5 Ways to Restore Deleted Contacts on iPhone

Quick Tips

• Open Settings > Contacts, select the account that has your contacts backed up, and turn it on.
• You can also visit the iCloud website, and restore backed-up contacts from the Data Recovery menu.
• If you are trying to restore Google Contacts, open Google Contacts on a web browser, go to Trash, and restore the contacts.

Method 1: Enable iCloud or Google Contacts

Sometimes, contacts on your iPhone can simply disappear with an accidental tap. Let’s fix this from the Settings and get your contacts back.

Step 1: Open Settings > Contacts > Accounts.

Tip: On the Contacts settings page, glance at the Default Account. For example, in my case, it says Gmail, which means any contact I create and save on my iPhone will also be saved to my Google account.

Step 2: Here are all the accounts that show Contacts on your iPhone. If your contacts are stored in iCloud, tap iCloud; otherwise, tap Gmail or others.

Tip: If you don’t know if the contacts that disappeared from your iPhone were saved on iCloud or Gmail, you can try enabling them individually.

Step 3: Tap iCloud again and tap Show All.

Step 4: Now, ensure the toggle for Contacts is enabled. Once done, press and hold the iCloud back button at the top left.

Step 5: A list of previous directories will open in a pop-up, tap Accounts > Gmail.

Step 6: Again, ensure that the Contacts toggle is enabled.

That’s it. Now, all the lost contacts should appear back on your iPhone.

Method 2: Get Contacts Back on iPhone From iCloud Website

If you have deleted a Contact that was saved to your iCloud account, iCloud on the web allows you to restore contacts without doing much.

Note: Before accessing iCloud on the web, ensure that accessing the iCloud Data on the web is enabled from your iPhone. Here’s how to do it.

Step 1: Launch Settings on your iPhone, tap your name/Apple ID, and go to iCloud.

Step 2: Scroll down and turn on the toggle for Access iCloud Data on the Web.

Let’s move to a Mac or PC for further steps to access iCloud on the web and follow these steps:

Step 1: Open iCloud in any browser on your Mac or PC and click Data Recovery.

iCloud (Web)

Step 2: Click Restore Contacts.

Step 3: A list of contacts archive will open. Click on Restore in front of the recent ones to restore it.

Step 4: Click Restore to confirm the restoration of Contacts.

If you cannot recover your iCloud contacts with the help of the method mentioned above, we suggest you contact Apple Support to get more assistance as soon as possible.

However, if it was Google contacts that you were looking to restore, let’s move on to the next section.

Method 3: Recover Deleted Google Contacts on iPhone

Google also allows you to recover deleted contacts, whether it was deleted from an iPhone or an Android.

Step 1: Open Google Contacts in any browser on your Mac or PC and click Trash.

Step 2: Take your mouse pointer to the contact you want to restore and click to select it.

Step 3: Now, click Recover. The contact should reappear soon on your iPhone.

Method 4: Restore Contacts From iCloud Backup

You can also try restoring from iCloud backup. But do note that you will need to erase your device first and then follow the below steps to restore it from the iCloud backup. Your contact will get automatically restored to your iPhone, along with the device backup.

Note: This is a lengthy process, and you can’t use your device while erasing and restoring; hence, proceed cautiously.

Step 1: Turn on your iPhone and follow the prompts until you see the Apps & Data page. Tap Restore from iCloud Backup.

Step 2: Now, sign in with the same Apple ID.

Step 3: Tap on a backup to restore it to your iPhone. And let the iPhone restore.

Once restore completes, follow the prompts to finish setup, and you will get your contacts back on your iPhone.

Method 5: Recover Deleted Contacts From PC or Mac Backup

If you want to retrieve deleted phone numbers on your iPhone without using iCloud, you can also use a Finder backup of your iOS device. However, you must have taken your iPhone backup recently to ensure you can retrieve the deleted contacts.

Note: This is time-consuming, and you can’t use your device while erasing and restoring; hence, proceed cautiously.

Step 1: Connect your iPhone to your Mac or PC with the help of a USB cable.

Step 2: Now open Settings on your iPhone and go to Name/Apple ID > Find My.

Step 3: Tap Find My iPhone.

Step 4: Now, turn off all the toggles on the Find My iPhone page, and enter the password for your Apple ID when prompted.

Now, move on to your Mac (computer) for further steps.

Step 5: Open Finder on your Mac and click on your iPhone from the sidebar.

Tip: If you are using a Mac with macOS Mojave or earlier or a PC, open iTunes instead of Finder.

Step 6: Now, click on Restore iPhone. Then, choose a backup to restore from and follow the prompts to restore it.

Once the restore is done, your iPhone will boot up with the restored contacts. And that’s it.

FAQs Related to Contacts on iPhone

Also Read: How to add or remove contacts from Favorites on iPhone