Lost outlook contacts when syncing

Siebe Sietsma 0 Reputation points
2025-03-04T17:18:58.2233333+00:00

I have an iPhone 13mini. Went to my contacts section in the settings, logged into my outlook account and switched the mail button on.

After that I lost more than 2000 of the contacts I had under the name 'outlook'. What can I do to get them back?

See the picture for reference. That's where I pushed a button to log into my outlook account and switched the mail button on, that was all I did. Quite stressed out

Outlook | Windows | Classic Outlook for Windows | For business
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  1. Faery Fu-MSFT 19,751 Reputation points Moderator
    2025-03-05T07:34:21.5+00:00

    Hi @Siebe Sietsma ,

    Welcome to our forum!

    According to my research, sometimes, contacts might be hidden or not synced properly. Log in to your Outlook account on a web browser and check if your contacts are still there. If your contacts are here, the issue is likely a syncing problem on your iPhone. Try:

    Verify Outlook Contacts Sync is Enabled

    Go to Settings > Mail > Accounts > [Your Outlook Account].

    Ensure Contacts is toggled ON (not just Mail). If it was off, turn it on and wait a few minutes for syncing. Restart your iPhone afterward to force a refresh. If it is already on, try turning it off and then back on to force a re-sync.

    User's imageUser's image

    Check Hidden Contact Groups

    Open the Contacts app.

    Tap List (top-left corner).

    Ensure all groups (especially "Outlook" and "All iCloud") are selected. If "Outlook" is unchecked, select it and your contacts may reappear.

     User's image

    User's image


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