11 Tips to Fix iPhone Contacts Missing Names in iOS 17

User Concern

“My phone all of a sudden the names are no longer there and only numbers in my text feed. I have tried everything on names and numbers, toggling contacts or anything on google but nothing working. Please help!”

Just as the problem above, many iOS users left the comments complaining that iPhone contact names go missing without any reasons after upgrading to iOS 17/16.

You can imagine how annoying it is for the missing contact names bugs. We have devoted ourselves to helping users who encountered the problem of iPhone not showing contact names and came up with several tips to bring back those missing contact names.

Why Are the Names of My Contacts Missing on iPhone?

There are several reasons why an iPhone may only display numbers for contacts:

• Loss of contact names after an iOS 17/16 update.
• An error in iCloud syncing may be causing names not to show.
• Names missing after deleting an email account.
• App glitches in Contacts, Messages, Emails, WhatsApp, etc.
• Insufficient space in iCloud or on the iPhone's storage.

To fix the issue of missing names on iPhone contacts, consider the following steps, implementing each solution in succession until you find one that works for you;

Tip 1. Restart the iPhone

A frozen app or service may be the cause of missing contact names, and a simple restart of the iPhone may help to resolve the issue. This is because restarting your iPhone can help to get rid of any system glitches that may be affecting the proper function of the device including the names in the Contacts App.

To restart, go to Settings > General > scroll down and tap on Shut Down. After powering off the device, wait for 30 seconds before pressing the Power button to restart.

Tip 2. Ask Siri to Show Contacts

As a virtual assistant, Siri can do much more than what you can imagine. The contact names could also be recognized by Siri. Try with this less-common tip before going ahead.

Tip 3. Edit A Contact to Refresh Contact Database

Editing a contact can refresh the contacts database, which may help to resolve the issue of missing names. This is another good way of solving the problem especially if it is caused by a glitch in the system causing the contact names to disappear.

To edit a contact, open the Contacts app, tap on a contact name, tap on the Edit option, make a small change, and tap on Done.

Tip 4. Enable Show All Contacts

The contacts name may not appear when you turned on the "Hide All Contacts" option. If you accidentally enabled this option, you should go to Contacts > Groups to enable the option of "Show All Contacts".

Tip 5. Turn Off and Turn On Short Name

Open iPhone Settings and go to Contacts > Short Name to turn it off and then turn it back on. You can also turn it off to check whether it works or not.

Tip 6. Toggle Contacts Off/On in iCloud

If your iPhone contacts are stored on iCloud, minor glitches or improper syncing may be causing the issue. One of the best ways to resolve these minor glitches is to simply toggle contacts in iCloud- turning them “Off” and then “On” again.

To resolve this, go to Settings > [your name] > iCloud > Turn the Contacts toggle off and click Keep on My iPhone. Then turn the toggle back on and click Merge.

Tip 7. Check Other Contacts Services

If you have synced your iPhone contacts with other services like Google instead of iCloud, look into the steps given below to check whether you can find the contact names from the Google Account.

1. Find the option of Contacts from iPhone Settings.
2. Go to Accounts > Gmail to select your Google account.
3. You can check whether the Contacts is toggled on or not. If not, toggle it On to get your contacts back.

Tip 8. Sign Out of iCloud and Sign Back

We have gone through the user reviews from different Apple forums and found that most users left the comment of signing out of iCloud account and signing in again could get this contact name issue fixed.

If you find that toggling the contacts in iCloud doesn’t work, signing out and back into your iCloud account may resolve the issue.

This is very easy to do, just go to Settings > [your name] > iCloud > Scroll down and choose to Sign Out > Enter your password to confirm. Restart your iPhone and sign in again.

Tip 9. Turn iMessages OFF/ON

The iPhone contact names missing will also occur due to a small glitch on the Message app. In this case, you can go to Settings > Messages and disable iMessage. Then restart your device and turn on iMessage option again.

Tip 10. Reset Network Connections

The contact name missing bug may also be caused by the network connection error. Thus resetting network connection may well be a good way to successfully solve the problem. And it will take only about 2-3 minutes. To reset your network settings, just follow the simple steps:

1. Go to Settings on iPhone, scroll down to tap General.
2. Find Reset tab and select Reset Network Settings.
3. Once you confirm the option, the cellular settings, Wi-Fi networks and passwords, VPN and APN settings will be erased and reset.

Tip 11. Repair iPhone to Fix iPhone Contacts Missing Names

If all other methods fail, consider a software issue as the cause. In this case, you can try a professional iPhone system troubleshooter, such as FoneGeek iOS System Recovery, which is designed to solve a variety of iOS system problems and iTunes issues. This is a highly effective, very useful program that will help you fix any iOS system issues that may be affecting your device and the contacts on it.

It is designed to resolve more than 130 system problems and 200+ iTunes issues. Download FoneGeek iOS System Recovery and follow the instructions to try and fix this problem.

Bonus Tip: Recover Missing Contacts & Names on iPhone

If you have not only lost contact names but also important information like messages, photos, and notes, consider using FoneGeek iPhone Data Recovery. This tool can find and recover iPhone missing contacts, including names, numbers, and emails, as well as view messages and sent contact names. It supports recovery without backup and restoring backup files, and works with the latest iPhone 15/14 and iOS 17.

It is also very easy to use, allowing you to recover your missing data in just a few simple steps, saving you a lot of time. Download FoneGeek iPhone Data Recovery and give it a try.

Conclusion

We hope that our experiences to fix the contacts missing names on iPhone issue could be helpful to you. Whatever the reason of the contact name missing issue, you can get this issue fixed with one of the tips in this post.