How to Scan Business Cards into Outlook (Contacts)

If your work life runs on Outlook, that is where you want your business cards to land — in Outlook Contacts, synced across your desktop, web, and phone. Here is the fastest way to get a stack of cards into Outlook without typing a single one.

Why not just type them into Outlook?

You can open Outlook, click "New Contact," and enter each card by hand. For one card, fine. For the pile from a trade show, that is an evening lost — and every mistyped email quietly bounces your follow-up.

The fast way: scan, export, import

Outlook can import contacts from a CSV file. So the trick is to digitize your cards into a spreadsheet first, then import that file into Outlook in one batch.

Step 1: Scan your cards

Scan each card with your phone. ScanCardPro reads the name, company, title, email, and phone and writes them into a Google Sheet — see how to scan business cards to Google Sheets.

Step 2: Export a CSV

In your sheet, choose File → Download → Comma-separated values (.csv). You now have a clean file with a row per contact — exactly what Outlook expects.

Step 3: Import into Outlook

In Outlook, go to File → Open & Export → Import/Export → Import from another program or file → Comma Separated Values, choose your CSV, and map the columns (name, email, phone, company) to Outlook's fields. On Outlook on the web, use People → Manage → Import contacts. Your scanned cards are now in Outlook Contacts.

Also works for Excel and Google Contacts

The same CSV imports into Google Contacts, and opens directly in Excel. One scan, and your cards are ready for whichever address book you live in.

Get started

You will need a free Google account to create the sheet. From there it is scan, export, import — and every card is in Outlook for good. Start free and scan your first card in about 30 seconds.

Frequently asked questions

Is there a business card scanner for Outlook?

Yes — ScanCardPro scans cards into a Google Sheet, which exports to a CSV that Outlook imports directly, so it doubles as a business card scanner for Outlook contacts.

Can I scan business cards directly into Outlook?

You scan into a sheet, export a CSV, and import that into Outlook in one batch — far faster than typing each card, with no lost data.

Will the contacts sync across my devices?

Yes. Once they are in Outlook Contacts, they sync to Outlook on your desktop, the web, and your phone. Try it free.