My favorite contacts apps for every platform — including one I built with AI

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ZDNET Highlights

• Your Contacts app is more important than you think.
• Some platforms have low-level default contacts apps.
• There are better options available – you can even create your own.

When was the last time you opened your Contacts app? Do you have any problem with this? If you use email, chances are you also use your Contacts app – perhaps without realizing it. However, not all Contacts apps are created equal.

Some contacts apps are very basic, while others are highly complex. And then the best part – apps that include the right number of features in a well-designed GUI.

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I’d like to share with you my favorite contacts apps for each operating system I use. I will also come up with an app that can be used on every platform (so no one is left out).

are you ready for this?

Let’s connect.

1. Contacts+ (Android)

Contacts+ provides you with only the features you need to keep your contacts well managed. When you create a contact, you can add a photo, name (first, last, middle, suffix, surname), phone, email, profile, IM, address, job, birthday, date, URL, relationship, tags, and notes.

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The app also lets you:

• Direct access to Android phone app
• event reminder
• contact update
• Sync with Google, iCloud and Outlook
• Sort contacts by first name or last name
• business card creation
• Free and Premium versions

The premium version removes ads, offers 100 business cards per month, syncs up to 5 accounts, stores up to 25,000 contacts, and allows up to 250 updates per week.

Yes, there are ads in the free version, but I’ve found them to be quite unobtrusive.

Although the default Android Contacts app is nice, it’s a little too integrated with Google Workspace, which (at least for me) can create privacy issues. You also have the option of using Contacts+ strictly for on-device contacts or cloud contacts. If you want more privacy, stick to the on-device option.

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If you choose the premium route, the cost is $120/year. That’s a bit much for a contacts app, so I’ll stick with the free version.

2. Link (Linux)

You would think that Linux would be full of excellent contacts apps, but that’s not true. The good news is that Contacts is a KDE Plasma contacts app that has everything you need. With Contacts, you get a unified interface – works with Gmail, Calendar, and Contacts in one well-designed UI. Contacts emphasizes privacy and supports open standards for data control, works with other KDE applications such as Camel and Copete, has built-in support for importing and exporting contacts using the vCard format, and allows customization of fields and categories.

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One drawback of Kontakt is that it is a KDE Plasma application. Although you can install it on other desktop environments, it will bring along many dependencies and libraries, which can clutter your OS. If this is a deal-breaker for you, I suggest taking a look at number 4 below – and using it as a web app.

3. Contacts (MacOS)

This is an instance where I recommend going with the default, as MacOS Contacts is excellent. Although the app is fairly basic, the UI is so good that I can’t imagine using a separate app for Apple’s OS. With macOS Contacts, you can add a mobile phone, name, home phone (I don’t know why it’s still there), pronouns, ringtones, text tones, URLs, birthdays, addresses and notes. You can also define a contact as a person or a company.

I would say that Apple’s Contacts app is a perfect blend of form and function.

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Of course, Contacts is free and preinstalled on MacOS, and with the new Liquid Glass UI, it looks even better.

4. Airtable (All Platforms)

It may surprise you, but AirTable is great for many things – including Contacts. Even better, you can create a custom Contacts app tailored to your exact specifications.

One thing I did with Airtable was to use the built-in Omni AI to create a Contacts app that met my exact needs. All I had to do was type in a question, answer a few simple questions and the app was built. I was amazed to see how well the AI ​​was able to create an app with all the features I requested and a modern UI. In fact, after building an app with Airtable, I’m considering making it my favorite contact manager. And because Airtable runs on all the platforms I use, I can put other apps aside and stick to it.

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Even better, you can create and use this app with a free account. Keep in mind that there is no official Airtable app for Linux, so you’ll have to use it as a web app. Trust me, when creating your own custom contacts app, it’s worth the extra effort.