I have lost all of my Contacts.

Question

As of a couple of days ago all of my contacts in Outlook have gone missing. I am unable to find them anywhere and it wouild appear that while trying to rectify I have noticed that this has been encountered by many others?

Is it possible to get these restored?

Answer 1

Hello, is this account set up as Exchange or Outlook.com in your profile?

Press Ctrl+6, check if Contacts appears under another data file. Then go to File > Account Settings > Data Files and confirm the default file. If unsure, create a new profile from Control Panel > Mail > Show Profiles > Add, sign in, then open People. This reloads your mailbox and links Outlook to the correct data source where contacts are stored.

Answer 2

The above AI response has not been helpful, I have been trying to restore and find deleted for 1/2 day without any progress - Contacts have vanished.

I am using

Microsoft® Outlook® for Microsoft 365 MSO (Version 2603 Build 16.0.19822.20012) 64-bit

Answer 3

Yes, in many cases Outlook contacts can be restored, depending on how and when they were deleted and which Outlook experience is in use (new Outlook, classic Outlook, or Outlook on the web/Outlook.com).

Try the relevant steps below based on how Outlook is accessed.

1. Check the Deleted/Trash contacts folder

New Outlook for Windows:

1. From the navigation pane, select People.
2. In People, select the Deleted folder.
3. Find and select the missing contacts, then right‑click and choose Restore.
   • The contacts are moved back to their original folder when possible; otherwise they go to the default Contacts folder.

New Outlook (Insiders):

1. From the navigation pane, select People.
2. In People, select Deleted.
3. Hover over each contact and click the Restore icon.

Outlook on the web / Outlook.com:

1. From the navigation pane, select People.
2. In People, select Deleted.
3. Find and select the contacts, right‑click, and select Restore.

If contacts are not in the Deleted folder, continue with the next section.

2. Recover from the Recoverable/Recover deleted folder

New Outlook for Windows:

1. From the navigation pane, select People.
2. In People, select the Deleted folder.
3. At the top of the list, select Recover deleted.
4. Select the contacts to recover and choose Restore.
   • Contacts are restored to their original folders when possible, or to the default Contacts folder.

Outlook on the web / Outlook.com:

1. From the navigation pane, select People.
2. In People, select the Deleted folder.
3. At the top of the list, select Recover deleted.
4. Select the contacts and choose Restore.
5. Classic Outlook (desktop) – Recoverable Items

If using classic Outlook (Outlook 2016/2019/2021/Microsoft 365 desktop) and the contacts are not in Deleted Items:

1. Open classic Outlook.
2. Go to the folder list and select Deleted Items.
3. Use the Recover Deleted Items command (from the Folder tab or similar, depending on version) to open the Recoverable Items window.
4. Select the contacts to recover, click Restore Selected Items, then OK.
   • Recovered contacts are moved into Deleted Items; from there, move them back into the Contacts folder.

Notes for classic Outlook:

• In the Recoverable Items window, all items (including contacts) appear with the same envelope‑style icon.
• Sort by Deleted On to help locate items deleted at the same time (for example, if an entire contacts subfolder was removed).
• If using Outlook at work or school, the admin may control how long items remain recoverable (for example, 30 days in Deleted Items plus 14 days in Recoverable Items). If contacts are not visible there, an admin might still be able to recover them depending on organization policies; otherwise they are likely permanently deleted.

4. If contacts still cannot be found

If contacts do not appear in Deleted/Deleted Items or in the Recoverable/Recover Deleted/Recoverable Items areas described above, they are probably permanently deleted and cannot be restored through Outlook. In a work or school environment, contacting the Microsoft 365/Exchange admin is the final option to check whether server‑side recovery is still possible.

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References:

• Restore or recover a deleted contact in Outlook