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Use cases → Multi-tenant and agencies

Synchronise contacts between Workspace domains

Keep user contact details in sync across multiple Google Workspace domains using a delegated automation account.

Who it is forIT teams managing users across several Workspace tenants who need consistent global address books.
APIsAdmin SDK
Typical scopesadmin.directory.user.readonly, admin.directory.user

The problem

Users in one domain can't see or email colleagues in another unless contacts are synchronised. Manual export-import is slow, error-prone, and doesn't keep up with daily changes, departures, or new joiners.

How it works

  1. Delegate a service account in each domain with directory read and write scopes.
  2. Periodically pull the authoritative user list from each domain using Admin SDK.
  3. Map and normalise contact fields (name, email, department, etc.) between domains.
  4. Write or update contacts into the target domain's directory, handling adds, updates, and removals.
  5. Log synchronisation events per domain for traceability.

What changes

All users see up-to-date contact information for colleagues in partner domains, reducing misdirected messages and lookup friction.

The trap in this one. The Admin SDK's contact propagation is not instantaneous: writes to the Directory API can take up to several hours to appear in users’ address books, especially in large domains. This delay means that a synchronisation job reporting success does not guarantee visibility for users, leading to confusion when recently updated or added contacts do not immediately appear. Relying on immediate propagation for downstream operations (like group invitations or email routing) will fail silently.

Watch it explained

“Lesson 6.1: Add Mio to Google Workspace” — Mio on YouTube. Third-party video, included because it covers this ground well. We are not affiliated with the channel.

Questions people ask

Can deletions be synchronised as reliably as additions?

Deletions are processed, but propagation delays mean deleted contacts may still appear for users for hours. Always allow a buffer period before assuming a contact is fully removed.

How do you handle attribute mismatches between domains?

Define a canonical field mapping and normalise data before writing; log unmapped or conflicting values for manual review.

Want this built?

This is a pattern we run in production. We will set up the delegation and build this on top of it — $500 per hour, most of it working the same day.

Talk to us Or read the setup guide

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