Every colleague on every Android phone in the company
Android only syncs each user's own Outlook contacts, and only when the right setting is switched on. Colleagues are left out, so their calls show a bare number. ModernSync writes the colleagues from your Microsoft 365 groups into every mailbox each night. The phone picks them up from there whatever the make, and so do iPhones and Outlook.
Works withiPhoneAndroidOutlook for Windows, Mac and web
Why colleagues are missing on Android
Android only picks up the user's own Outlook contacts, through either the Outlook app or the phone's own mail app. Colleagues sit in the address list, so a call from them shows just a number.
Your options in Microsoft 365
| Option | Works well | Limits |
|---|---|---|
| Contact sync in the Outlook app | Saves the user's own Outlook contacts on the phone. | Each user has to turn it on, and colleagues are not included. |
| The phone's own mail app with a Microsoft 365 account | Syncs the user's own Contacts folder. | Colleagues from the directory are not included. |
| Directory search in Outlook | Finds colleagues when there is a connection. | Needs a connection, and calls still show only a number. |
How ModernSync does it
Set-up takes about five minutes.
Approve the app
A global admin approves ModernSync in Microsoft 365. Nothing is installed on phones or servers.
Choose the groups
Pick who becomes contacts and who receives them. A test run shows exactly what would change before anything is written.
Contacts on every phone
Every night the contacts are updated in employees' mailboxes, and phones and Outlook pick them up from there.
A test run first
The test run shows exactly how many contacts would be created, updated and removed in which mailboxes. Nothing is written until you switch synchronisation on.
Data, hosting and the DPA
- Contact data stays in Microsoft 365
- Contacts are written straight from Microsoft 365 to employees' mailboxes. We only keep what the portal needs to show status.
- Hosted in Azure in the EU
- Your data is processed in Microsoft Azure in the EU, and we hold no passwords. The app's permissions are listed on the permissions page.
- Data processing agreement included
- It is part of the terms and accepted when you sign up.
Questions
Does it work with Samsung phones?
Yes. A Samsung shows the contacts once it syncs the mailbox's contacts, either through the Outlook app or through Samsung Email. Other Android makes work the same way.
Why do Outlook contacts stop syncing on Android?
Usually Sync contacts has been switched off in the Outlook app, or battery saving stops background sync. The guide below goes through the causes.
Does it work on iPhone too?
Yes, and in Outlook. The contacts live in the mailbox, not on the individual phone.
Does every employee have to change settings on their phone?
Only what their own contacts already need: contact sync in the Outlook app, or Contacts switched on for the account in the phone's mail app. The rest happens in the mailbox.
Related guides and other solutions
- How to sync Outlook contacts to Android, and why they stop syncing
The two built-in ways, the settings that make contacts stop syncing, and how to cover every phone at once.
- Which phones and apps show the contacts?
iPhone, Android and Outlook on Windows, Mac and the web, plus the one limitation to know about.
- Outlook contacts on iPhoneColleagues from Microsoft 365 in the iPhone's own contacts, so calls show a name.
- Shared contacts in OutlookOne shared contact list in every mailbox and on every phone.
- GAL sync for iPhone and AndroidThe global address list as real contacts, so calls show who is ringing.
- Push contacts to iPhone and AndroidApprove the app once and choose the groups. There are no scripts to maintain.
- Company directory on the phoneThe directory in the phone's own contacts app instead of one more app.
Try it on your own groups
Sign up in the portal and see the test run for your own groups before you decide. Free for 14 days.