January 18, 2023

WhatsApp Not Showing Contact Names? How to Fix It

Reading Time: 5 minutes

If WhatsApp is only showing phone numbers and not contact names, here are some fixes you can try.

Is WhatsApp not showing you the names of your saved contacts? The issue usually occurs with a specific contact you’ve recently saved. Other times, it affects all the contact names in your phone’s address book. Where does this issue come from, and how can you fix it?

In this article, we’ll explore possible causes of WhatsApp not showing contact names. Additionally, we will show you several fixes you can try to resolve the issue and see the contact names again.

Why Does WhatsApp Stop Showing Contact Names?

WhatsApp ceases to show contact names for various reasons. Here are a few of them:

• The WhatsApp backend is having technical difficulties.
• You’ve recently saved the contact, which WhatsApp hasn’t retrieved yet.
• The contact list on your phone has been unintentionally deleted.
• Your phone no longer recognizes SIM cards with saved contacts.
• WhatsApp cannot access the contact names because your operating system restricts it.
• There is a problem with WhatsApp sync.

Now that you know the causes of WhatsApp not showing contacts, let’s explore fixes we can try to fix this issue.

Preliminary Checks

Apply the following preliminary checks before you get into serious troubleshooting:

• Restart WhatsApp to rule out temporary issues.
• Restart your phone to ensure the problem isn’t caused by a bug in your operating system.
• Disable any app you’re using to use two WhatsApp accounts simultaneously.
• Ensure that no other instant messaging apps are active on your device.
• Ensure WhatsApp is up-to-date.
• Delete any apps that may interfere with WhatsApp, such as status saver ones.

If the above preliminary checks do not help, start applying the remaining fixes.

1. Ensure the Problem Isn’t Coming From the Backend

The WhatsApp backend undergoes unforeseen issues from time to time. While engineers work to fix the problem, users continue to encounter bugs in the application. Therefore, you should check whether WhatsApp’s backend is responsible for WhatsApp not showing contact names.

To verify that, visit Downdetector’s official website. In the top-right corner, type ‘WhatsApp’ into the search bar and press Enter. After that, click WhatsApp or WhatsApp business, depending on which platform you’re experiencing the issue. Downdetector will inform you if the app is down.

If there have been similar issues reported lately, it’s probably a backend problem. Therefore, you should wait until the problem is resolved on the backend. In the meantime, you can switch to WhatsApp Web or the WhatsApp desktop app.

If no issues have been reported there, indicating WhatsApp’s backend isn’t the root of the problem, begin applying the remaining fixes.

2. Check for Contact-Specific Issues

WhatsApp doesn’t always display newly saved contacts immediately. At times, it takes a few minutes or a restart to fetch the contact name. Have you recently saved a specific contact name and WhatsApp fails to show it? If so, close WhatsApp and restart it.

In addition, ensure the contact name has been successfully saved in your phone’s address book and that you have saved the number in the correct international format.

If restarting the app does not work, and you have verified that the phone number has been saved correctly, yet the problem persists, you should refresh all your contacts.

3. Refresh Your WhatsApp Contacts List

WhatsApp comes with a handy refresh feature that helps the app quickly fetch newly saved contact names. Here are the steps to refresh saved contacts:

1. Open WhatsApp.
2. Tap on the new chat button in the bottom-right corner of WhatsApp.
3. Tap on three vertical dots in the top-right corner.
4. Tap on Refresh.

4. Fix Issues With Your Phone’s Address Book

A problem with your phone’s address book can also prevent WhatsApp from showing contact names. When that happens, the problem doesn’t affect just WhatsApp. The contact names will no longer appear in any other app that uses those contacts. Telegram, Signal, your phone’s Messages app, and others will also be affected.

Is the problem of contacts not showing on your device widespread? If so, there is a problem with your phone’s address book. You should resolve whatever issue your phone’s address book has, and WhatsApp will start to display contact names again.

Our guide on fixing contacts not showing on your iPhone can assist you, specifically if the problem is with your iOS device.

5. Ensure Your SIM Card Is Active

Do you save your contacts on your phone or your SIM card? If you always choose the latter option, ensure the SIM card is accessible by your phone.

Often, dropping the phone, changing the SIM card, or other negligence displaces the SIM card in its slot, preventing your phone from detecting it. If it can’t detect the SIM, it won’t display the contacts saved to that card.

Make sure your SIM card is correctly placed in your cell phone, can be detected by it, and your contacts are still saved on it. If the SIM card is functioning normally, proceed to the next step.

6. Eliminate Operating System Restrictions

With the proper permission settings, you can effectively prevent prying eyes from spying on you. However, if you set these permissions too strictly, your phone’s OS may not even let trusted apps access the data they need.

For instance, WhatsApp may display only contact numbers if it does not have access to your saved contacts. Therefore, it is crucial to rule out this possibility.

On Android, open the Settings app and tap Apps. Tap on the three vertical dots in the top-right corner and tap Permission manager.

Then, go to Contacts and select WhatsApp or WhatsApp Business from the list of applications. Ensure the circle for Allow is checked.

On iOS, open the Settings app, go to Privacy, and tap Contacts. Turn on the toggle next to WhatsApp.

7. Check for Sync Issues (Android)

Allowing WhatsApp to access your contacts won’t make any difference if you’ve stopped your contacts from syncing automatically. To confirm that sync settings are enabled and to resync contacts, follow the steps below:

1. Go to the Settings app on your Android device.
2. Then tap on Users and Accounts.
3. Tap on WhatsApp.
4. Check the box next to Contacts.
5. Tap on the vertical dots or More menu in the top-right corner and tap Sync now.

The above steps may look different for various phones. Does that also apply to you? If it does, you should check the official website of your phone manufacturer to find out how to manage the sync settings for your contacts.

Make Contact Names Visible Again on WhatsApp

When WhatsApp only shows the contact number and not the name, it can become a serious memory test. By applying the fixes in the article, you will hopefully be able to help WhatsApp display contact names again. If none of the fixes worked, you should reinstall WhatsApp from scratch, which is a less favorable solution.

Reference: https://www.makeuseof.com/whatsapp-not-showing-contact-names-fixes/

Ref: makeuseof

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