ToolyWhatsApp's built-in backup saves your chats — not a list of your contacts you can take with you. If you change phone or number, the people you've saved can be surprisingly hard to move. Tooly exports them from your signed-in WhatsApp Web session into a file you keep.
Back up in 7 steps
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Install Tooly
Grab Tooly from the Chrome Web Store with a single Add to Chrome. No account, no cost — you're set up in under a minute.
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Sign in on the old phone
Log in at web.whatsapp.com on the phone whose contacts you want to preserve, scanning the QR as usual.
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Open Tooly & scan
Open the Tooly side panel from your toolbar and choose Scan WhatsApp. It copies your contacts locally and read-only — your originals are never touched or sent anywhere.
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Capture the whole address book
Pick the Contacts tab so every saved person is captured in the backup, not just the members of one group.
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Check what you're saving
Look over the list Tooly builds — names, countries and a running count — so you know exactly what's going into your safe copy before you save it.
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Tidy the list (optional)
Open Filter if you'd like to collapse duplicate numbers or trim the list — or leave it alone for a complete, untouched backup.
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Save the backup file
Export as vCard (.vcf) to drop straight into a new phone's contacts, or Excel/CSV for an archive you can search years later. The file saves to your computer.
Which format for a backup?
For moving to a new phone, pick vCard (.vcf) — it imports straight into your phone or Google Contacts. For a long-term archive you can read and search, pick Excel or CSV. Tooly produces all of them from a single scan, so keep both.
Frequently asked questions
How do I back up my WhatsApp contacts?
Sign in at web.whatsapp.com, open the free Tooly extension and press Scan, then export the Contacts tab. Save as vCard (.vcf) to drop into a new phone, or Excel/CSV for an archive. Tooly is read-only and on-device, so your list is copied to a file without touching your account.
Is there a way to make a WhatsApp contact backup?
Yes. WhatsApp has no built-in contact export, but Tooly reads your signed-in WhatsApp Web session and writes your names and numbers to a file you keep. One scan gives you vCard, Excel, CSV and JSON — free, unlimited and entirely on your device, with nothing uploaded to any server.
Does WhatsApp back up my contacts?
WhatsApp's backup covers your chats and media, not an exportable list of contacts and numbers. For a portable copy of the contacts themselves, export them with a tool like Tooly.
How do I restore the backup to a new phone?
Export to vCard (.vcf), then open or import that file on your new phone or into Google Contacts — the numbers are added to your address book.
Is backing up my WhatsApp contacts free?
Yes — Tooly backs up your full list for free, with no limit and no account required.
Where does the backup go?
Straight to your own computer. Tooly is read-only and never uploads your contacts to any server.
Keep a copy you'll be glad you have
A vCard for your next phone or a spreadsheet for the archive — saved before you need it. Free, no account.
Add Tooly to Chrome — free