Import contacts

Question

outlook does not include contact information that was saved on previuos laptop

Answer 1

Hi, I see you are seeking help for Outlook for Web.

Are you seeking help with Outlook on the web or Outlook New?

Who is your Email provider if you are using Outlook New?

I’m eager to hear back and work together to find a solution.

Answer 2

Contacts saved on a previous laptop are not automatically available in Outlook on a new device or Outlook on the web. They must be exported from the old Outlook profile and imported into the current account.

Use one of these approaches, depending on where the old contacts are stored:

1. If the old laptop is still available and Outlook works
   1. In classic Outlook on the old laptop, export contacts:
      • File → Open & Export → Import/Export.
      • Choose Export to a file → Next.
      • Choose Comma Separated Values → Next.
      • Select the Contacts folder (for the account used on that laptop) → Next.
      • Choose a file name and location → Finish.
   2. Copy the exported .csv file to the new device.
   3. Import the .csv into Outlook (desktop) that is connected to the same account used in Outlook on the web. Outlook will sync those contacts to Outlook on the web.
   If no contacts appear after import:
   • Open the .csv in Excel and confirm it actually contains data (names, email addresses, etc.).
   • If the file is empty, repeat the export from the old Outlook and then re-import.
2. If contacts were exported earlier to a .csv file but are not showing now
   1. Locate the .csv file.
   2. Open it in Excel and verify:
      • There is data in the rows.
      • The first row still contains the column headings (do not replace or remove them; Outlook requires them).
      • When closing Excel, always choose Yes when asked to keep CSV format.
   3. Re-import the corrected .csv into Outlook and, when prompted how to handle duplicates, choose Replace duplicates with items imported.
3. If contacts were in a .pst file from the old laptop
   • Open the .pst in Outlook on the new device:
     • File → Open & Export → Open Outlook Data File → select the .pst.
   • Then export the Contacts from that .pst to a .csv and import them into the mailbox that Outlook on the web uses, so they sync to the web.

If the contacts only ever existed locally on the old laptop and there is no backup (.pst or .csv) and the old profile/device is gone, those contacts cannot be recovered into Outlook on the web.

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References:

• Fix problems importing contacts to Outlook
• Microsoft 365 operated by 21Vianet: Import contacts to Outlook for Windows
• Import email, contacts, and calendar from an Outlook .pst file
• Fix problems importing an Outlook .pst file
• No contacts appear in Outlook after import
• Outlook contacts not showing in "new" outlook - Microsoft Q&A
• How do I recover my old email messages, my contacts and everything else I had in Outlook? - Microsoft Q&A