Merge Duplicate Contacts in VCF File Safely

VCF file stands for Virtual Contact file where your contact information is stored. The format stores every type of contact details like phone number, name, physical address, email ID, photos, etc. Using this file you can easily save your data and share them across different devices.

The file which is also called vCard stores a number of contact details in it. However, due to human error identical entries are stored in the file which increases the size of the file. This will make it difficult for the person to manage the contacts. So, if your file has multiple contacts then you can combine them into one file.

What Causes Duplicate Contacts in VCF Files

Common reasons behind identical contacts are the user's mistake. However, there are other factors that could also cause this problem, here are the factors.

• When you synchronize your contacts in multiple devices or platforms without paying attention, similar entries will be saved repeatedly.
• If you import contacts from various sources like email applications, old backup files, applications, etc. the same data will be saved in the file.
• Manually create the contacts with slight variations like incorrect spelling or incomplete information. This can also lead to duplication.
• Combining VCF files into one file can also create duplicate contacts. As if those files contain similar data.

So, by accident or without identical data will be saved in your file which causes many problems. So, to resolve that, merge the duplicate contacts in the VCF file. To do that, follow the methods which we explained below.

Combine Similar Contacts into vCard File by Text Editor

Contact information in the file is stored in plain text which you can open and edit in the Notepad or Text editor. This way you will find and merge your contacts.

1. Navigate to the location where your VCF file is stored. Open the file in your Notepad or any Text editor.
2. Usually duplicate entries start with the line BEGIN:VCARD and end with END:VCARD. Press Ctrl+F and search the contacts from these lines.
3. Check the details of the duplicate contacts.
4. If you found the similarities, remove the extra BEGIN:VCARD and END:VCARD line from the contacts.
5. After that save the file.

This method is easy, but it only works for a few contact files. For the bulk combining the files use the next method.

Use Contact Manager App to Merge Duplicate Contacts

Contact Management apps like Google Contacts, iCloud, or Outlook can be used to group duplicate contacts. Follow the steps below.

1. Log in to Google Contacts and click on the import option.
2. Press the Select File button, and browse the location of your contact files.
3. Open the file in Gmail. Now, click on the Merge & File button.
4. Check and merge the suggested duplicate file.

This is a much better way to merge your duplicate contacts in the VCF file. However, it doesn’t detect partial duplicates. Therefore, the best way is to use a spreadsheet where you review all the contacts and edit them. But, to open it in Excel, you have to convert it. For this, use the method below.

Combine Similar Contacts in Spreadsheet

Spreadsheet uses CSV File to import the file in your Spreadsheet program. So, we have to convert our vCard format into the appropriate file format. To do that you can use Corbett vCard File Converter to export your contact file into CSV format.

It is a Windows-based software and has a user-friendly interface where users will easily convert VCF file into CSV format. Not only this it provides you preview options to view the content of these files. Also, has search filters to find any duplicate entries. Then you can convert your files by following the steps below.

Steps to Export Contact Files into the CSV Format

1. Download and launch the software on your computer.
2. Click on the Open option and then the Email Data Files button.
3. Select the VCF file option. Choose the files or folders option.
4. Browse your file and open it in the software. Preview the files.
5. Click on the Export option and then CSV format.
6. Set a location for the resultant file, then press the save button.

After converting the file, now you can easily open VCF to Excel spreadsheet. Once you import the file into the program, sort out the file, manually search the duplicate entries and then merge them into one row. Once you edit data, save the file.

Conclusion

In this article, we have learned how you can merge duplicate contacts in VCF file. Here we have explained the reasons for how contacts are duplicate in the contact file. Then, we provided three methods that can easily convert your files without any problem.