3 Simple Ways to Back Up All Contacts on an iPhone

Keep your contacts up-to-date and safe with this user-friendly guide
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Using iCloud | Using the Finder | Using iTunes | Expert Q&A | Using iCloud | Using the Finder | Using iTunes | Expert Q&A |

Do you want to back up all your iPhone contacts for safekeeping? If you're worried about losing your contact information, you can easily sync it with iCloud. If you'd prefer to have an offline copy, you can back up your iPhone to your computer. This wikiHow teaches you how to back up the contacts on your iPhone using iCloud or a Windows or Mac computer.

Things You Should Know

  • Enabling Contacts syncing in your iCloud settings ensures your iPhone contacts are automatically backed up to the cloud.
  • With iCloud syncing, any changes you make to your iPhone contacts will instantly sync to your other devices.
  • If you prefer backing up to your computer, you can use iTunes for Windows or Finder on your Mac.
Method 1
Method 1 of 3:

Using iCloud

  1. 1
    Open the Settings app. This is the grey cog icon.
    • When you back up your iPhone contacts into iCloud, you can access them from other iOS devices, such as your iPad or Mac.
  2. 2
    Tap your Apple ID. It's the section at the top of the menu that contains your name and image, if you've added one.[1]
    • If you are not signed in, tap Sign in to (Your Device), enter your Apple ID and password, then tap Sign In.
    • If you are running an older version of iOS, you may not need to do this step.
  3. 3
    Tap iCloud. You can find this below Subscriptions.
  4. 4
    Tap Show All. This will expand the list of available apps.
  5. 5
    Toggle on
    “Contacts”.     The switch should be green.
    • Your iPhone contacts will be synced to iCloud. If you make any changes to the contacts on your iPhone, it will also reflect in iCloud.
    • If you have existing contacts in iCloud, you may be prompted to tap Merge to finish syncing.
Method 2
Method 2 of 3:

Using the Finder

  1. 1
    Connect your iPhone to your computer. Depending on your iPhone model, you'll need to use a USB to Lightning cable or USB to USB-C cable.[2]
    • To back up your iPhone using the Finder, you must have macOS 10.15 or later. For earlier versions, you'll need to use iTunes.
  2. 2
    Open the Finder. This is the blue and grey face icon.
  3. 3
    Click your iPhone in the left panel. This will have an iPhone icon.
  4. 4
    Click General. You can find this at the top of the Finder window.
  5. 5
    Select "Back up all of the data on your iPhone to this Mac". This is in the middle of the window.
  6. 6
    Click Back Up Now. Your iPhone will be backed up to your computer.
Method 3
Method 3 of 3:

Using iTunes

  1. 1
    Open iTunes on your computer. You'll be able to use iTunes to back up your iPhone along with the contacts. The iTunes icon looks like a pink-and-blue musical note in a white circle.[3]
  2. 2
    Connect your iPhone to your computer. Depending on your iPhone model, you'll need to use a USB to Lightning cable or USB to USB-C cable.
  3. 3
    Select the iPhone icon at the top-left corner. It may take a moment for it to appear.
    • If this is your first time connecting your iPhone, you may have to tap "Trust" on your iPhone's screen.
  4. 4
    Select Back Up Now. You can find this below Backups.
    • Your iPhone will begin backing up to your computer. This process may take several minutes to complete.

Expert Q&A

  • Question
    How can I backup my iPhone contacts without iCloud?
    Mitch Harris
    Consumer Technology Expert
    Expert Answer
    Use a different cloud provider! Apple communicates well with all different kinds. For instance, if you're a Google-oriented person, you might sync up your contacts with Gmail.
  • Question
    How can you backup contacts from iPhone to computer?
    Mitch Harris
    Consumer Technology Expert
    Expert Answer
    Create a hard backup by going to the iCloud website, or whatever your cloud host's site is.
  • Question
    How do I copy the contacts from my phone to iCloud?
    Hamza Liaqat
    Community Answer
    Go to iCloud in Settings and make sure "Contacts" is turned on.
See more answers

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References

  1. ↑ https://support.apple.com/en-gb/guide/icloud/mm2e5b1c6686/1.0/icloud/1.0
  2. ↑ https://support.apple.com/en-gb/guide/iphone/iph3ecf67d29/ios
  3. ↑ https://support.apple.com/en-gb/guide/itunes/itns3280/windows

About This Article

Co-authored by:
Mitch Harris
Consumer Technology Expert
This article was co-authored by Mitch Harris and by wikiHow staff writer, Rain Kengly. Mitch Harris is a Consumer Technology Expert based in the San Francisco Bay Area. Mitch runs his own IT Consulting company called Mitch the Geek, helping individuals and businesses with home office technology, data security, remote support, and cybersecurity compliance. Mitch earned a BS in Psychology, English, and Physics and graduated Cum Laude from Northern Arizona University. This article has been viewed 1,326,443 times.
Co-authors: 15
Updated: January 16, 2024
Views: 1,326,443
Categories: IPhone
Article SummaryX

1. Open Settings.
2. Tap your Apple ID.
3. Tap iCloud.
4. Slide "Contacts" to the "On" position.
5. Tap Merge, if prompted.

In other languages
Thanks to all authors for creating a page that has been read 1,326,443 times.

Reader Success Stories

  • A. Collins

    Mar 1, 2017

    "This is the only article I found that explained that iTunes does, in fact, back up Contacts during an iTunes backup, and what the Sync Contacts option does. I wasn't sure if the Sync Contacts button needed to be on or not, and I now realize this is optional to see your Contacts in your Mail program. I just wish Apple Support's info was as clear. Thanks very much."
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