Free Business Card Scanner: Extract Contact Info to Excel in Seconds

You've just returned from a trade show with a stack of 50 business cards. Or maybe you have a drawer full of cards from years of networking that you've been meaning to organize. Either way, you're facing the same tedious task: manually typing each name, email, phone number, and company into a spreadsheet or CRM.

Our free business card scanner eliminates this tedium. Using AI-powered recognition, it extracts contact information from business card photos and organizes everything into clean, exportable data. Scan one card or batch upload dozens—either way, you get structured contact data in seconds.

Why manual business card data entry is broken

Traditional approaches to business card management all have significant problems:

Manual typing is slow and error-prone
Typing 50 business cards takes 2–3 hours. Typos in email addresses mean lost connections. Phone number transpositions go unnoticed until you try to call.

Physical cards get lost
Cards fall behind desks, get left in pockets, or end up in the wrong pile. By the time you find one, you've forgotten why the contact mattered.

Card scanning apps require subscriptions
Most business card apps want monthly fees for basic functionality. You just need contact extraction, not a whole ecosystem.

Contacts end up scattered
Without a systematic approach, contacts wind up spread across phone apps, email programs, and forgotten spreadsheets.

Our free tool solves this by giving you fast, accurate extraction with flexible export options—no subscriptions, no lock-in.

What information does the scanner extract?

Our AI identifies and extracts all standard business card fields:

The AI understands business card conventions across different countries and industries. It correctly identifies which numbers are mobile vs. office, distinguishes personal from company emails, and handles cards in multiple formats and languages.

How to scan business cards

Converting business cards to digital contacts takes just a few steps:

Batch upload: Process dozens of cards at once

Coming back from a conference with a thick stack of cards? Our batch upload feature handles multiple cards efficiently:

• Upload multiple images — Select all your card photos at once instead of processing one by one.
• Automatic processing — Each card is analyzed and extracted without manual intervention.
• Combined export — All contacts export to a single spreadsheet file with one row per person.
• Duplicate detection — The system flags potential duplicates based on matching names or email addresses.

What would take hours of manual entry can be done in minutes. Photograph your cards, upload the batch, review the extracted data, and export—done.

Export options: Excel, CSV, and more

Once contacts are extracted, you need them in a usable format. We offer multiple export options:

CSV format is particularly useful for CRM imports. Most customer relationship management platforms accept CSV uploads with mapped fields for name, email, phone, and company.

Perfect for trade shows and networking events

Business card exchanges spike during events. Here's how professionals use our scanner:

Conference follow-ups
Photograph cards during breaks, batch process them after the event, and send personalized follow-up emails within 24 hours while connections are fresh.

Trade show lead capture
Sales teams collect hundreds of cards during trade shows. Mass processing gets contacts into the CRM for immediate outreach and lead assignment.

Networking event organization
After meetups, mixers, or industry events, organize new connections by company, role, or potential opportunity before details fade from memory.

Job fair applications
Recruiters and job seekers alike collect cards at career events. Quick digitization keeps contact information organized for follow-up.

Pro tip: Photograph business cards immediately when you receive them. Take the photo in good lighting while you're still at the event. Don't wait until you're home with a pile of bent, coffee-stained cards.

Tips for better business card photos

Photo quality affects extraction accuracy. Follow these guidelines for best results:

Good lighting is essential
Natural light or bright indoor lighting works best. Avoid shadows across the card and harsh direct light that creates glare.

Frame the entire card
Include all edges with a small margin. Don't cut off corners or edges where contact information might appear.

Keep it flat and square
Place cards on a flat surface. Photograph straight-on to avoid perspective distortion that makes text harder to read.

Ensure focus and clarity
Tap to focus on the card text before shooting. Blurry photos reduce extraction accuracy significantly.

Use contrasting background
Dark cards photograph best on light surfaces, and vice versa. Avoid backgrounds that blend with the card color.

Business card scanner vs. manual entry

The math clearly favors automated extraction:

Beyond time savings, automated extraction produces more consistent data. Phone numbers are formatted uniformly. Company names are capitalized correctly. Email addresses don't have typos that cause bounced messages.

Privacy and data security

Business cards contain contact information you're responsible for handling appropriately. Here's how we protect this data:

• No permanent storage — Card images are processed and immediately deleted. We don't keep copies of your business card photos.
• Encrypted transmission — All uploads and downloads use HTTPS encryption to protect data in transit.
• No contact harvesting — Extracted contact data is not stored, analyzed, or used for any purpose beyond your immediate export.
• No account required — Use the tool without creating an account or providing your own contact information.

Frequently asked questions

How many cards can I process at once?
Batch upload supports up to 20 cards per session. For larger quantities, process in multiple batches.

What languages are supported?
The scanner works best with English, Spanish, French, German, and other Latin-alphabet languages. Support for Chinese, Japanese, Korean, and Arabic characters varies.

Does it work with unusual card designs?
Standard horizontal and vertical layouts work best. Very unusual designs (circular, folded, heavily stylized) may have reduced accuracy.

Can I edit extracted data before export?
Yes. All extracted fields are editable in the review step before you export to Excel or CSV.

What image formats are accepted?
We accept JPG, PNG, and WebP images. Most phone camera photos work directly without conversion.

Start scanning business cards now

That stack of business cards on your desk represents potential relationships, opportunities, and deals. Don't let them gather dust while you procrastinate on data entry.

Upload your business card photos, let AI extract the contact information, and export to Excel or your CRM. Turn networking connections into organized, actionable contacts in minutes instead of hours.