How do I save my Outlook contacts to the default Contacts app on iOS and Android?

While you can fully manage your contacts in Outlook, you can also save your contacts to the default Contacts app on iOS and Android. This allows you to easily see the name of a contact when you receive a call or text message from them, and view all of their contact information directly in the built-in Contacts app.

Due to the underlying capabilities of iOS and Android, how this works differs slightly by platform.

  • On iOS, Outlook provides a one-way push of contact information from Outlook to your phone. All newly added contacts and changes should be made in the Outlook app, and these changes can be exported to your built-in Contacts app and email service. Note, you should avoid making edits in the Contacts app. Edits made in the Contacts app will not sync back to Outlook or your email service, and will be overwritten the next time Outlook syncs to the Contacts app.

  • On Android, Outlook is able to fully synchronize with the Contacts app. Therefore, users can choose to add new contacts or make changes in either the Outlook app or by using the built-in Contacts app on Android. Changes made in either location will sync back to your email service.

To save your contacts to the local app on iOS (including Caller ID), navigate to your account within Settings and tap Save Contacts.

To enable full contact sync on Android, navigate to your account within Settings and tap Sync Contacts.

If you’d like to remove the contacts later, you can toggle the switch in Outlook and they will be removed from the built-in Contacts app on your phone.

Details

Article ID: 99259
Created
Wed 2/26/20 9:43 AM
Modified
Mon 10/4/21 1:15 PM