
- [How to move your contacts to a new phone](https://exportcontacts.com/transfer/)

Get Contaxo: App Store https://apps.apple.com/app/id1546550155 · Google Play https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.onnex.exportcontacts.excel.backup