I’m currently developing a project that requires accessing contact details from Gmail. Unfortunately, I haven’t found a suitable PHP library that works efficiently.
Has anyone here managed to implement the retrieval of Gmail contacts in PHP? Ideally, I am looking for a reliable class or library that I can use. If such a resource doesn’t exist, I would appreciate any tips on how to get started on creating my own solution.
I have come across references to Google’s APIs but I’m unsure which one is appropriate for handling contacts. It seems like the Gmail API is more email-centric, while the People API might be more suitable. I would love to hear your thoughts on the best option.
Additionally, if there are any specific authentication issues to be aware of when accessing Gmail data, please share those insights as well.
Just dealt with this same issue on a client project. Skip the Gmail API - go straight to the People API. You’ll need OAuth 2.0 credentials from Google Cloud Console and their PHP client library. Handle the initial redirect and store refresh tokens correctly. Watch out for rate limiting though - Google’s pretty strict with contact request quotas. Cache everything if you’ve got multiple users. The API format needs parsing but the docs are solid. Get your app verified with Google before going live or you’ll hit scope limits.
totally agree! the people api is the way to go for fetchin contacts. oauth can be a pain at first, but once u get it, it’s not too bad. also, make sure to include the ‘contacts.readonly’ scope. their docs r pretty good, just takes some time to figure it out.
Been working with Google’s contact integration for two years. The People API is your best bet, but most tutorials miss a critical step - you need the right scopes during OAuth flow. Don’t just use ‘contacts.readonly’ - grab ‘contacts.other.readonly’ too if you need custom fields or contact groups. The PHP Google Client Library does the heavy lifting, but watch out for pagination with large contact lists. You’ll only get 1000 contacts per request by default. Handle expired tokens properly - Google’s refresh token mechanism is finicky. Test with different Gmail account types because G Suite accounts have restrictions that personal accounts don’t.