What is the VCF file format?
The .vcf format is used for storing and exchanging contact data of individuals or companies. It is the file format behind the vCard digital business card standard, originally developed by the Versit Consortium and now maintained as an IETF open standard (vCard 4.0, 2011). .vcf files can store personal information, postal address, phone number, or email address. The format also supports less typical data such as logos, photos, and audio elements.
Content of .vcf files can be browsed within a text editor, because the data is stored as plain text using a line-based property-value encoding in UTF-8. Some fields, however, may be stored as binary data (e.g., embedded photos encoded as Base64 inline). A single .vcf file can hold multiple contacts as back-to-back BEGIN:VCARD / END:VCARD blocks. Its MIME type is text/vcard.
Advantages of .vcf files
.vcf files enable easy import and export of contacts from address book programs. A contact from a .vcf file can be attached to an email, which substantially simplifies sending contact data. .vcf files are supported by virtually all contact-management applications. They can be easily generated, for instance, from data stored in a CSV spreadsheet or a LDIF directory file. Data stored in the .vcf format can be displayed using the simplest text editor - Notepad.
Structure of a .vcf file
Every vCard begins with BEGIN:VCARD and ends with END:VCARD. A VERSION: line must immediately follow and declares which specification applies: 2.1, 3.0, or the current 4.0. A basic example:
BEGIN:VCARD
VERSION:4.0
FN:Name Surname
N:Surname;Name;;;
TEL;TYPE=CELL:+1-602-602-602
EMAIL:[email protected]
UID:urn:uuid:...
END:VCARDIn vCard 4.0, FN (formatted name) is the only mandatory content property. The .ics format serves a comparable role for calendar data exchange.
Security & safety
RISK: LOWA .vcf is plain text and cannot execute code, so the file is low risk to open. The cautions are privacy and social: a vCard can carry a lot of personal data (and a Base64 photo), so don't share contact files carelessly, and treat an unexpected .vcf attachment like any unexpected attachment - a malicious sender could spoof a contact or include a phishing URL in a NOTE/URL field. There have also been past app bugs where malformed vCards crashed a contacts app; keep your OS/app updated.
Format details
in a nutshellPrograms that open VCF files
Windows2 apps
Microsoft Outlook
Paid Double-click to open a single card, or File > Open & Export > Import to bring a multi-contact .vcf into your address book. (Note: classic Outlook imports vCards one at a time; use Google/iCloud or a converter for bulk.) 
Windows Contacts / People app
Built-in Double-click the .vcf; the built-in Contacts/People app opens it and offers to save the contact(s). 
macOS1 app
Apple Contacts
Built-in Double-click the .vcf; Contacts asks to add the card(s). Drag a .vcf onto the Contacts window to import many at once. 
Linux1 app
GNOME Contacts / Evolution
Open-source Open the .vcf in GNOME Contacts or Evolution to import the vCards. 
Android1 app
Contacts (built-in / Google Contacts)
Built-in Tap the .vcf to import, or in Contacts use Settings > Import > .vcf file.
Contacts (built-in)
Built-in Tap the .vcf attachment; iOS offers 'Add All Contacts' / 'Create New Contact'.
Google Contacts
Free Import > select the .vcf to add the contacts to your Google account (then syncs to all devices). Technical details
deep spec| MIME Type | text/vcard |
| File Encoding | UTF-8 (mandatory in vCard 4.0); vCard 2.1 declared encoding via a per-property CHARSET parameter |
| File Signature | No binary magic number - every vCard begins with the text line BEGIN:VCARD and ends with END:VCARD |
| Format Structure | Line-based plain text; each property on its own line in PROPERTY:value or PROPERTY;PARAM=value:value form |
| Versioning Field | A VERSION: line must immediately follow BEGIN:VCARD; accepted values are 2.1, 3.0, and 4.0 |
| Multi-contact Support | One .vcf file may contain multiple contacts as consecutive BEGIN:VCARD … END:VCARD blocks |
| Mandatory Properties (v4.0) | BEGIN, VERSION, FN (formatted name), and END - all other properties are optional |
| Binary Field Encoding | Photos, logos, and audio clips are encoded inline as Base64 or referenced via URI |
| Line Folding | Lines exceeding 75 octets are folded by inserting CRLF followed by one whitespace character (RFC 6350 §3.2) |
| Property Grouping | Properties can share a named group prefix (e.g., item1.EMAIL and item1.X-ABLABEL) to link related data |
| Line Termination | CRLF (\r\n) per the RFC specification; most real-world implementations also accept LF-only line endings |
| Internationalization | LANGUAGE parameter can be set per property; full Unicode support through mandatory UTF-8 encoding in v4.0 |
| Alternate Extension | .vcard is a formally recognized alternative extension for the same format |
| Governing Standard | IETF RFC 6350 defines vCard 4.0; RFC 2426 defined vCard 3.0; originally developed by the Versit Consortium |
| Released | vCard 2.1 in 1996; vCard 3.0 (RFC 2426, 1998); vCard 4.0 (RFC 6350, 2011) |
| Open standard | Yes · royalty-free |
| Specification | datatracker.ietf.org |
VCF conversions
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