Migrate Contacts From Outlook 2016 to Office 365; Step By Step Way

Short Summary: Are you looking for a solution to transfer contacts from Outlook 2016 to Office 365? Then, your search ends here. Cause, in this article, you will find both manual and quick automated methods to move all your important contacts from Outlook to the cloud. So, stay tuned till the end.

As you know, it’s been 7 years since the launch of Outlook 2016. And, people are keeping themselves updated with the latest technology. Mostly, they are preferring to trust Office 365 to keep their data in the cloud for its numerous features.

If you have also decided to transfer all your important files and documents along with contacts to Office 365 then it’s admirable. Because contacts are a vital part of any business. If you have your connections intact then there is no doubt your business will flourish.

Hence, without further ado let’s discuss the possible approaches for moving your contacts to the cloud.

How Can You Transfer Contacts From Outlook 2016 to Office 365?

Transferring your contacts to Office 365 could let you access your important contacts from anywhere and on any device.

So, to move your contacts to the cloud, you can use Microsoft-supported methods. Or, you can use the exceptional expert-recommended automated method.

Frankly speaking, manual approaches are quite lengthy and time-consuming.

Hence, many IT professionals take the help of the alternative method, for its unbeatable features, which is SysTools Office 365 Import Tool.

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Besides who doesn’t want to safely move their important contacts! And, this tool fulfills the same.

By the way, first, let’s discuss the manual ways, understand the pros and cons, then will move forward to the automated method.

Manually Transfer Contacts From Outlook 2016 to Office 365

It’s a two-step process. At first, you have to export your contacts. Then, a copy of all your contacts will be saved in CSV(comma-separated value) format. After that, you can import this CSV file to Office 365.

Let’s understand the detailed steps.

Export Outlook 2016 to .csv file

Follow the below steps:

• Go to Microsoft Outlook on your PC and press ‘File’
• After that, choose the ‘Open & export’ option
• Further, click ‘Import/Export’
• Then, choose Export to a file
• Choose Comma Separated Value
• Scroll to the top, select the contacts folder, and hit Next
• Finally, click on Finish to start exporting your contacts

Import That CSV file to Office 365

After exporting the contacts refer to the given steps to import them to Office 365:

• Open Outlook and on the top ribbon click on ‘File’
• Next, click on the ‘Open & Export’ option,
• Now, choose ‘Import from another program file’ and hit ‘Next’
• After that, select ‘Comma Separated Value’ and click on ‘Next’
• Then, press the ‘Browse’ button and select the file to import
• And, in the same window, select one of the radio buttons under the ‘Options’, and hit ‘Next’
• Lastly, hit the ‘Finish’ button to begin the process.

If you are doing this procedure for a single user then it’s fine. But, what if you want to bulk transfer the contacts? And, this is the major limitation. So, it’s impractical to use this manual approach in case of organizational needs.

Also Read: Export Office 365 Shared Mailbox to PST For Backup Purpose

Now, comes the following question.

Are There Any Other Manual Methods for Moving Contacts?

Well, yes, there are two other manual ways you can use to transfer your contacts. However, it demands your file to be in pst format.

If you have all your information in pst format, then it’s possible to move them to the cloud by using Network Upload and/or Drive shipping method.

In the case of the Drive shipping method, you have to manually copy your data to a hard drive. Then, physically ship it to Microsoft.

However, the tech giant charges $2/GB of data to transfer to the cloud. Also, there is no certainty on how much time it’s gonna take. Further, only limited countries can use this approach.

So, you can say that this is not an appropriate method to consider.

Secondly, in the Network Upload method, you can bulk transfer your data to the cloud.

However, there is a continuous risk of data loss. Why? Cause this method uses highly technical PowerShell scripting language.

Unless you have strong command over this technical language, don’t try this since your important data is involved.

So, how to mitigate all these challenges? Well, it’s easy, have a look at the next section.

Effortlessly Transfer Contacts From Outlook 2016 to Office 365 Using The Trustworthy Software

As discussed earlier, many IT personnel use this automated approach for importing their contacts. And, the best thing is along with contacts, if you wish to import emails, calendars, etc then it is possible with this tool.

Also, it doesn’t involve any technical scripting language. And, it’s not region-specific. So, you can say overall it’s the solution you were looking for.

Guided Steps to Migrate Outlook Contacts to Office 365

• Download the import tool on your system to transfer your contacts. Then, provide the correct credentials and click on ‘Login’.

[Note: This software can import PST files into Office 365 with or without Admin impersonation. So, click on the ‘Is Admin’ checkbox present on the top left of your screen(if you want to log in as Admin).]

• Now, you will get three options to import PST files. Select any one option from these: ‘Add File, Add Folder, Add CSV’.

• Then, you need to map the PST files with their destination user-id. And, check for the green ticks on the authentication tab.

• Then comes the part where you will choose the Contacts. If you wish to choose emails, calendars, and tasks as well then tick the same. (Optional)

[Note: You can also apply date filters for each selected category. For that, you just need to select the desired date range and hit ‘Set’]

• Then, mark the fields such as Attach Outlook PST file, Incremental import, Exclude Deleted items, or Exclude sent items as per your choice. Then, click on the ‘Import’ button to migrate Outlook contacts to Office 365.

[Note: Incremental Import- If you have used this tool at least once, then through this option, you can avoid the migration of already imported data.

Exclude Deleted or sent items: Prevent the migration of unnecessary deleted or sent folders.]

Concluding Words

Contacts are an essential component of a successful business and you can’t risk losing them. And, many users were searching for a solution to transfer their important contacts from Outlook 2016 to Office 365.

I’m sure after reading this article, all of you must have found an appropriate and reliable solution. Hence, choose the best method and safely move your contacts!