Backing up and restoring contacts with Time Machine on iMac

Hello can I back up my contacts on the iMac with TimeMachine?? If so, can I restore a deleted contact with TimeMachine? Thanks for help!!!!


[Re-Titled by Moderator]

Original Title: Contactapp

iMac 21.5″ 4K, macOS 13.7

Posted on Jun 30, 2025 8:26 AM

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Question marked as Top-ranking reply

Posted on Jun 30, 2025 9:09 AM

Yes, on both.


Time Machine (TM) automatically backs up your entire user folder, and that includes the data used by the Contacts app.


As an example, here’s how you would restore a deleted contact from TM:

  1. Open the Contacts app.
  2. With the app open and active, enter TM by clicking on the TM icon in the menu bar > Enter Time Machine.
  3. You’ll should now see the TM interface layered with previous states of your Contacts app.
  4. Use the timeline on the right to navigate to a backup before the contact was deleted.
  5. Once you see the contact listed, select it, and click Restore.
5 replies
Question marked as Top-ranking reply

Jun 30, 2025 9:09 AM in response to Néman

Yes, on both.


Time Machine (TM) automatically backs up your entire user folder, and that includes the data used by the Contacts app.


As an example, here’s how you would restore a deleted contact from TM:

  1. Open the Contacts app.
  2. With the app open and active, enter TM by clicking on the TM icon in the menu bar > Enter Time Machine.
  3. You’ll should now see the TM interface layered with previous states of your Contacts app.
  4. Use the timeline on the right to navigate to a backup before the contact was deleted.
  5. Once you see the contact listed, select it, and click Restore.

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Backing up and restoring contacts with Time Machine on iMac

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