Technology

How to Import Gmail Contacts to Thunderbird? – Find Perfect Solution

Are you also looking to import Gmail contacts to Thunderbird? Well, many users like to keep their contacts in more than one address book.

Gmail is one of the most popular email clients that helps in storing important data including contacts of a user. Although Gmail offers great features, some users might still want to shift their contacts to another email client like Mozilla Thunderbird. On the other end, Mozilla Thunderbird is also an email application which is known and used by people globally. But, the question remains, why would anyone want to import contacts from Gmail to Thunderbird?

The answer could be that someone may want to export contacts from Gmail to Thunderbird. Or maybe because there are too many contacts and some of them need to be transferred. Or maybe because all the personal and business contacts have been mixed up and you want to separate them.

There could be n number of reasons and answers but not many useful solutions are known. What would one do in such a situation? Let’s find out.

What Can One Do to Import Gmail Contacts to Thunderbird?

If you want to perform the exportation process, you can do so by using the technique mentioned here. Here we have two methods for you to choose from.

The process is divided into two stages wherein the first stage will show how to save the contacts to your local computer.  Second part tells how to move the contacts to Thunderbird after downloading them.

Two methods can be used to perform the first step. First, we are mentioning the manual method. This method to export contacts from Gmail to Thunderbird will directly move the contacts but has a few drawbacks associated with it.

The second solution, on the other hand, is relatively simpler and easier to work with. Also, it has no such limitations and allows a successful procedure.

Let’s find out how these solutions work.

Part 1 – Manually Import Contacts From Gmail to Thunderbird

The contacts that you want to move to Thunderbird are supposed to be saved in vCard format on your local computer to complete the process.

The following steps will show how you can import Gmail contacts to Thunderbird:

1. Go to your Gmail account and log in.
2. Choose the Contacts option at the top left corner of the window.
3. Now, on the Contacts window, you have to click on More and then choose Export.
4. After that, choose vCard from the option and click on Export.
5. You will see that your contacts have been saved locally in vCard file format.

Now, doesn’t this method look simple to work with? Yet, there are some limitations that you should know are attached to this technique.

Disadvantages of Using Manual Method to Export Contacts from Gmail to Thunderbird

The manual solution may take a lot of time if you are trying to move thousands of contacts. In such a situation, this method becomes a time-consuming and lengthy process.

Some of the users may also find that after moving the contacts, not all the data is visible in Thunderbird. That becomes a stressful scenario for the users. These drawbacks are what make users look for other solutions. Here you will find one in the following segment.

Top-Rated Technique to Import Gmail Contacts to Thunderbird

To overcome the above-mentioned limitations and get the best results, you should download the Gmail Backup Tool to save all the contacts to your local computer. Since there are a lot of cases where users’ accounts have been hacked before, using this software, you will not only import contacts from Gmail to Thunderbird but also, have a backup in case something happens.

There is an option to export data from single or multiple user accounts in EML file format and maintain the folder hierarchy at the same time. You can import contacts from Gmail to Thunderbird with the help of this tool as it also provides an option to check the export process after the process is completed.

If you want to move selective contacts from your Gmail account, it can be done by choosing the filters offered by the tool. It is also possible to save the data at your desired location and in case there is new data that you receive during the export process, you can take Incremental Backup.

Now, let’s find out how this tool works.

How to Export Contacts to Thunderbird Using the Tool?

Follow these steps to import Gmail contacts to Thunderbird:

• Download the software, enter the credentials for your Gmail account and hit Login.

• Now, select Contacts from the Category field.
• Hit on the Browse button to navigate to the destination location of the resultant file and hit OK.
• To initiate the process, hit the Start button and you will be able to save the contacts easily without any data loss.

Now, you have saved your contacts from Gmail to your local computer. Let’s now find out how to upload these to Thunderbird.

Part 2 – Export Contacts from Gmail to Thunderbird After Saving Them Locally

The following steps will show you how to do so:

1. First, launch Thunderbird, go to the Menu and select the Address Book option.
2. Now, click on the Tools option and hit Import.
3. Here, enable the Address Book radio button and press Next.
4. Choose the vCard file (.vcf) option and add the file.
5. Make sure the settings are configured and hit OK.
6. You will see that your download files are now being saved in Thunderbird.

These two steps make the exportation process easy.

Also Read: Use Troble -Free Solutions to Import Gmail Folders into Outlook

Ending Note

As we all know it is always a great idea to take a backup of your data no matter what. This is why have given the perfect solution to help users import Gmail contacts to Thunderbird. First is that they can take a backup of their Gmail contacts. Second is that they have gotten the workaround to import the contacts. You can directly do so by using the manual method but it has a few limitations that nobody would like to face.

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