How do I open a .vcf file?

On Windows use Contacts / People (built in); on macOS use Contacts (built in); on Linux use GNOME Contacts. One or more contacts as plain text — the standard way to move an address book.

Can I convert a .vcf file?

Yes. It is usually converted to .csv, .txt or .ldif, either by exporting from one of the programs listed above or with a format converter.

.vcf files

.vcf file

vCard Contact File

One or more contacts as plain text — the standard way to move an address book.

What opens a .vcf file

Windows: Contacts / People (built in), Microsoft Outlook, Notepad (built in — raw text)
macOS: Contacts (built in), TextEdit (built in — raw text)
Linux: GNOME Contacts, Evolution, Thunderbird
In a browser: Google Contacts

What a .vcf file is

vCard, standardised in RFC 6350, stores names, phone numbers, addresses and photos as readable text, and a single .vcf can hold an entire address book. Every phone and contacts app imports it, which makes it the usual route when moving between Android and iPhone. Contact photos are base64-encoded inline, which is why an exported address book can be surprisingly large.

Converting it

A .vcf file is commonly converted to .csv, .txt or .ldif. It is a plain text format, so any text editor can open and edit it directly.

Details

Extension: .vcf
Full name: vCard Contact File
Category: Data
MIME type: text/vcard
Created by: IETF (RFC 6350)
Format: Plain text

Common questions

How do I open a .vcf file?: On Windows use Contacts / People (built in); on macOS use Contacts (built in); on Linux use GNOME Contacts. One or more contacts as plain text — the standard way to move an address book.
What is a .vcf file?: vCard Contact File. vCard, standardised in RFC 6350, stores names, phone numbers, addresses and photos as readable text, and a single .vcf can hold an entire address book. Every phone and contacts app imports it, which makes it the usual route when moving between Android and iPhone.
Can I convert a .vcf file?: Yes. It is usually converted to .csv, .txt or .ldif, either by exporting from one of the programs listed above or with a format converter.

.csv — Comma-Separated Values A spreadsheet as plain text, one row per line — the universal data exchange form
.json — JavaScript Object Notation The standard text format for structured data on the web and in config files.
.xml — Extensible Markup Language A tag-based text format for structured data, still everywhere in enterprise syst
.yaml — YAML Data File An indentation-based configuration format, readable but unforgiving about whites
.log — Log File A plain-text record of what a program did, newest events usually at the bottom.
.torrent — BitTorrent Metainfo File A few kilobytes of metadata describing what to download and from whom — not the
.dat — Generic Data File A meaningless extension — .dat says only that some program stored data here.
.sql — SQL Script A text file of database commands — often a full database dump.
.ics — iCalendar Event A calendar invitation or event feed in a plain-text standard format.
.sqlite — SQLite Database A complete relational database in a single file — the most deployed database in
.db — Generic Database File An extension many programs use for their data — it does not identify one format.
.bin — Binary File Raw binary data — most often a disc image paired with a .cue, or device firmware

Sources

Media Types Registry — IANA
Official vendor product documentation — At One Place

How these figures are compiled and checked