So, you finally did it. You ditched the Lightning cable (or the new USB-C iPhone) for something from the Google ecosystem. Maybe it’s a Pixel 9 Pro with that snappy AI, or a Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra that feels like a literal computer in your pocket. But now you’re staring at a blank address book. It’s a gut-sinking feeling. You need to figure out how to transfer contacts iphone to android before you realize you don't actually know your mom's phone number by heart.
Switching platforms used to be a nightmare. Honestly, it was a deterrent. Apple wants to keep you in the walled garden, and Google wants to make the transition as frictionless as possible. The good news? In 2026, the process is mostly automated, though there are still a few weird "gotchas" that can leave your contact list looking like a jumbled mess of duplicates and missing email addresses.
The Google Drive Method: The Lazy (and Best) Way
Most people overcomplicate this. They start looking for third-party apps on the App Store that charge $9.99 for a "pro" transfer. Don't do that. It’s a scam.
The most reliable way to how to transfer contacts iphone to android is through the Google Drive app. It’s basically a Trojan horse for your data. You install it on your iPhone, sign in with the Google account you plan to use on your new Android, and let it rip. Under the "Backup" settings, you’ll see a toggle for Contacts.
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Make sure you’re on Wi-Fi. Seriously. If you have 2,000 contacts and you try to do this over a spotty 5G connection in a basement, something will break. When you hit "Start Backup," Google essentially scrapes your iCloud data and mirrors it onto Google Contacts. Once you sign into your new Android phone, those names will just start popping up like magic.
Why your photos might not follow
Here’s a nuance people miss: Google Drive backups are great for phone numbers, but high-resolution contact photos often get compressed or dropped entirely. If you’ve spent years meticulously assigning professional headshots to your business leads, they might look a bit pixelated on the other side. It’s a limitation of how vCard files are handled during the cloud-to-cloud handshake.
The Manual vCard Export: For the Control Freaks
Maybe you don't trust the cloud. I get it. Or maybe you have a mix of work contacts and personal ones and you don't want Google's algorithm deciding which is which.
You can go the manual route. Log into iCloud.com on a desktop browser. Click on Contacts. Select all (Cmd+A or Ctrl+A). Look for that little gear icon in the corner. Export vCard.
This generates a .vcf file. This file is the DNA of your social life.
Once you have that file, you email it to yourself or upload it to contacts.google.com. It’s clean. It’s fast. It bypasses the "syncing" phase and just dumps the data directly into your new account. This is often the best way to how to transfer contacts iphone to android if you’re worried about duplicates, because Google’s web interface has a "Merge & Fix" tool that is significantly more powerful than anything on the mobile app.
The "All Accounts" Trap
Wait. Before you export, check your iPhone settings. Go to Settings > Contacts > Accounts.
If you have an old Yahoo or Outlook account synced there, those contacts might not be in iCloud. They’re living on Yahoo’s servers. Exporting from iCloud won’t grab them. You’ll need to add those specific accounts to your Android phone separately under "Passwords & Accounts" to see those people again. It's a common reason why people think their "transfer failed" when really, the data was just tucked away in a different drawer.
Using "Switch to Android" (The Cable Method)
If you have a physical USB-C to USB-C cable (standard on iPhones since the 15 and all modern Androids), you can use the native "Switch to Android" setup process.
When you turn on your new Android for the first time, it will ask if you want to copy data. Plug the phones into each other. It’s weird seeing an iPhone and a Samsung tethered together like they're sharing a heartbeat, but it works.
- Connect the devices.
- Trust the connection on the iPhone.
- Select "Contacts" (and maybe messages/photos if you’re feeling bold).
- Wait for the progress bar to crawl.
This method is arguably the most "human-quality" because it usually preserves the "Notes" field in your contacts. If you’ve written "Met this guy at the Ocala horse show" in the notes section of a contact, the cable transfer is more likely to keep that metadata intact than a basic cloud sync.
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The iMessage Headache
You can’t talk about how to transfer contacts iphone to android without mentioning the iMessage ghosting issue. If you move your contacts but don't deregister iMessage, your friends with iPhones will still try to send you blue bubbles. You won't get them. They’ll think you’re ignoring them.
Go to Apple's "Deregister iMessage" website or toggle it off in your iPhone settings before you wipe the old device. It ensures that when your contacts sync over to the Android, the world knows you’re now a "green bubble" person. It's a social stigma for some, but your battery life will thank you.
Dealing with Duplicates and Ghost Entries
The worst part of moving your life is the clutter. You’ll likely find that "John Smith" appears three times because he was saved in your SIM card, your iCloud, and your old Gmail.
Don't panic.
Android’s "Contacts" app (the one by Google) has a dedicated "Fix & Manage" tab. Use it. It will find those three John Smiths and merge them into one entry with multiple numbers. It’s surprisingly smart. It can even detect if a contact is just a "ghost" entry—an email address with no name attached—and suggest you delete it.
Verification Steps for a Clean Move
Before you trade in that old iPhone for credit, do a quick audit.
- Check the "Groups" or "Labels." Sometimes contacts in specific folders don't migrate properly.
- Verify your "Emergency Contacts" (ICE). These don't always carry over into the Android "Safety" app automatically.
- Look for non-standard characters. If you have contacts with emojis in their names, sometimes the encoding gets wonky, turning a heart emoji into a string of weird symbols like
â¤.
The reality is that how to transfer contacts iphone to android is a 10-minute job that people stretch into a three-day ordeal. If you use the Google Drive app method, it's virtually foolproof. Just stay off the cellular data and keep both phones plugged into a charger.
Actionable Next Steps
First, open your iPhone and go to Settings > Contacts > Default Account. If it's set to anything other than iCloud, that’s where your "missing" contacts are hiding. Change it to iCloud or Gmail before starting your backup.
Second, download the Google Drive app on your iPhone and perform the backup under Settings > Backup.
Finally, once the transfer is done, visit contacts.google.com on a computer to use the "Merge & Fix" tool. This is the only way to ensure your new Android phone starts with a clean, organized list instead of a chaotic mess of 2012-era duplicates. Once that's settled, you can safely factory reset your iPhone and enjoy your new hardware.