---
title: "How to merge Google accounts (Gmail, Google Calendar, and Google Contacts)"
description: "You can't merge Google accounts—but you can transfer your data from one account to another. Here's how to do it for Gmail, Google Calendar, and Google Contacts."
image: "https://images.ctfassets.net/lzny33ho1g45/3ylbUcVuRlGVTZ085lwaqs/40806c2559b79644d4ea17c6a4e9451c/gmail-hero-neutral.png"
---

# How to merge Google accounts (Gmail, Google Calendar, and Google Contacts)

You can't merge Google accounts—but you can transfer your data from one account to another. Here's how to do it for Gmail, Google Calendar, and Google Contacts.

Do you have multiple Google accounts—perhaps one for work and another for personal use—but you hate toggling between the two? Or maybe you're ready to say goodbye to your first email address, `sk8trgrrrl04@gmail.com`? 

Let's start with the bad news: there's [no fully automated way](https://support.google.com/accounts/answer/63304?hl=en) to merge multiple Google accounts into one. If you want to merge Google accounts, you have to manually transfer your data out of and into every individual Google app you use—Gmail, Google Calendar, Google Drive, and so on. 

Here are the step-by-step instructions—along with a few automated workflows—to help you transfer your data in less time and with fewer headaches than you might think.

**Table of contents: **

- [How to merge Gmail accounts](#merge-gmail-accounts)
- [How to merge Google Calendars](#merge-google-calendars)
- [How to merge Google Contacts accounts](#merge-google-contacts)
- [How to merge Google accounts: FAQs](#faqs)

## How to merge Gmail accounts

While you can't merge Gmail accounts, you can forward new emails from your old Gmail account to your new one. (Note: if you have a Google Workspace account, your account administrator may have removed this option for security reasons.)

If you do have the option to forward your emails to another account, there are two potential downsides to be aware of before you turn this feature on: 

- You'll need to use another email app (like Apple Mail or Microsoft Outlook) to copy your old [Gmail archive](https://zapier.com/blog/where-is-archive-in-gmail) to your new account.
- You won't be able to send new emails from your old email address.

Now that we've called out potential hiccups, let's set up email forwarding in Gmail. 

1. Log in to your old [Gmail](https://gmail.com/) account.
2. Click the **Settings** icon, which looks like a gear. Then select **See all settings**.

3. On the _Settings _page, click **Forwarding and POP/IMAP**.
4. In the _Forwarding _section, click **Add a forwarding address. **

5. In the _Add a forwarding address_ pop-up, enter your new email address. Then click **Next**.

6. A new browser tab will appear, asking you to confirm that you want to forward emails to your new forwarding email address. Click **Proceed**.

7. You'll be brought back to the _Settings _page of your old Gmail account with a pop-up letting you know that Gmail has sent a confirmation email to your new Gmail account. Click **OK. **

8. Log in to your new Gmail account.
9. Open the confirmation email, and click the confirmation link to initiate email forwarding.
10. On the _Confirmation _page that appears, click **Confirm**.

That's it! Now all new emails sent to your old email address will be automatically forwarded to your new email address. 

Before you abandon your old Gmail account, remember to set up a system—like an [out-of-office message](https://zapier.com/blog/gmail-out-of-office/)—to let people know you have a new email address. 

### How to send emails from your old Gmail account

Let's say you have one contact who refuses to acknowledge that you've left your old Gmail email address behind. There's a way to still send emails from your old Gmail account. (Note: If you use a school or workplace Google account, your account administrator may have removed the ability to add other email addresses to your account.)

1. Go to your Gmail_ Settings _page.
2. Click **Accounts and Import**.
3. In the _Send mail as_ section, click **Add another email address**.

4. In the pop-up that appears, enter your old Gmail email address.

5. Click **Next Step**.
6. Follow the prompts to verify your account.
7. Compose a message as you normally would.
8. In the _From_ field, you'll now have the option to choose which email address to send your message from.

### How to back up and move your old Gmail emails

Adding a new forwarding email address forwards only _new_ emails from your old account—not emails you received in the past. If you need access to your old emails or your old account is going to be deleted, you have a few options to back up and move your old Gmail emails. 

#### **Use Gmail **

You can move all your old emails to your new inbox directly from Gmail, but there are a few caveats. 

- You can't choose specific emails or folders to move—it's all or nothing.
- You can only move emails, not folders or [labels](https://zapier.com/blog/gmail-labels/). So, if your old emails are neatly grouped and labeled, and you want to keep that organization, this method isn't for you.

If those caveats are ok for you, here's how to import your emails using Gmail. 

1. Go to your Gmail _Settings_ page.
2. Click **Accounts and Import**.
3. In the _Import mail and contacts_ section, click **Import mail and contacts**.

4. In the new window that appears, enter the email address you want to import emails from. Then click **Continue**.

5. Now you need to sign in to your other account to confirm the import. To begin the process, click **Continue** and follow the instructions in the pop-up window.
6. Once you've signed in, you'll be brought back to another page with your import options. By default, Gmail will import all your Gmail contacts, mail, and import new mail to your old account for the next 30 days. If you want to import only your mail, deselect the other options. Then click **Start import**.

Depending on how large your inbox is, the download could take a few hours—or even a few days—to complete. Once it's complete, all your old emails will appear in your new inbox. 

#### **Use Google Takeout **

If you want to only import specific email folders from your old account, Google Takeout is a better option. But it's worth mentioning that Google Takeout only lets you export your emails. You'll have to use another email app to import it to your new inbox. 

1. Go to [Google Takeout](https://takeout.google.com/settings/takeout).
2. By default, Google Takeout will download your _entire _Google account. But you only want your old emails. In the _Select data to include_ section, click **Deselect all**.

3. Scroll down to _Mail_, and click **the checkbox**. Then click **All Mail data included**.

4. In the _Mail content options _window that appears, select the categories you want to export. The default selections are usually great as is, but you can modify as needed.
5. Click **OK**.

6. On the Google Takeout page, click **Next step**.
7. In the _Choose file type, frequency & destination_ section, select the destination for your download, frequency, and file type.
8. Click **Create export**.

Depending on the size of your download, it could take a few hours or days to complete. Once it's complete, though, Gmail will email you with a link to download your email archive.

When the export is done, there's one final thing you need to do: import your archive to your new Gmail account. 

To do this, you can use an email app like [Apple Mail](https://support.apple.com/kb/PH22318?locale=en_US) or [Microsoft Outlook](https://support.office.com/en-us/article/Import-Gmail-to-Outlook-20fdb8f2-fed8-4b14-baf0-bf04b9c44bf7). You'll use your chosen email app to log in to your new Gmail, and then import the email archive. The import process varies depending on the platform you use. For example, in Apple Mail, the import will upload your old emails to Apple Mail in a mailbox labeled _Import_. From there, you can reorganize your imported folders into your new Gmail folders directly in Apple Mail. Once you've moved your old folders into your new inbox, you can delete the _Import_ mailbox. 

With [Zapier's ChatGPT integration](https://zapier.com/apps/chatgpt/integrations), you can also create a workflow to automatically label _all_ of your incoming emails—not just ones forwarded from your old account. Here's a pre-made workflow to get you started. 

## How to merge Google Calendar accounts

Have you ever received an event invite in Gmail, only to have the event also magically appear in your Google Calendar? Same with upcoming flights? That's because your Google Calendar account is synced with your Gmail account. So, if you're moving to a new Gmail account, you'll want to take your old Google Calendar with you too. 

To do this, you'll need to export your old calendar and then import it into your new one. Here's how to export your old calendar. 

1. Log in to [Google Calendar](https://calendar.google.com/) with your old account.
2. Click the **Settings** icon, which looks like a gear, and then click **Settings**.

3. In the side menu, click **Import & export**, and then select **Export**.
4. In the main area of the _Import & export_ page, click **Export**. (Note: If you have multiple calendars, you won't be able to select specific calendars to export. But you can choose specific calendars to import in the next step.)

5. Find the `.zip` file in your _Downloads_ folder and open it. You should have a folder with at least one `.ics` file. (If you exported multiple calendars, you'll have a separate file for each one.)

Now, you're ready to import your old calendar into your new account. 

1. Log out of your old Google account, and log back in to Google Calendar with your new Google account.
2. Click the **Settings** icon, which looks like a gear.
3. In the side menu, click **Import & export**, and then select **Import**.
4. In the main area of the _Import & export_ page, upload your `.ics` file. If you have multiple calendars already set up in your new Google Calendar account, select which calendar you want to add your old calendar to.
5. Click **Import**.

Repeat the import process as many times as needed to upload any other calendars from your old account. Once you're done, all of your existing meetings and events should now appear on your new account's Google Calendar.

If you think there's a chance that you'll continue to receive new meeting invitations via your old account, set up this Zapier workflow to automatically copy new events from your old calendar to your new one. 

## How to merge Google Contacts accounts

Similar to merging Google Calendar accounts, Gmail doesn't automatically merge your old Google Contacts into your new account. Instead, you have to manually export them from your old account and import them into your new account. 

1. Open [Google Contacts](https://contacts.google.com/). Be sure to do this using your old Google account.
2. Click the **Export** icon, which looks like an upward-facing arrow.

3. In the _Export contacts_ window that appears, leave the selections as is—you want it to export as a _Google CSV format_—and click **Export**.

4. Log out of your old Google account, and log back in to Google Contacts with your new Google account.
5. In the side menu, click **Import**.

6. In the _Import contacts_ window that appears, upload your CSV file. Then click **Import**.

Now, all of the contacts from your old account should be in your new Gmail account. 

And with that, you're done. Now all of your emails, contacts, and calendar appointments live in one Gmail account—and you'll still get any messages, appointment notifications, and birthday reminders that come into your old account. It's the best of both worlds.

## How to merge Google accounts: FAQs

### Can I merge two Google accounts?

Unfortunately, you can't merge separate Google accounts into one. Instead, you'll have to transfer data on an app-by-app basis. Scroll up for all the details on how to do that.

### Can I unmerge Gmail accounts?

Yes—all you have to do is return to the Gmail _Settings _page of your old inbox and remove your forwarding address. It's worth noting, though, that emails previously forwarded to your main account will remain in that inbox. 

**Related reading: **

- [Gmail extensions and add-ons to boost your productivity](https://zapier.com/blog/best-gmail-add-ons/)
- [The best email apps to manage your inbox](https://zapier.com/blog/best-email-app/)
- [Stress-reducing Google Calendar settings you didn't know you needed](https://zapier.com/blog/google-calendar-settings-for-productivity/)
- [How to create a new business Gmail account for your team](https://zapier.com/blog/create-new-business-gmail-account/)

_This article was originally published in February 2018 by Jessica Greene and has also had contributions from Elena Alston. The most recent update was in April 2025._