To share a contact on an iPhone, open the Contacts app, tap the person, tap Share Contact, choose which details to include, and pick how to send the card, such as Messages or Mail. The other person receives a contact card they can save to their own phone.
That route works for any contact you have saved. To hand over your own details in person, hold your iPhone near the other person’s iPhone and use NameDrop. To send many contacts at once, export a contact list.
What You Need Before You Start
A contact card is the saved record for one person: name, phone numbers, email addresses and anything else you have added. Sharing sends a copy of that card. It does not link your phone to the other person’s, so later edits on your phone do not update their copy.
- Software: The steps follow Apple’s current iPhone User Guide. The Contacts list export and NameDrop pages in that guide start at iOS 17, so older versions may not have those two features. Open Settings > General > About to see your iOS version.
- A way to send: Messages and Mail need a cellular or Wi-Fi connection. AirDrop and NameDrop need the other device close by.
- Permission: A card can hold a home address, birthday and private notes. Ask the person before passing their details to someone else, and send only the fields that are needed.
Apple documents this method in Add and use contact information on iPhone.
- Open the Contacts app. If you cannot find the person by scrolling, type their name in the search field.
- Tap the contact to open their card.
- Scroll down if needed and tap Share Contact. A list of the fields saved on the card appears.
- Choose the fields you want to share. Turn off anything the recipient does not need, such as a home address or a second phone number.
- Tap the confirm button at the top of the screen. It appears as a check mark on recent iOS versions and as Done on some earlier ones. The share sheet opens.
- Choose a sharing option such as Messages or Mail, add the recipient, and send.
The recipient gets the contact card as an attachment in the message or email. On most phones they can tap it and save it as a new contact.
Choose which details go out
The field list in step 4 is your privacy control. Only the fields you leave selected are included in the card you send. Check it every time, because a card you filled in years ago may hold details you have forgotten about.
There is one built-in limit: when you share your own card, your pronouns are not shared by default, and when you share another person’s card, their pronouns are never shared.
How to Send a Contact With AirDrop
AirDrop sends items wirelessly to a nearby Apple device. It is useful when the other person is standing next to you and you do not want to start a text thread. Apple’s requirements are in How to use AirDrop on iPhone and iPad.
- Make sure both of you have Wi-Fi and Bluetooth turned on. If either phone has Personal Hotspot on, disconnect it first.
- Open the contact, tap Share Contact, choose the fields, and confirm.
- In the share sheet, tap AirDrop.
- Tap the other person’s name or device.
- Ask them to tap Accept on their device.
If the person is not in your contacts, they may not appear. Ask them to open Control Center, touch and hold the connectivity controls, tap AirDrop, and choose Everyone for 10 Minutes. When both devices use iOS 26.2 or later, a person outside your contacts is prompted to tap Get AirDrop Code and tell you the code to enter. For more on these receiving choices, read about changing your AirDrop name and who can send to you.
If the person receiving is on an iPad, they can afterward turn off AirDrop receiving on the iPad so strangers can’t send to it.
<p>If the other person does not show up as an AirDrop target, our guide on <a href=”https://www.solveyourtech.com/airdrop-iphone/”>how to AirDrop from an iPhone</a> covers the receiving settings and fixes.</p>NameDrop is a feature that swaps contact cards when two devices are held together. It only shares your own card. To send someone else’s details, use Share Contact instead. Apple’s steps are in Use NameDrop on iPhone to share your contact info.
- Hold the display of your iPhone a few centimeters from the top of the other person’s iPhone or Apple Watch.
- Keep the devices near each other until NameDrop appears on both screens.
- Choose to share your contact card and receive theirs, or to only receive theirs.
- If you are sharing your card, you can open the field options, select the fields to include, and tap Save. The same fields are selected by default the next time you use NameDrop.
The contact information is exchanged. To cancel, move the two devices apart or lock your iPhone before the transfer completes.
Two limits apply. NameDrop only sends new contact information and does not update an existing contact. On Apple Watch, it works with Apple Watch Ultra models, Apple Watch Series 7 and later, and Apple Watch SE 2nd generation or later.
Check your own card first
NameDrop sends what is on My Card, the card at the top of your contacts list that holds your own details. Open Contacts, tap My Card, then tap Edit to correct your name, number or email before you share it. Apple covers this in Add or edit your contact info and photo on iPhone.
My Card also controls the name and photo your iPhone can offer to people you call or message. That is a separate setting from sharing a card, and you can manage it by turning name and photo sharing on or off.
On a Mac, here is how to change your My Card in Contacts.
Turn NameDrop off or back on
NameDrop is on by default. To turn it off, go to Settings > General > AirDrop and turn off Bring Devices Together. This also turns off the other Bring Devices Together features. To undo the change, return to the same screen and turn the switch back on.
To send many contacts at once, export a list. A list is a named group of contacts inside the Contacts app. Apple’s steps are in Export contacts on iPhone.
Before you export: an exported list can contain many people’s phone numbers, addresses and notes. Send it only to someone who should have all of it, and check the recipient before you tap send.
- Open Contacts and go to the Lists screen. If you are looking at your contacts, tap the button at the top left to go back to Lists.
- Touch and hold the list you want to share. To share a specific set of people, tap Add List first, name the list, and add those contacts to it.
- Tap Export.
- Select the fields you want to include, then confirm.
- Choose a method to send or save the exported contact cards, such as Messages or Mail.
The contact cards from that list are sent together.
Moving all your contacts to your own new phone? Quick Start can transfer your data from iPhone to iPhone, contacts included.
Export contacts from iCloud.com on a computer
If your contacts are stored in iCloud, you can also export them from a web browser. You need a tablet or computer to use Contacts on iCloud.com, so this does not work from the iPhone itself.
- Go to icloud.com/contacts and sign in to your Apple Account.
- Select one contact. On a computer, hold Command on a Mac or Control on Windows and click each additional contact. For everyone, use the control at the top of the list and choose Select All Contacts.
- Open the export control on the right and choose Export vCard.
A vCard is a contact file that can hold one or more people. When you select multiple contacts, they are exported as a single vCard. You can then attach that file to an email.
The details are in Import, export, or print contacts on iCloud.com, and the steps for viewing iCloud contacts on a computer walk through the site. This export only covers contacts stored in iCloud, not ones kept only in a Google or work account.
Which Method Should You Use?
| Situation | Best method | Keep in mind |
|---|---|---|
| Send one person’s details to someone far away | Share Contact, then Messages or Mail | Works with any contact you have saved |
| Send a card to someone next to you | Share Contact, then AirDrop | Apple devices only; Wi-Fi and Bluetooth on |
| Swap your own details in person | NameDrop | Shares only your own card |
| Send many contacts at once | Export a list | Review who is on the list first |
| Work from a computer | Export vCard on iCloud.com | Covers iCloud contacts only |
How to Confirm It Worked
- Messages or Mail: open the conversation or your Sent mailbox and check that the contact card is attached to the message.
- AirDrop: the transfer finishes after the other person taps Accept. Ask them to open their Contacts app and search for the name.
- NameDrop: if you chose to receive the other person’s card, search for their name in your Contacts app.
There is no way to pull a card back from someone else’s phone after they have saved it. If you sent the wrong details, ask the person to delete the contact, then share the corrected card.
Troubleshooting
- Share Contact is not visible: scroll down on the contact’s card. The option sits below the person’s details, so it can be off screen on a long card.
- The person does not appear in AirDrop: move closer, check that Wi-Fi and Bluetooth are on for both of you, and disconnect Personal Hotspot. If you are not in each other’s contacts, ask them to choose Everyone for 10 Minutes. That setting changes back automatically after 10 minutes.
- NameDrop does not start: go to Settings > General > AirDrop and make sure Bring Devices Together is on, on both phones. Unlock your iPhone, since locking it cancels a transfer.
- NameDrop did not change an existing contact: that is expected. It adds new contact information only. Edit the existing card by hand, or use Share Contact.
- There is no Export option: touch and hold a list on the Lists screen, not an individual contact. Apple’s export page begins with iOS 17, so an older iPhone may not offer it.
- The recipient got duplicates: saving a card for someone already in their contacts can create a second entry. They can merge duplicate contacts on iPhone.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I share a contact from an iPhone to an Android phone?
Yes. Use Share Contact and send the card through Messages or Mail. The card generally arrives as a vCard file, a common contact format that most phones and email services can open. AirDrop and NameDrop are for Apple devices, so use a message or email for someone on Android.
Can I share only part of a contact?
Yes. After you tap Share Contact, the iPhone asks which fields to share. Leave out an address, an extra phone number or a note, then confirm. Only the selected fields are sent.
Can I use NameDrop to send someone else’s contact?
No. NameDrop shares your own contact card and can receive the other person’s. To pass along a friend’s or a business’s details, open that contact and tap Share Contact.
Does the other person see changes I make later?
No. Sharing sends a copy of the card as it is at that moment. If the phone number or email changes, share the contact again.
To fix the details before you send them again, edit the contact on iPhone first.
How do I share all of my contacts at once?
On the iPhone, open the Lists screen in Contacts, touch and hold the list that holds everyone, and tap Export. On a tablet or computer, sign in at icloud.com/contacts, choose Select All Contacts, and then choose Export vCard.
Will sharing a contact remove it from my iPhone?
No. Sharing and exporting send copies. The contact stays in your Contacts app. If a contact has gone missing for another reason, here’s how to recover deleted contacts on iPhone.
Next Steps
Open your own My Card and check that the details are current, so the next card you hand over with NameDrop is right. These guides cover related tasks:
Matthew Burleigh is the founder, head writer, and editor of Solve Your Tech, which he launched in 2012. He has written technology tutorials since 2008 and worked in IT since 2003, including small-business support, IT management, and consulting. He holds Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in Computer Science from Arizona State University.
Matthew writes practical guides for Windows, iPhone and iPad, Microsoft Office, Outlook, Google apps, and Android. Solve Your Tech’s guides are checked step by step against the device or app maker’s own documentation and tested on his own devices whenever he has the hardware or software, with clear steps, sources, and update dates.
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