How to Import Outlook Contacts to Windows Address Book

Outlook has attained a place in the online market that many organizations use for exchanging crucial information. It is a desktop-based email client, which is gaining popularity due to its advanced features suite. Nevertheless, there are still some users want to switch from Outlook to another platform. Yes, numerous users want to know that how to import Outlook contacts to Windows Address Book? However, it is not as trouble free as it seems to be.

We all know the importance of contacts for executing cross-communication. Therefore, we always want to move them using a safe and dependable way. As we know, CSV is one of the common formats, which is used by various email applications including Windows. This is the reason it is suggested to import Outlook Contacts to Windows Address Book. In the below section of the blog, we are going to learn possible methods for exporting Outlook contacts to WAB. However, instead of directly jumping to the solution part, it is important to learn some important details about Windows Address Book as well as Outlook.


Microsoft Outlook

MS Outlook is the email application, which is provided by Microsoft. It stores the data that includes contacts, emails, calendars, tasks, notes, journals, etc. in PST file format. Moreover, there is also a facility to synchronize it with MS Exchange. With the synchronization from Exchange, it generates OST file format. OST also stores all the items such as emails, contacts, calendars, etc. and even allows users to access the data in offline mode.

Windows Address Book


It (Windows Address Book) is help users to maintain a particular list in which all the contacts can be exchanged or shared by various programs. Window Address Book most frequently accessed by Outlook Express. Moreover, it was set up by Internet Explorer 3 & above editions. It is important to know that the Address Book is replaced by Windows Contacts in Windows Vista.

Causes or Factors to Import Outlook Contacts to Windows Address Book

As discussed above, every business wants to use upgraded technology. Therefore, some business owners prefer to use the latest edition of Windows Address Book. This makes it very simple to access the contacts due to its simple interface. However, how to perform the migration of Outlook Contacts is a major point of concern. Consider both the methods as stated below and pick any of those as per your requirement.

Manual Trick to Add Outlook 2003 Contacts to WAB

1. --> First, you need to open the Outlook your machine 
2. --> After this, click on File available in the upper left corner 
3. --> Next, click on Open and Export>>Import & Export 
4. --> As soon as you do this, select Export and then on Next button 
5. --> Now, click on Comma Separated Values i.e. CSV and then on Next
6. --> After this, select the Contacts Folder from the option of “Select folder to export from” and then on Next again 
7. --> Hit on Browse option then put the File name, which is followed by a click on OK
8. --> In the next step, choose Export Designation and then click on Next 
9. --> In the final step, click on Finish button and complete the process of contacts migration.

Move Outlook Contacts to Windows Address Book using Third Party Tool

If the manual solution fails to give the accurate results, then you can opt for an automated solution. There is a tool, namely vCard Exporter, which is designed to import Outlook contacts to Windows Book, VCF, or Single vCard according to user’s requirement. It is modern utility, which has been designed with some advanced algorithms. You can export the chosen files or folders consisting of the contacts of Outlook via this tool. Moreover, it also brings forth an option for combining the contacts within one VCF file. It keeps all the contacts safe and secure throughout the process.

The Bottom Line

In the above blog, we have learned that there are various platforms to maintain the business continuity and to keep the contacts. However, due to some reasons, users switch from one to another platform. One such migration is Outlook contacts, Therefore, considering the difficulties users have to face in order to do this, we have discussed two ways to import Outlook contacts to Windows Address Book. Users can choose any of these methods, but it is recommended to use a third party tool for quick and safe migration.