Today we will take a look at free tools that will allow you to sync Google contacts between your Gmail and Outlook accounts. These tools are perfect for syncing contacts for Outlook users who have one or multiple Google accounts. They help Outlook users sync their contacts, tasks, and Google calendar with Outlook. In this post, we look at some of the tools that help you easily sync Outlook and Gmail contacts – Outlook4Gmail, GO Contact Sync Mod and Contacts Sync.
How to Sync Gmail contacts with Outlook
There are many ways to sync Gmail contacts with Outlook. In this post we suggest the following three free tools that gets the job done easily for you:
- Outlook4Gmail
- GO Contact Sync Mod
- Contacts Sync.
1] Outlook4Gmail add-in
The interface of the add-in is very straightforward and easy to understand. Simply visit its homepage to download it.
When done, the add-in will automatically load upon launching the Microsoft Outlook app. Also, it will create its own ribbon with buttons or menu item and a toolbar.
Start syncing contacts
Choose ‘Contacts’ from the ‘Settings’ section of the Outlook ribbon.
Press the down-arrow to select ‘Configure Contacts sync rules’.
Instantly, a new window will popup prompting you to ‘Add Account’ as shown in the screenshot above.
Select an account and start syncing contacts.
You can download it from its homepage. Please note that the free version allows syncing only Google Contacts (root Contact folder), and just one Contact sync rule is enabled.
2] GO Contact Sync Mod
Manually updating your email accounts is typically a time-consuming task. GO Contacts Sync Mod helps you spare these efforts by syncing your Outlook email contacts with your Gmail address book (including pictures, categories, and notes) automatically. This standalone Window utility automatically detects the accounts stored inside Outlook and readily syncs them with Gmail. However, before this, you will need to enter your Gmail credentials (username and password). Once the connection is established, the syncing process will kick in.
When you enable the Auto Sync feature, the program will start the task at a user-defined interval, and the results will be displayed with a detailed log, bearing the information related to the names of the contacts that have been synchronized. The limitations that we came across while using the app were first, a not so intuitive interface and second, no support for Outlook Express. See more information about Go Contact Sync Mod on its homepage.
3] Contacts Sync
This tool works with any Gmail account as well as Google Apps account. Also, it can sync Outlook contacts to Android phone, iPhone, etc. When installed, it offers the following types of options to synchronize your contacts –
- Sync from Outlook contacts to Gmail contacts
- Sync contacts from Gmail to Outlook contacts
Contacts Sync has both, a Pro version and a Free version. In the case of the free version, new contacts must be manually added to Gmail’s My Contacts.
There’s also a ‘Scheduled sync’ option to sync contacts. Scheduled Sync option can be configured to sync contacts at regular intervals.
The latest version allows to sync contacts from/to any group to any Outlook folder/category and offers multiple options to sync contacts between Outlook Folder/Category and Gmail Group.
Limitations of the freeware version
- Some Contact Fields not synced
- No Categories
- No Contact Pictures
- No Contact Deletion
For downloading the free version, visit their website.
Why isn’t my Gmail syncing with Outlook?
If Outlook is not receiving emails from Gmail, you can carry out the following suggestions:
- Repair the Gmail Account
- Turn On the Outlook Notification
- Add Gmail Account Again
- Check the Gmail Server
- Change Gmail Rules
- Update the App
Now read: How to sync Outlook Calendar with Google Calendar.
How do I merge Outlook Contacts with Gmail Contacts?
If you want to merge the contacts, you will need to export the contact from Outlook in CSV or any supported format that Gmail accepts. The next step is to import the contact file into Gmail. Once done, you can let Gmail help you find the duplicate contact, and then merge. Post this all your Outlook contact will be merged with Gmail contacts.