From day one, iOS 15 has proven to be incredibly buggy. Quick battery drain, hotspot not working properly, and lost iPhone connections turned the excitement into a nightmare. The good thing is that there are several viable workarounds to fix iPhone contacts disappearing or disappearing issue after iOS 15 update. So if you’ve found yourself on the wrong side of this dreaded question, there’s no need to panic. Check out the seven best tips and tricks to recover your lost iPhone contacts.
7 Best Ways to Recover Lost iPhone Contacts (2021)
To get started, let’s first examine why your iPhone contacts might have disappeared. If you are familiar with it, jump straight to possible solutions to recover lost contacts on your iPhone.
Why Did My iPhone Contacts Disappear?
Frankly, there is nothing new about the disappearance of contacts on iPhone. The problem has existed in almost all iterations of iOS for years. Since this is a common iOS issue, most of us have encountered this at some point.
Talking about the reasons why the Contacts app appears blank – missing saved contacts, mostly Due to iCloud sync issues. Also, a slow internet connection also plays a trophy by preventing contacts from syncing faster.
As someone who has taken this messy road a few times, I recommend leaving your device in complete peace after the software update. This way all your data including your photos, videos, music and contacts will be synced faster. Also, make sure your device is connected to a stable internet connection which will go a long way in speeding up the syncing process.
The time it takes for iCloud to sync your essential data depends entirely on the amount of data and your internet speed. Overall, iOS 15 (just like any other software) will take some time to settle in. This is why problems such as battery draining or even overheating occur immediately after the software update.
As for the solutions, force-killing the Contacts app and resetting iCloud Contacts has proven effective several times for iPhone users. Also, there are other equally valid tricks that help recover missing contacts on iPhone.
Tips and Tricks to Recover Lost iPhone Contacts
1. Force Kill the Contacts App
While this solution may sound simple to some, it has worked for me several times. This is the reason why I suggest you to try this tip and get back all your lost iPhone contacts. It doesn’t hurt to try this hack, as it takes a few seconds and doesn’t affect your data.
- On iPhone with Face ID: Swipe up from the bottom of the home bar and hold across the middle of the screen. After that, swipe up on the Contacts app card to close the app.
- On iPhone with Touch ID: Press the home button twice to open the app switcher and swipe up on the Contacts app card to force quit the app.
Then, wait for a while (about 5-10 minutes) and open the Contacts app once again. All your missing contacts should now be back. If you can see them now, you are ready to go!
2. Hard Reset Your iPhone
Sometimes, to fix a common problem like contacts lost on an iPhone, all you need to do is, hard reset (also known as force restart) device. Do not worry, because it does not delete any personal media or data and has the ability to fix various software errors. So, it’s worth a try.
- On iPhone 8 or later: Press and quickly release the volume up button. Next, press and quickly release the volume down button. Then press and hold the side button until the screen goes black and the Apple logo appears.
- On iPhone 7/7 Plus: Press and hold the side button and volume down button simultaneously until you see the Apple logo.
- On iPhone 6s/6s Plus: Press and hold the home button and side button simultaneously until you see the Apple logo on the screen.
After hard resetting your iPhone, go back to the Contacts app to check if you can fix the missing iPhone contacts issue.
3. Turn Off/On iCloud Contacts
Another pretty reliable solution that you should try to recover missing iPhone contacts is to turn off/on iCloud contacts. I can vouch for its efficiency in fixing iPhone contacts missing issue as it has helped me in many cases. Follow the steps below to learn how it works:
1. Open the Settings app on your iPhone and navigate to: your profile -> iCloud.
2. Close the toggle next to it Persons. Now, you will see a popup window, “What would you like to do with previously synced iCloud contacts on your iPhone?” The popup window offers two options:
- stay on my iPhone: It allows you to keep all previously synced iCloud contacts on your iPhone.
- Delete from My iPhone: It deletes all previously synced iCloud contacts from your iOS device.
3. choose stay on my iPhone and restart your device. After your iOS device restarts, return to iCloud settings and turn on the Contacts button.
Now be patient and give iCloud contacts enough time to sync. Then go to Contacts app to check if your missing iPhone contacts are restored. If so, it’s time to rejoice.
4. Make Sure iCloud is Selected as Default Account
If your lost contacts haven’t been returned yet, make sure you choose iCloud as the default account for contact syncing on your iPhone. If not, follow these steps:
To do this, go to: Settings -> Contacts -> Default Account. Finally, choose iCloud as your default account. Now, restart your iPhone. After your iOS device restarts, go to the Contacts app to see if you fixed the issue.
5. Factory Reset Your iPhone
I can’t remember how many times a simple factory reset has helped me fix unexpected and common problems like these missing contacts on my iPhone. For those unfamiliar, it clears all current settings, including location data, Wi-Fi, and VPN, among other things. But it will not harm any media or data on your device. To Reset All Settings on your iPhone running iOS 15, follow these steps:
- Set course to Settings -> General -> Transfer or Reset iPhone -> Reset. Now, choose reset all settings from the drop-down menu.
- After that, you will be asked enter your device password. Finally, tap reset all settings again to confirm.
6. Sign Out of Apple ID and Sign In Again
No luck yet? Don’t worry as we still have another reliable solution to restore your lost iPhone contacts. Now, we will sign out of Apple ID and then sign back in.
- To do this open Settings -> your profile. After that, scroll down and tap . Sign out.
- Next, you will be asked to keep a copy of your data. For added security, toggle each option’s toggle before signing out of your Apple ID. Next, use your Apple ID and password to sign in again.
Again, we recommend waiting a while to allow all necessary data to sync in the background. After that, open your Contacts app to find out if your contacts are still missing.
7. Use Third-Party Data Recovery Tool
From personal experience I can say that in most cases you may not need to go as far as using third-party software. However, we’ve all come across scenarios where even the most reliable things tend to behave unexpectedly. So if none of the above-mentioned tricks worked to retrieve your lost iPhone contacts in iOS 15, try these third-party data recovery tools.
To that end, I recommend you take a look at the following third-party tools. They include the option to recover your contacts from iCloud, so use the software that fits your needs and pocket.
- iMobie Phone Recovery (Limited free version$59/year, available for Windows and Mac)
- EaseUSMobiSaver (limited free version$59, available for Windows and Mac)
- Wondershare Dr.Fone (limited free versioniOS Toolkit costs $140 for Windows and Mac).
Recover Missing or Lost iPhone Contacts
This completes our guide on how to recover missing contacts from your iPhone running iOS 15 (or iOs 14 as most of the solutions also work on older versions of iOS). In most cases, solutions like resetting iCloud contacts and signing out of Apple and signing back in usually fix the problem. And if nothing works, in some rare cases, third-party data recovery tools are always ready to help you. However, which of these solutions worked for you? Be sure to let us know in the comments below. Also, if there is a reliable solution to help you get your lost contacts back on iOS, don’t forget to tip us about it as well.
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