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(Contributed by Jim Coulston)
After upgrading to Mac OS High Sierra, I noticed that I became unable to create new Contact records on my Mac. I’d be part way through creating a new Contact in the Contacts app, and the screen would suddenly refresh to an existing Contact - and the one I was creating just vanished! If I did get to finish entry (for example, if I just entered a first and last name and the Done), the new Contact would appear in the list briefly, but disappear again after a few seconds. At first, I thought I was hitting some strange key combination, or that I was doing something else wrong. However, nothing I tried seemed to work. The problem persists today. I can edit existing Contact records, but I just cannot create them on my Mac. We use a Gmail account for our shared business contacts and the issue seems to be related to Gmail accounts. It seems I’m not alone in having this problem. I checked the Apple support forums and there’s lots of reports of the same issue. Here are some suggested work-arounds.
None of these options are ideal, but at least I have a work-around until Apple and/or Google get around to fixing this annoying problem! Leave a comment if you too have been suffering this problem. And, if you have a solution, please let us know.
68 Comments
David France
3/4/2018 09:42:35 pm
I thought I was going mad when this started happening. I shall try your workarounds but isn't it time Apple got across these infuriating clashes with external software programs?
Sue B
20/9/2020 11:48:24 am
I finally solved this issue! Disable Google DAV cards in Contacts preferences when you need to add new contacts. You can turn it back on so that you can see all of the Google Contacts. This was odd in my case because I had the problem on my MacBook Pro (circa 2018) but not the MacBook 12" that I've had since about 2016. Same MacOS on both and same Apple ID etc. Anyway, I'm glad to have figured it out from hints I got in this thread. I spent about an hour on the phone with Apple support about this once and it got me nowhere. Problem is really something related to the Google contacts and not strictly with Apple or its Contacts app. (ok that as sort of an opinion wasn't it). Yes Sue, this has always been a way around the problem since it is the Google Contacts that are causing the issue. But most of us who are having the problem want to add contacts directly to our Google Contacts instead of using round-about methods of achieving this. Here's hoping there is a solution at some point soon. I simply don't add new Google contacts via the Mac Contacts app any more.
Sue B
21/9/2020 08:07:12 am
Well, believe it or not after I entered several contacts with Google disabled, I reenabled it and set it to Fetch every hour. I did the latter because it did feel as if the Contacts app was trying to grab info and I have an exceedingly long list of contacts. Anyway, I can now continue entering contacts and set the cards to be either iCloud or Google or both. Seriously the only reason I posted this at all was because I hadn't seen it identified anywhere as the root of the issue. I realize that work arounds aren't always optimal, but they can lead one to consider other reasons for the root of the problem.
Donna
24/11/2020 03:14:49 am
That worked! Thank you so much!
Joseph S
24/12/2020 06:15:30 am
I have this same problem just within the Apple contact app without and connection to Google
Gina
24/12/2020 08:18:27 am
Thanks Sue! I had the same problem with contacts. I'm running Big Sur on a new MacBook Air M1. Disabling Google DAV cards did the trick. Although, don't really know why I need the Google Dav cards as I always enter contacts directly on my Mac... Need to learn more about this.
Marilyn S
9/1/2021 10:20:01 am
This is incredibly helpful. I hadn't realized that my Google DAV could have any relationship with my Apple Contacts. Ugh.
Ruth K
10/2/2021 07:13:34 am
Thank you for taking the time to spell out your problem and solutions! The Sept 9, 2020 tip solved the problem for me. It saves me from not wasting more time trying to figure this out myself.
LenirD
12/2/2021 05:24:36 pm
Thank you, Sue B, you saved my day. So many issues after I upgraded to Big Sur... It has been one frustration after the other, Thanks to you, this one has been solved.
Rebecah
22/2/2021 04:55:36 am
I tried this and now the new contact is the only contact in my address book. I am literally starting to hate Macs
Denise A
3/3/2021 04:41:32 am
Thank you Sue! That worked! I also have a MacBook Pro (circa 2018). I opened Contacts, clicked on Preferences and disabled Google DAV cards. I was able to add contacts and then enabled the Google DAV cards again. I really appreciate you posting that solution!
Scott G
11/3/2021 05:11:05 am
Sue B, you are a GENIUS!!!! Thank you so much. You savd what is left of my sanity.
Andrew Kawasaki
19/4/2021 02:49:22 am
Sue B: Thank you so much! This issue has been annoying for some time! Please let us know if a direct fix is made. Thank you!
Prosie
19/4/2021 07:35:27 pm
THANK YOU! I don't use Google contacts so don't know why it should affect me, but disabling Google DAV cards solved this. Why on earth Apple hasn't addressed it after complaints going back years is a mystery.
Greg Johnson
21/4/2018 10:16:54 am
Wow, I thought it was just me having this problem. My solution has been to create a new card with just the last name and save it quickly, then return and edit it to add further information.
Michael Rawson
20/8/2020 04:51:20 am
Thank you. That trick worked for me
Steve Walters
12/1/2021 04:28:37 am
I have experienced the same problem, albeit just recently and will try your solution on the weekend. Thanks - I thought I was cracking up.
Doug
27/1/2021 03:19:03 am
Thanks. This worked for me too!
greg
21/11/2018 03:05:01 am
solution 3 does not work. disconnecting from the web, adding user in contacts, saving the contact, and reconnecting to the web, deletes the newly created contact.
johan
5/2/2019 01:46:11 am
during entry on my mac, the partially entered name zaps and can often NOT be found by 'Menu > Find' . But when i quit the contacts app, and restart it, THEN the partially entered name CAN be found. It's like Contacts.app does a refresh of it's table of contents only when starting up.
Danny Harris (WD)
21/1/2020 04:02:19 am
I have a similar problem....when entering notes in CONTACTS....The typing just aborts in the middle of what I'm typing. Happens again and again with no apparent timing. I'm on Mojave OS 10.14.5
Brad
19/4/2020 01:23:59 am
I recently started having the same problem. I can sometimes add 1-2 fields of data but when I tab to the next field, the contact just disappears in front of my eyes, and defaults back to an existing contact. It is happening on my 2019-era MacBook Pro but never happens on my 2015-era iMac. Bot are running the latest version of Mac OS (Catalina). HELP! 21/4/2020 08:01:17 am
No good news for you on this Brad - I still suffer the same problem every time I add a Contact to Gmail. So I still have to use the workaround of adding the Contact to iCloud then moving it (on the rare occasions I add a contact from the Contact app on the Mac).
Christophe Birkeland
7/5/2020 06:12:34 pm
I'm sorry to confirm that this is a persistent problem on OSX. Suprised this has not been fixed long time ago!
Philip
23/6/2020 02:10:36 am
And this problem still exists as of June 2020!
James Smith
23/6/2020 11:50:39 pm
I have forced myself into Apple products after using MS for 25 years. Three years later i still hate MAC. MS not perfect, but MAC is not intuitive and very buggy. Never used to be that way in the 80s gone downhill over the years.
Maureen Biggers
2/7/2020 09:25:48 am
I too thought I was hitting something on the computer to make it abort while I was trying to add a new contact. Hope they fix this bug soon. Thanks for the help.
Malcolm
22/7/2020 04:36:21 am
I have just upgraded to Catalina and now have the exact same problem when trying to enter a new contact. This is terribly frustrating. Even my computer consultant says he hasn't experienced anything like this before. Surely it should be sorted by now?
George
14/8/2020 10:41:26 pm
It's August 14, 2020 ... I'm on 10.15.5 ... this is STILL happening. Wow! Just. Wow!!
Emma
15/8/2020 12:44:07 am
I've been infuriated by this for a while, I thought it was user error! Glad to see that it isn't. I've just checked on another website, it says if you're having trouble to scroll down past the Z's and there will be (however many times you've tried) 'no name' entries - go into one and edit it to what you want, then save. I've just tried it and it works!!
Annette
23/8/2020 04:06:31 pm
Thank you Emma, your solution worked ! I updated to Catalina and found that problem.
Lindy
22/9/2020 06:15:10 am
Emily: Editing the No Names past Z in Contacts works for me, too. I'm using Catalina. Sept 2020. Thanks!
Chris
30/3/2021 01:14:35 am
Thank you, Emma for the simplest solution. I am such a klutz with the computer that I never would have been able ti figure out how to disable Google DAV cards ( whatever that is) or any other work around.
Martha Marton
13/9/2020 01:01:20 am
Yes, I have been having the same problem. Very annoying- in real estate and constantly adding new contacts
Edmond
26/9/2020 05:48:47 am
I have the exact issue. It is very frustrating as this is a basic feature and has existed for YEARS while Apple pushes on with unwanted useless new features. The irritating thing is 10.15.3 does not have this issue, but the problem came back with 10.15.4 to 10.15.7.
John Cangemi
22/10/2020 02:37:05 am
Where is Apples response to all of this. It's obviously not our issue, but theirs.
Mary Louise Knutson
30/11/2020 01:20:35 pm
It's November 22, 2020 ... I'm on a Macbook Air 2020 Catalina 10.15.7 ... this is STILL happening. Very frustrated! I've been on the phone (for 12-15 hours over the past two weeks - 5 appointments) with a senior technician who is in touch with the developers and still no solution. Prior to that it was the Genius Bar and a few calls to basic tech support. And I've spent countless hours trying to troubleshoot this myself. I must say it's a relief to know I'm not the only one. But disappointing to know how many people are stuck with this problem on such a seemingly basic app. I will try some of the suggestions above. Thanks everyone! I'll keep you posted if I get a solution from the developers.
Sue B
30/11/2020 01:36:11 pm
Just wondering if you tried what I posted back in Sept. 2020. I not only suggested a work around, but also indicated that after implementing that "solution" I was able to return things to the non-work around state and all is still well. I suppose I should phone Apple Support and tell them what I did so they can work from that point of view to see if a real solution can be achieved. I also wonder if the size of ones contact list matters. Mine is huge. I've been in business for years and years and I keep everyone I've ever encountered in there.
Tiffany Fox ?
1/12/2020 03:50:29 pm
I was going through creating all my needed contacts for cards and such in a new group. Then all of a sudden one card would not copy to the group. Then another the. When I went to just add an entire new card for the person to this group it was like I started doing things wrong. My husband thought I was loosing it. I didn’t know how to explain this mysterious happening. Please let me know if you fix it. I am also on a new Mac air only a few months old. Everything is updated.
Mary Louise Knutson
30/11/2020 02:43:00 pm
I'm trying what worked for you back in September. I went to Contacts>Preferences>Accounts, then highlighted the Google email account CardDAV and unselected the box next to "Enable this account." Is that right? I'm working with importing a large contact list - I imported a file of over 3000 contacts (I know it's not the same as what most people are trying to do here (enter one contact at a time), but the issue of disappearing contacts is the same.) Over a time period of about 20 minutes, (oddly) about 4000 "No Name" cards showed up and then the actual names of my contacts started coming in, but only about 250 of them. I then deleted all the No Names, thinking that would leave room for more of my contacts to load, but nothing more happened. Yes, there are limits to how much data iCloud will allow for contacts (even if you have more space available in your iCloud account). See here: https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT202158 But I culled my list down to within the limits and am still having trouble.
Sue B
30/11/2020 11:25:31 pm
You probably have narrowed the problem down to something related to the size of the list. Mine is about 2000 names. I'd reasoned out what to do when I realized that many of the names were assigned to both iCloud and Google. I recall that I'd moved all of the ones that were assigned to both to only iCloud before I disabled the CardDAV. So it seems that Apple needs to resolve some issue with Google Contacts to fix this. It is obvious that the number of contacts is an issue connected. I have plenty of iCloud space as I pay for it so that I can store files there. I don't use Google for anything except spare email addresses. The odd thing that happens is that the names in Contacts that were assigned to both iCloud and Google got that way seemingly without my declaration of which should work. Your problem is clearly more complex as you rely on Google for managing info. I won't suggest you don't do that of course, but I do wonder what you would accomplish by loading a third party email app like Thunderbird on your Mac and then setting up your Gmail account there. Then the Google Contacts will populate and would be able to be moved to iCloud Contacts. I haven't worked with Thunderbird since abandoning my PC a few years ago, so I don't have those steps in my head right now. Ask me after I've had a few more sips of my morning coffee.
Mary Louise Knutson
1/12/2020 07:18:50 am
Thanks for your thoughts, Sue. Actually I don't rely on Google at all for contacts. For some reason though, because I have a gmail account (which I hardly use) about 500 addresses have accumulated there. So when I disabled it, it probably made some difference in how things acted when I imported my contacts archive into my Contacts app (Backstory: I had a related Contacts app issue that required me to make an archive of my contacts and then re-import them. That's when the problem started. I'm just trying to get my original contacts from my Contacts app back into my Contacts app.). I did try paring down my list and got it within the data limits, but it still doesn't work.
MaryLouise Knutson
9/12/2020 03:35:41 pm
An update: worked with a senior technician today at Apple for 3.5 hours. Tried a ton of different experiments. It seemed the .abbu file I had saved (the "Contacts Archive" file, not the "vCard" file) is somehow corrupt. Just days ago I was able to import that .abbu file, but then a chunk of my contacts would disappear. Today it wouldn't even import at all. Luckily, I also have a partial list of contacts on a .vcf file ("vCard" file) and that imported just fine without contacts disappearing. I hope I can get my full list of contacts off the .abbu file and convert somehow to a .vcf file. Argh! Good luck everyone. I'm waiting for feedback from the mac developers, will keep you posted after my next appointment.
Tom McIntosh
12/12/2020 10:48:10 am
Having the vanishing contact problem. Used the z trick to add a name but then could not move that name to one of my groups. Had to quit - restart Contacts to get that part to work. Come on Apple. You can easily do better.
G. Larson
14/12/2020 10:32:48 am
Is Apple not going to be fixing this issue? Customers have been having this problem for months. 14/12/2020 10:55:22 am
G. Larson - it has been nearly 3 years since I wrote this article, and still no sign of a fix from Apple!
Eric Oxenberg
6/2/2021 08:29:39 am
I have under 500 contacts and it happens to me constantly, so it isn't directly related to the database size.
Mary Louise Knutson
14/12/2020 03:36:25 pm
An update: The final word, from the senior tech I've been working with, after his discussion with the developers is that my .abbu file is corrupt. They've settled on that. I thought I could maybe use a 3rd party app to get the addresses off that file, but they recommended not doing that as somehow the corruption messes up other things in the process. I was lucky enough to have a partial list (3/4) of contacts saved as a .csv (VCard) file, which works - the contacts do not disappear from the app, for me, when using a VCard file. So that's the best I can hope for. Plus I lost many of my groups. I will never export my contacts again as an .abbu file. Only .csv (VCard) from now on.
Graham Oliver
16/12/2020 09:01:12 am
We are experiencing this problem with a brand-new iMac which we have immediately updated with Big Sur and linked to an iCloud account which has about 2500 contact cards. Trying to add another contact or group gives very odd results as described above, e.g. cards that instantly disappear. This is very bad. 16/12/2020 12:55:09 pm
Thanks to everyone for sharing your ongoing problems with the Contacts app on the Mac.
Sheets
17/12/2020 04:01:05 am
I found an easy work around. Click + to add new contact. Then click SAVE. A new contact will be saved as NO NAME. Then go back and edit NO NAME. It works.
Carol Sorensen
20/1/2021 05:21:11 am
Thanks for this suggestion. Great work around. Stupid that we are all having to do it. 24/12/2020 08:25:18 am
I contacted Apple Support about this last week. I re-produced the issues for them and we captured diagnostics for them to analyse.
Keryn
29/12/2020 07:16:17 am
I am having the same problem, running Big Spurr - thanks guys I thought it was me ahahah off to find another contacts app I think
Mickey
3/1/2021 05:34:00 am
Glad to find this thread. Like others, I thought it was only something I was doing. I did find NO NAME at one point. Had a bunch of them, but search doesn't help me find them. It's making me regret switching back to a Mac after a long hiatus on a PC. 30/1/2021 05:12:40 pm
yes! same thing has been happening since I purchased my new laptop. VERY frustrating.
Ginger Larson
22/2/2021 09:00:38 am
Thank you for your help! Your suggestion for going offline in order to add a new contact worked!
Traci
5/3/2021 09:40:21 am
This was happening to me but I cannot wait for an update I have to add hundreds of contacts or my business will suffer. I spent an hour on chat and https://www.malwarebytes.com/mac-download/ This is the software apple recommends to check for the recent malware issues. It was a vidx file, malware. Installed ran it and quarantined the malware, and now my contacts are working. And yes, it was happening exactly as the OP described. So maybe run this before you try the work arounds. Make sure you force quit contacts and re-open them when you are done. Good luck, my issues were solved with this simple step so I am sharing!
Auke
10/3/2021 05:13:37 am
Yes! Disabling Google CardDAV in Contacts > Settings > Accounts did the trick for me as well!!
Richard Watson
18/3/2021 05:01:39 am
I must chime in to note that I have had this inability to create a new contact on the Mac (Catalina on a 2020 MacBook Air in my case) in the Contacts app. I too have found that I have to enter the contact on an iPad or iPhone (gee, I really prefer to use the keyboard on my Mac). Also I as well don't seem to have ability to sync the Mac on demand. Contacts on the Mac used to work better - perhaps when I was still using Mojave on my old MacBook Air. I did remove my Google account from Contacts - hopefully that will help (I haven't tested it yet).
Using MacOS Catalina 10.15.7 this issue still appears (I have to say that I am beginning to be sorry that I have upgraded from High Sierra at all, as the MacOSs seem to contain more bugs after each major update. Will try to keep away from Big Sur as loooong as possible).
Helen English
25/3/2021 07:06:54 pm
I have exactly the same problem - it is very comforting to know I'm not going mad! Thank you. My workaround is to save the name only (when I remember) then to add the rest of the details once the contact definitely exists.
Ian C
27/4/2021 09:19:53 am
As usual, if you have a problem, you type it into Google etc., and you'll find either a solution, or a work-a-round... had been experiencing this problem for awhile now... after reading all the various solutions, I tried the "unplug from the internet" method - and that worked! This seems to be the easiest solution for now... until the problem gets resolved.. c'mon APPLE, do the right thing by your ardent supporters!
Gary Tebo
28/4/2021 09:29:15 am
I have been having the same problem. I will try your advice. Leave a Reply. |
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