iPhone Caller ID Not Showing Names in iOS 18? Check 10 Fixes Here

User Concern

“I have an iPhone 15. Recently, when receiving a phone call from someone on my contacts list I see "unknown" instead of the person's name. I have turned the phone off to try to reboot, but it has not fixed the problem. Anyone had this problem and know how to fix it?”

Why is caller ID not showing names on iPhone? Many iOS users have recently reported this issue on Apple Discussions. When they receive a call, the screen takes about 10 seconds to respond, and the caller ID doesn't display as expected. This makes it difficult to identify who is calling, leading to frustration and inconvenience.

If you are in the same situation, don’t worry; this post will help you out. Here, we will explain some possible reasons behind this issue and introduce several workarounds to fix iPhone caller ID not showing names.

Why Is My iPhone Not Showing Names on Incoming Calls?

If the contact name IS not showing on incoming calls on your iPhone properly, it can be due to several reasons, including:

• If your contacts are not syncing correctly with iCloud or other services, the names might not appear.
• Sometimes, a temporary software bug or glitch in the iOS can cause the iPhone contact names not to show in incoming calls.
• Incorrect settings can also cause issues that prevent names from showing up on incoming calls.
• Duplicate contact entries can confuse the system, causing the caller's name not to display.
• If your iPhone is running low on storage, it might affect how incoming calls are displayed.
• Occasionally, iOS updates can introduce bugs that affect the display of contact names in incoming calls.

How to Fix iPhone Contact Names Not Showing in Incoming Calls

If your iPhone caller ID is not showing names, you can go through the solutions below to fix it.

Restart Your iPhone

The first step to take when your iPhone isn't showing contact names for incoming calls is to restart the device. This simple troubleshooting method often resolves the issue. Here's how:

• Press and hold both the Volume Down button and the Power button until the slider appears. (For iPhone 7 or earlier, just hold the Power button.)
• Drag the slider to turn off your iPhone. Wait a moment, then press and hold the Power button to turn it back on.

Once your iPhone restarts, check if the issue is resolved. If not, consider performing a forced reboot.

Disable and Re-Enable iCloud Contact Sync

iPhone caller ID not showing names may be caused by iCloud contacts syncing issues. So, you can try to turn off Contacts on iCloud and then enable it again. Follow these simple steps:

1. Open Settings on your iPhone and tap on your name at the top.
2. Tap on iCloud, then choose the Show All option in the next menu.
3. Toggle off Contacts, wait a few seconds, and then toggle it back on.

Check If Show My Caller ID Is Disabled

Generally, the iPhone not showing names on incoming calls is possibly caused by the person calling you has disabled the option “Show My Caller ID” on his/her iPhone. Thus, it's necessary to contact the caller and check if this option is enabled or disabled.

1. On your iPhone, click Settings and find the Phone option on the screen.
2. Scroll down to find Show My Caller ID and turn it on.

The caller ID will be displayed when there is another call. If your caller ID is not showing names for outgoing calls, you can also follow the steps above to change your own iPhone’s caller ID settings.

Refresh Contact Settings

You can simply edit, add or delete the contacts to refresh the database. When incoming calls are not showing names, you can check the following steps:

• Add New Contact: Go to the Contacts app, click on the + icon and New Contact to create a new contact.
• Delete Contact: Choose a contact and tap on the Delete option.
• Edit Contact: Tap on the Edit button and edit the contact information.

Delete Duplicate Contact Number

Sometimes, the issue of iPhone not displaying contact names can occur when a phone number is saved under two different contacts. This confusion can prevent your iPhone from showing any name at all. To fix this, try removing any duplicate contacts from your device.

1. Open the Contacts app and enter the contact’s number in the search bar.
2. If multiple entries appear, select the one you want to remove and tap Edit.
3. Scroll down and tap Delete Contact, then confirm by tapping Delete Contact again.

Change Date & Time Settings on iPhone

Incorrect date and time settings on your iPhone can also cause calling issues, including caller ID not showing names. Therefore, changing your iPhone’s date and time settings may be a helpful way to fix the problem. Follow these simple steps:

• On your iPhone, head to Settings > General and choose Date & Time.
• Find the Set Automatically option and enable it.
• Then, your iPhone will set the date and time settings based on your location.

If the automatic date and time settings don’t work to solve the issue, you can try to set the date and time to correct one manually.

Update Carrier Settings on Your iPhone

If the carrier settings on your iPhone is not up-to-date, the caller ID may not work properly. To get rid of the iPhone caller ID not working issue, you can try to update the carrier settings on your iPhone. Here’s how to do that:

1. Open the Settings app and go to General > About. In the next screen, you will find the carrier settings update details.
2. Click on Update and follow the on-screen prompts to complete the update process.

After the updating, restart your iPhone to apply the new carrier settings and then try to make a call to check if the caller ID is showing names properly.

Update iPhone Software

If your iPhone is running an outdated iOS version, it may not display the contact names correctly during incoming calls. In such case, you can update your iPhone to the latest iOS version to fix the issue:

1. Go to Settings on your iPhone, then tap General and select Software Update.
2. If an update is available, click Install Now and follow the on-screen instructions to install it.

Reset iPhone to Factory Settings (Data Loss)

If the contact names still don't show up during incoming calls, system issues might be the cause. Restoring your iPhone to factory settings may help. Note that this will erase all data on your device, so make sure to back up your iPhone first. Here’s how to reset your iPhone to factory settings:

1. Open the Settings app and tap on General on your iPhone.
2. Scroll down and tap on Transfer or Reset iPhone (or Reset on older iOS versions).
3. Tap on Erase All Content and Settings and enter your passcode to confirm the action.

Fix iPhone System Issue without Data Loss

To fix iPhone problems, resetting to factory settings is a common approach, but it erases all data on your device. Thankfully, you can use FoneGeek iOS System Recovery as an alternative. This tool is designed to fix all kinds of software-related issues on your iPhone without causing data loss. With the easy-to-use interface, it can repair your device within minutes. It is updated regularly and compatible with the newest iPhone 16/15 and iOS 18/17.

Let’s follow the steps below to fix iPhone caller ID not showing names without data loss:

Step 1: Head to the official site or click the download button above to install the iOS System Recovery on your computer. Run the program and choose Standard Mode to proceed.

Step 2: Subsequently, use a USB cable to connect your iPhone to the computer and wait for the program to detect the device.

Step 3: A new window will pop up and prompt you to check your device information or manually select the right device info, then click on Download.

Step 4: When the download is finished, click Fix Now, and this repair tool will start repairing your iPhone and bring it back to its normal state.

This tool is secure and efficient to use. Here are the positive feedbacks we received from Trustpilot:

Conclusion

Hope that you've fixed the issue of iPhone not showing contact names on incoming calls. We recommend using tools like FoneGeek iOS System Recovery to resolve the issue quickly and get your contact names showing correctly. If you've tried all the steps above and nothing has worked, you might want to contact Apple support for further assistance. They can help diagnose and resolve the problem.