Contacts Framework

Contacts Framework

Use CNContactStore, CNSaveRequest, and CNContactPickerViewController to fetch, create, update, or pick contacts in Swift 6.3 / iOS 26+ apps.

Contents

• Setup
• Authorization
• Fetching Contacts
• Key Descriptors
• Creating and Updating Contacts
• Contact Picker
• Observing Changes
• Common Mistakes
• Review Checklist
• References

Setup

Project Configuration

1. Add NSContactsUsageDescription to Info.plist explaining why the app accesses contacts. The app crashes if it uses contact data APIs without this key.
2. No additional capability or entitlement is required for ordinary Contacts access.
3. Add com.apple.developer.contacts.notes only when reading or writing CNContactNoteKey / CNContact.note; this entitlement requires Apple approval before public distribution.

Imports

@preconcurrency import Contacts  // CNContactStore, CNSaveRequest, CNContact
import ContactsUI                // CNContactPickerViewController

Authorization

Request access before fetching or saving contacts. The picker (CNContactPickerViewController) does not require authorization -- the system grants access only to the contacts the user selects.

let store = CNContactStore()

func requestAccess() async throws -> Bool {
    return try await store.requestAccess(for: .contacts)
}

// Check current status without prompting
func checkStatus() -> CNAuthorizationStatus {
    CNContactStore.authorizationStatus(for: .contacts)
}

Authorization States

Treat both .authorized and .limited as usable Contacts API states. With .limited, fetch, edit, and delete operations only apply to contacts the user granted or the app created. Use ContactAccessButton or contactAccessPicker(isPresented:completionHandler:) to let users add contacts to the app's limited-access set.

Fetching Contacts

Use unifiedContacts(matching:keysToFetch:) for predicate-based queries. Use enumerateContacts(with:usingBlock:) for batch enumeration of all contacts. For large cached address books, first fetch identifiers, then fetch detailed contacts in batches by identifier.

Fetch by Name

func fetchContacts(named name: String) throws -> [CNContact] {
    let predicate = CNContact.predicateForContacts(matchingName: name)
    let keys: [CNKeyDescriptor] = [
        CNContactGivenNameKey as CNKeyDescriptor,
        CNContactFamilyNameKey as CNKeyDescriptor,
        CNContactPhoneNumbersKey as CNKeyDescriptor
    ]
    return try store.unifiedContacts(matching: predicate, keysToFetch: keys)
}

Fetch by Identifier

func fetchContact(identifier: String) throws -> CNContact {
    let keys: [CNKeyDescriptor] = [
        CNContactGivenNameKey as CNKeyDescriptor,
        CNContactFamilyNameKey as CNKeyDescriptor,
        CNContactEmailAddressesKey as CNKeyDescriptor
    ]
    return try store.unifiedContact(withIdentifier: identifier, keysToFetch: keys)
}

Enumerate All Contacts

Perform I/O-heavy enumeration off the main thread.

func fetchAllContacts() throws -> [CNContact] {
    let keys: [CNKeyDescriptor] = [
        CNContactGivenNameKey as CNKeyDescriptor,
        CNContactFamilyNameKey as CNKeyDescriptor
    ]
    let request = CNContactFetchRequest(keysToFetch: keys)
    request.sortOrder = .givenName

    var contacts: [CNContact] = []
    try store.enumerateContacts(with: request) { contact, _ in
        contacts.append(contact)
    }
    return contacts
}

Key Descriptors

Only fetch the properties you need. Accessing an unfetched property throws CNContactPropertyNotFetchedException.

Common Keys

Composite Key Descriptors

Use CNContactFormatter.descriptorForRequiredKeys(for:) to fetch all keys needed for formatting a contact's name.

let nameKeys = CNContactFormatter.descriptorForRequiredKeys(for: .fullName)
let keys: [CNKeyDescriptor] = [nameKeys, CNContactPhoneNumbersKey as CNKeyDescriptor]

Creating and Updating Contacts

Use CNMutableContact to build new contacts and CNSaveRequest to persist changes.

Creating a New Contact

func createContact(givenName: String, familyName: String, phone: String) throws {
    let contact = CNMutableContact()
    contact.givenName = givenName
    contact.familyName = familyName
    contact.phoneNumbers = [
        CNLabeledValue(
            label: CNLabelPhoneNumberMobile,
            value: CNPhoneNumber(stringValue: phone)
        )
    ]

    let saveRequest = CNSaveRequest()
    saveRequest.add(contact, toContainerWithIdentifier: nil) // nil = default container
    try store.execute(saveRequest)
}

Updating an Existing Contact

You must fetch the contact with the properties you intend to modify, create a mutable copy, change the properties, then save.

func updateContactEmail(identifier: String, email: String) throws {
    let keys: [CNKeyDescriptor] = [
        CNContactEmailAddressesKey as CNKeyDescriptor
    ]
    let contact = try store.unifiedContact(withIdentifier: identifier, keysToFetch: keys)
    guard let mutable = contact.mutableCopy() as? CNMutableContact else { return }

    mutable.emailAddresses.append(
        CNLabeledValue(label: CNLabelWork, value: email as NSString)
    )

    let saveRequest = CNSaveRequest()
    saveRequest.update(mutable)
    try store.execute(saveRequest)
}

Deleting a Contact

func deleteContact(identifier: String) throws {
    let keys: [CNKeyDescriptor] = [CNContactIdentifierKey as CNKeyDescriptor]
    let contact = try store.unifiedContact(withIdentifier: identifier, keysToFetch: keys)
    guard let mutable = contact.mutableCopy() as? CNMutableContact else { return }

    let saveRequest = CNSaveRequest()
    saveRequest.delete(mutable)
    try store.execute(saveRequest)
}

Save Result and Recovery

try store.execute(saveRequest) returning without throwing is the save success checkpoint. Update an app-side cache or success UI only after that return. If it throws, surface or propagate the error, keep the unsaved intent available to the user, and correct the known cause—such as authorization, a read-only container, or invalid input—before building a fresh request. Serialize overlapping saves, do not access a request while execute(_:) is using it, and refetch a possibly stale contact before a corrected retry when access permits. Do not blindly repeat the same destructive request or require a universal read-back that the current access level may not permit. Load Extended Contacts Patterns for multi-select, vCard, and optimized-search workflows.

Contact Picker

CNContactPickerViewController lets users pick contacts without granting full Contacts access. The app receives only the selected contact data.

SwiftUI Wrapper

import SwiftUI
import ContactsUI

struct ContactPicker: UIViewControllerRepresentable {