Contact Group Retrieval`

Murphy, Denise 0 Reputation points
2026-08-19T17:34:08.71+00:00

I moved a contact group in order to combine several entries. It is no longer showing any entries. How do I find the missing contacts?

Outlook | Web | Outlook.com | Contacts
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  1. Victor1-V 12,935 Reputation points Microsoft External Staff Moderator
    2026-08-20T07:17:51.86+00:00

    Hi Murphy, Denise,

    I understand that the contact list stopped showing its members after you moved it to combine several entries.

    Please note that this is a user-to-user forum, so contributors cannot access or restore items within your Outlook.com account.

    The Q&A Assist answer provides the correct recovery process if the contact list or contacts were accidentally deleted. Have you had a chance to try those steps?

    I would also like to add the following check:

    1. In Outlook.com, open People and select All contacts.
    2. Search for one or two contacts that were previously included in the list.
    3. Select All contact lists, open the original and destination lists, and then select Edit to check whether the members appear there.
    4. If the contacts remain under All contacts but are absent from both lists, edit the destination list and add them again. Deleting a contact list does not delete its individual contacts.

    If the contacts are also missing from All contacts and the recovery steps do not restore them, contact Outlook.com support while signed in to the affected account. Select Help from the Outlook.com menu, enter missing contacts, and if the suggested information does not resolve the issue, scroll to Still need help? and select Yes. For more details, see: How to get support for Outlook.com | Microsoft Support 

    Please let me know whether the contacts still appear under All contacts and whether selecting Edit displays the members of either list.

    Note: Please follow the steps in our documentation to enable e-mail notifications if you want to receive the related email notification for this thread.    

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  2. AI answer

    2026-08-19T17:34:22.1+00:00

    If the contacts were deleted or removed while moving the contact group, check the deleted and recoverable areas in Outlook on the web or Outlook.com:

    1. In the navigation pane, select People.
    2. Select Deleted.
    3. Look for the missing contact or contact list.
    4. Right-click it and select Restore.

    If it is not in Deleted:

    1. In People, stay on the Deleted folder.
    2. At the top of the list, select Recover deleted.
    3. Select the contact to recover, then select Restore.

    Recovered contacts are restored to their original folder when possible. If the original folder no longer exists, they are restored to the default Contacts folder.

    If the contact is not visible in People > Deleted, refresh the page. If it still does not appear, check Mail > Deleted Items, then right-click the item and select Restore.

    AI-generated content may be incorrect. Read our transparency notes for more information.

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