What Is a vCard (.vcf File)?
A vCard is a standardized file format for sharing contact information electronically. vCard files use the .vcf extension — short for Virtual Contact File — and can store a person's name, phone numbers, email addresses, physical address, website, job title, organization, and more in a single portable file.
When someone receives a .vcf file, they can open it to instantly add the contact to their phone or computer — no manual typing required. vCards are supported by virtually every contacts app and operating system in use today.
A Brief History of the vCard Format
The vCard format was originally created in 1995 by the Versit Consortium, a group formed by Apple, AT&T, IBM, and Siemens. The goal was to create a universal way to exchange contact information between different software and devices.
- 1995 — vCard 2.1 released by the Versit Consortium. Widely adopted by early PDAs and email clients.
- 1998 — vCard 3.0 published as RFC 2426 by the IETF. Added UTF-8 support and became the most widely supported version.
- 2011 — vCard 4.0 published as RFC 6350. Added structured fields for instant messaging, social profiles, and richer data types.
Today, vCard 3.0 remains the most compatible version across devices and apps, which is why vcard.free uses it by default.
What Information Can a vCard Store?
A single vCard file can contain:
- Full name and sort name (for alphabetical ordering)
- Phone numbers — work, home, mobile, fax
- Email addresses — personal, work
- Physical address — street, city, state, postal code, country
- Organization and job title
- Website URL
- Photo — embedded or linked
- Notes — free-text field for additional context
- UID — a unique identifier for deduplication
What Does a vCard File Look Like?
A .vcf file is plain text. Here's a simple example:
BEGIN:VCARD VERSION:3.0 FN:Jane Doe N:Doe;Jane;;; ORG:Sample Corp. TITLE:Program Manager TEL;TYPE=WORK:+1 555 555 5555 EMAIL:[email protected] URL:https://samplecorp.com END:VCARD
This plain-text format is what makes vCards so universal — any app that can read text can parse a vCard.
vCard 3.0 vs vCard 4.0
| Feature | vCard 3.0 | vCard 4.0 |
|---|---|---|
| RFC | RFC 2426 | RFC 6350 |
| Encoding | UTF-8 (common) | UTF-8 (required) |
| Compatibility | Widest — works everywhere | Good — newer apps only |
| Social profiles | Not supported | Supported |
| Instant messaging | Not supported | Supported (IMPP field) |
| Multiple values | Separate properties | Comma-separated |
For maximum compatibility, vCard 3.0 is recommended. Use 4.0 only if you need social profile fields and your audience uses modern devices.
How to Open a .vcf File
- iPhone / iPad — tap the .vcf file in Mail, Messages, or Files. Tap "Add to Contacts."
- Android — tap the .vcf file in your file manager or email. Select "Import to Contacts."
- macOS — double-click the .vcf file. It opens in Apple Contacts.
- Windows — double-click to open in Windows Contacts, or import into Outlook.
- Google Contacts — go to contacts.google.com → Import → select the .vcf file.
- Outlook — File → Open & Export → Import/Export → select the .vcf file.
How to Create a vCard
The fastest way is to use an online generator. vcard.free lets you fill in your contact details, generate a .vcf file, and download it in seconds — all in your browser with no data sent to any server.
You can also generate a QR code for your vCard, making it easy for others to scan and save your contact info instantly.