Q: Last night I tried to upgrade my iPhone to the latest iOS 12, and then found some contacts are missing. Does anyone encounter the same iOS 12 contacts disappeared issue? How can I restore all my lost contacts on iPhone? Help! - Jimmy Cater

As an addict of iPhone, you may want to experience the novel features of the latest iOS 12 right now after Apple has published it officially. However, it is inevitable that some existing data on your iPhone may lose after updating to iOS 12 version. If you also get the iPhone contacts missing problem like Jimmy, don’t worry, you can successfully get them back with 3 solutions introduced in this post.

Solution 1: Retrieve Lost Contacts on iPhone after iOS 12 Update Without Backup
Solution 2: Recover Lost or Deleted iPhone Contacts after iOS 12 Update with iTunes Backup
Solution 3: Restore Deleted or Lost Contacts in iPhone after iOS 12 Update from iCloud Backup
Part 1: How to Recover Lost or Deleted on iPhone after iOS 12 Update Directly
Even if you haven't backed up your data before upgrading to iOS 12, it is still possible to recover lost iPhone contacts as long as you have a useful and reliable iOS data recovery tool such as Joyoshare iPhone Data Recovery.

This is a powerful iOS recovery utility that can save you from any data loss disasters including iOS upgrade, system crash, accidental deletion, broken device screen, forgotton password, etc. Not only missing contacts, Joyoshare iPhone Data Recovery is competent to retrieve many more types of lost data such as messages, photos, videos, notes, calendar, Safari bookmarks, etc. With 3 smart recovery modes, you can easily get your disappeared data from iDevice itself, iTunes and iCloud backup, as you like.

Key Features of Joyoshare iPhone Contact Recovery:
Recover deleted contacts after iOS 12 update easily

Restore missing contacts without/with backup

Recover 20+ types of file including iPhone contacts

Fully Compatible with all iPhone, iPod and iPad and latest iOS 12

Preview contacts and restore them selectively

Try It FreeTry It Free

Next we will show you how to retrieve lost or deleted contacts on iPhone after iOS 12 update without any backup before you lost them. Check on the following step-by-step guide now.

Step 1 Connect iPhone to computer and launch Joyoshare

At first, please connect your iPhone to the PC or Mac with an original USB cable. Go to the download page of Joyoshare and choose iPhone Data Recovery to install it on your computer. Then open Joyoshare program and it will detect your device automatically.
Step 2 Scan your iPhone for lost contacts

Once Joyoshare recognized your gadget, it will show you the interface of "Recover from iDevice" mode. Here you can see the complete info about your iPhone, and all the recoverable files. Then tick the "Contacts" option under the "Deleted Data from the Device" column, and click the "Scan" button to start to scan the lost or deleted contacts on iPhone.
Step 3 Preview and recover lost contacts on iPhone after iOS 12 update

Wait a while until the scanning is completed. Next choose the "Contacts" item on the left column to preview the lost iPhone contacts. You can also filter out the "Only show the deleted" to get all deleted contacts. Then click the "Recover" button to retrieve all seleted contacts and recover them to the local folder of your computer.
Part 2: How to Restore Lost iPhone Contacts after iOS 12 Update from iTunes Backup

Once you have iTunes backup files, you can retrieve lost contacts on iPhone after iOS 12 upgrade in two ways. One is to restore them from iTunes backup files directly, and the other is recover them with Joyoshare iPhone Data Recovery software.
Note: If you just restore iTunes backup for lost iPhone contacts, you're in the risk of the existing data on your device being overwritten by recovered data; while if you choose to recover lost contacts with Joyoshare, it will never overwrite the existing data on your iPhone, so here I highly recommend you to restore missing iPhone contacts with Joyoshare.

Method 1. Recover Deleted or Lost Contacts on iPhone with iTunes Backups Directly

Step 1 Connect iPhone to computer and launch iTunes
Connect your iPhone to the computer and then launch iTunes program. When it asks you to trust this computer, please tap the "Trust" button on iPhone.
Step 2 Navigate to iTunes Backup

Next go to the "File" > "Devices" > "Restore from Backup", or click on the small iPhone icon and go for "Summary" > "Backups" > "Restore Backup" once iTunes recognized your device.
Step 3 Restore lost iPhone contacts from iTunes Backup
Now press the "Restore Backup" button to get the iTunes backup to your device. Do not plug off your iPhone until the restoration is completed. And then you can find your lost contacts on iPhone.
Method 2. Restore Deleted iPhone Contacts via iTunes Backup with Joyoshare
Step 1 Launch Joyoshare and select a recovery mode

Open Joyoshare program and then hit the "Recover from iTunes" mode on the top menu bar. All your iTunes backup files will be shown in the list.
Step 2 Scan iTunes backup for lost contacts

Choose one backup file that may contain the missing contacts you want. Press the Gear icon  behind it to choose the data types for recovery. Tick the "Contacts" only and click the "Scan" button to let Joyoshare search for all missing contacts from the backup.
Step 3 Recover lost contacts from iTunes backup

When the scanning is done, all the recoverable contacts will be displayed. Tick all iPhone contacts missing names or some of important ones selectively, and then click the "Recover" button to get the back quickly.
Part 3: How to Retrieve Deleted iPhone Contacts after iOS 12 Update with iCloud Backup

Alternatively, so long as you have iCloud backup before iOS 12 contacts missing problem happened, you can also bring them back through iCloud backup file directly or with Joyoshare iPhone Data Recovery.
Note: Similarly, when you try to restore deleted iPhone contacts from iCloud backup straightforwardly, you may lose some of all existing data on the device. If you don't mind, just go ahead. Otherwise, you can use Joyoshare iPhone Data Recovery tool to retrieve your contacts without overwritting the exisiting data on your iPhone ever.

Method 1. Recover Deleted Contacts on iPhone from iCloud Backup

Step 1Get a recent iCloud backup
First, go to "Settings" > [your name] > "iCloud" > "Storage" > "Manage Storage", tap your device under "Backups" to make sure you have a backup file, with the date and size marked.
Step 2 Restore deleted contacts via iCloud backup

Next go for the "Settings" > "General" > "Reset", and press the "Erase all content and settings" button. On the "Apps & Data" screen, tap the "Restore from iCloud Backup" option. Now log into iCloud account by entering your username and password, and then choose the last backup you want to recover. Wait a few minutes until the restoring process comes to an end.
Method 2. Restore Lost iPhone Contacts via iCloud Backup with Joyoshare
Step 1 Run Joyoshare and log into iCloud

Launch Joyoshare program on the computer. When you enter the interface of the app, switch to the "Recover from iCloud" recovery mode. Then enter your Apple ID and passcode to sign in the iCloud account. Keep relaxed, becuase Joyoshare will never record any of your privacy.
Step 2 Download a backup file and scan

Once you signed in, you can see all iCloud backup files you have. Select the latest backup file and click the "Download" button to extract the backup file. Next tick the "Contacts" box and uncheck the rest. Click the "Scan" button to begin to scan the file for recovery.
Step 3 Restore missing iPhone contacts via iCloud backup

Wait until the scanning is done. All the recoverable contacts are listed, and you can also get all deleted items by picking the "Only show the deleted" option. Preview them and tick all or the important ones you desire. Then click the "Recover" button to export them to your computer.

You may also like:

How to Recover Contacts on iPhone

How to Recover Deleted Messages on iPhone