Losing an important contact is surely a frustrating experience that we common users have to face in our daily lives. It does not matter whether you mistakenly or intentionally delete your contacts from Outlook or any other Mail service. If you do not know how to get back deleted Outlook contacts then the level of disappointment will be higher. That’s why today I will be focusing on the recovery of deleted Contacts from an MS Outlook account.
Moreover, I will look for further possibilities to restore the deleted contacts list and groups in Outlook. So without wasting any time let’s get started.
Quick Links
- Brief Overview
- How To Recover Deleted Contacts From Outlook
- How Do I Sync Outlook Contacts With My Phone?
- How To Manually Synced Outlook Account To Your Phone
- Retrieve Deleted Contact Group From Outlook Online
- Final Verdict
- FAQs
Brief Overview
You can recover accidentally deleted Outlook contacts as well as contact list(s) from the Deleted folder by right-clicking on the contact and selecting Restore. The retention period for the deleted contacts may vary from 14 days to 30 days depending on the user’s need. However, deleting your contacts from the deleted items will result in the permanent deletion of your crucial contacts. Moreover, a similar 30-day recovery window is given to the users in case of deleting contacts groups. After that, users cannot reverse the deletion.
How To Recover Deleted Contacts From Outlook
Your accidentally deleted contacts are moved to the Deleted folder of your Outlook account and stay there for up to 30 days. From there, you can either restore them to the Contacts section or delete them permanently.
Moreover, if your Outlook is connected to an Office or School Outlook server then your admin may impose a limited retention period for deleted files in the Outlook deleted items section. The duration of the retention period may depend on the admin’s requirement and can vary from a couple of weeks up to a month.
However, missing the retention period for the recovery of your deleted Outlook contacts can result in permanent deletion. You can recover deleted contacts from Outlook by following the steps below:
1. First, select the People icon on your Outlook screen and click on All contacts.
2. Then select Deleted below the All contacts lists.
3. After this, a new page will open on your PC screen with a list of your deleted contacts and contact lists.
4. Finally, right-click on the deleted Outlook contact(s) or contact list and select the Restore option. With this, your accidentally deleted Outlook contacts will return to their original locations.
Note: The above-explained steps also can be used to get back the deleted contact list on your Outlook account.
Retrieve Deleted Contact Group From Outlook Online
In case, you have deleted your Outlook contact group by mistake then do not worry. Outlook provides a 30-day retention period to its users so that you can restore deleted Outlook group(s). Whereas, losing this 30-day recovery window will result in the permanent deletion of your Outlook group.
Note: If you are not the owner of the contacts group then you will not be able to retrieve the deleted Outlook contacts group, only the group owner has the authority to recover it.
If you are the lucky one then hurry up and get back your accidentally deleted contact group on your Outlook account by following the below steps:
1. Firstly, sign in to Outlook on the web and select the people icon.
2. Secondly, click on the Groups drop-down button then select the Deleted option.
3. Now, select the deleted group(s) and you will see a message about the remaining time before it is deleted permanently.
4. Finally, click on the Restore button beside the messages, and the deleted contact group will be recovered on your Outlook account.
Recommended Microsoft Outlook articles for you:
- How To Recover Deleted Outlook Account
- How To Recover Deleted Outlook Calendar Events?
- How To Repair Corrupted Outlook PST File
- Stellar Outlook Repair Review
Final Verdict
I hope that this article helped you in the successful recovery of your mistakenly deleted Contacts, Contact Lists, and Contacts groups. However, keep in mind that if you miss the recovery duration then you will never be able to get back the deleted Outlook contacts in your Outlook account.
FAQs
Why Are My Contacts Missing From Outlook?
Your contacts might be missing because you may have deleted them or they could be misplaced in a different contact folder. Deleted contacts can be found in the deleted folder of your Outlook account.
Can You Retrieve Deleted Contacts In Outlook?
Yes, you can easily get back your deleted Outlook contacts and contact list from the deleted section.
Where Do The Recovered Contacts Go?
Your restored Outlook contacts are moved to their original locations from where you had deleted them.
What Is The Difference Between Contacts And Suggested Contacts In Outlook?
Contacts are the people we add or invite into our Contacts folder. Whereas, suggested contacts are the people we send emails or messages that are not part of our saved contacts in our Outlook account.
