The contacts in our address books are not just numbers and addresses. They are, first of all, people with whom we interact. So to make sure no one goes missing, the least you can do is have your iPhone contacts backed up. Show
The great news is that syncing contacts between your Apple devices is quite easy. In this article, we explain how to sync and back up your contacts with one effortless file transferring tool, how and when you should use iCloud for syncing contacts, and what’s the best way to manage your contacts. Sync iPhone contacts to Mac with one clickThe easiest way to sync contacts from iPhone to Mac is to use AnyTrans for iOS. This professional backup manager and file transferring tool can export iPhone content directly to Mac by categories or copy what’s on your device in a single tap, transfer data across multiple iCloud accounts, and move content from iCloud or iTunes library to Mac. So it’s not just contacts — you can move any essential data across your Apple devices. AnyTrans comes especially handy in major content migration — when you get a new iPhone, for example. Besides, its built-in backup manager saves you time with automatic instant iPhone backups done without you lifting a finger. To transfer data directly to your Mac, iPhone, or iCloud with AnyTrans for iOS:
If your contacts should go further than your Mac — for example, you need to synchronize them between several Macs, drives, or folders, get ChronoSync Express. It’s an instant sync and backup solution that lets you hand-pick essential files you want to back up, as well as sync content across locations, spot and delete duplicates, and more. Tip: Replace Contacts with BusyContactsIf you mostly work with contacts on Mac, try a more robust solution than Apple’s native Contacts. BusyContacts has many capabilities that the native utility lacks. BusyContacts can automatically pull all your contacts from Google accounts, Local address book, iCloud, and even social media! It’s also way more informative, with the possibility to track your contacts’ activity across social media and emails; tag them on events and to-dos, and more. We also love the instant contact entry feature. How to sync iPhone contacts to Mac with iCloudIf you don’t have issues with low storage, you can use iCloud to regularly backup your iPhone contacts. Once you’ve synced the first time, any changes to contacts on your iPhone will be carried over to your Mac, and vice versa. This also means that you’ll be able to access your contacts online even if you don’t have your iPhone or Mac with you. But once again, iCloud backups can be brutal on your storage, so use it mindfully and check for free space regularly. Tip: Scan your Mac for redundant files and backups at least once a week with CleanMyMac X. To complete the process properly — you’ll need to first sync your phone contacts to iCloud, then enable iCloud contacts on your Mac, and finally tidy up your contact list once your iPhone and Mac contact lists are merged together. To sync contacts from iPhone to Mac, enable iCloud sync for contacts on iPhone:
Please note that if you’re trying to sync contacts to iCloud on iPhone running iOS 10.2 or earlier, when you launch Settings, click on iCloud. Then follow the steps as described above. Now that you know how to sync contacts to iCloud, it’s time to make sure that those iCloud contacts show up on your Mac. Basically, all you need to do now is to repeat the same steps on your Mac in order to download the contacts you’ve just uploaded to iCloud:
Your contacts will now sync: any contacts on your Mac that previously were not on your iPhone will show up and vice versa. Once you bring everything together, you may find that your contact list looks a bit messy. Don’t worry, because it’s very easy to tidy things up. How to quickly tidy up contacts after syncingWhen you sync iPhone contacts to Mac, the contacts from your phone will likely get mixed with your Mac contacts from Messenger or FaceTime. To keep the contact list organized across all your devices:
Give your changes a moment to show up on your other devices and then give yourself a pat on the back — now you know how to import contacts from iPhone to Mac with iCloud. Once you’ve synced and organized your contacts properly, you might want to export them from Apple’s ecosystem for additional safety and peace of mind. Good idea! If you wonder how to get contacts from iCloud, it can be easily done right in the Contacts app on your Mac:
You can now import your vCard into Gmail, Outlook, or any other contact management service and rest assured that you have your important contact information backed up. How to manually back up contacts on your MacFrom time to time, you might find yourself in a situation of contacts not syncing to Mac. It’s just one of those weird things when exporting your iCloud contacts might not work 100%. But even if it does, you’re safest backing up your contacts manually, just to have no regrets later on. Only do this if you have enough storage space to store your backups, though. You can manually back up all of your contacts right in the app:
A .vcf file will be created, which you can add to your cloud storage or physical backup. You can also drag and drop individual contact cards if you don’t want to back up all of them. Another great way to keep your contacts out of Apple’s ecosystem or restore contacts from iCloud is using an app like Disk Drill, which will help you not only to back up your data but also recover lost files. It’s compatible with all major devices (Mac, iPhone, iPad, even Android devices, as well as USB and SD cards), performs regular data backup to avoid any loss, and can bring any kind of data back, regardless of the reason that caused its loss, be it data corruption, unintended removal, disk utility error, or others. Additionally, Disk Drill comes with a number of data protection options, like disk space analyzer and risk alerts to prevent any harm to your Mac and data stored there. Sync iPhone contacts to Mac without iCloud (iTunes or Finder)If you’re looking for a one-time solution to move your contacts from iPhone to Mac, consider the Finder/iTunes method. We assume most of you use recent macOS, so we’ll start with Finder:
If you use an older macOS that still has iTunes, here’s what you need to do:
How to sync contacts from iPhone to Mac via AirDropSometimes, you might have a problem with connecting your iPhone to Mac using a USB cable. That would be when you don’t have the cable at hand. AirDrop is a great workaround in this case — even though it only allows you to share one contact at a time:
Sync contacts from iPhone to Mac via Google or Microsoft accountsIf most of your contacts are stored with your Google or Microsoft accounts, you can move the contacts directly from your accounts. The contacts stored locally on iPhone won’t be transferred in this case. Here’s what you need to do. On your iPhone:
On your Mac:
Why are my iPhone contacts not syncing with Mac?If you’re using iCloud to sync contacts from iPhone to Mac, go through this checklist:
If you can’t fix the issue, consider an alternative method. The fastest way to sync and back up contacts is to use AnyTrans for iOS. If you need to transfer contacts just once, you can do that through Finder/iTunes. Lastly, you can sync contacts manually from your Google or Microsoft account. There are few things in life more upsetting than misplacing or losing important contacts. So learning how to sync contacts from iPhone to Mac as well as how to backup contacts to iCloud might prove truly vital. AnyTrans for iOS, BusyContacts, ChronoSync Express, CleanMyMac X, and Disk Drill mentioned above are available on a free trial through Setapp, a platform of more than 220 useful Mac and iPhone apps that provide a much-needed upgrade to your Mac workflow. None of your contacts will ever go missing when you have just a few of the Setapp tools installed. How do I transfer my Contacts from my phone to my macbook pro?Step 1: In your iPhone, hit the 'Settings' option in the home screen, select your device name and tap the 'iCloud' to enable the 'Contacts' option. Step 3: Open the 'Apple Contacts' app in your Mac systems and select 'All iCloud' to view the iPhone contact list.
Why won't my Contacts transfer from my iPhone to my Mac?Make sure that you're signed in to iCloud with the same Apple ID on all of your devices. Then, check that you turned on Contacts, Calendars, and Reminders in your iCloud settings. Check the date and time settings on your device to make sure they're correct for your current location.
How do I Import all my Contacts to my Mac?Do one of the following on your Mac: Double-click the vCard file—for example, in an email or on the desktop. Drag the vCard file to the Contacts icon in the Dock, or to the list of contacts in the Contacts window. In Contacts, choose File > Import, then select the vCard file.
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