How to Fix iPhone Notes Disappearing After Accepting New iCloud Terms

Apple in September updated its iCloud terms and conditions with some minor changes, and this week it has been notifying iPhone users that they must accept the revised terms in order to continue using iCloud. Unfortunately, after accepting the new terms, some iPhone users have seen all of their notes disappear in the Notes app.

iOS 18 Notes Feature
While some users have turned to social media to justifiably panic about all of their notes being gone, thankfully the issue can be fixed by following the steps below.

  1. Open the Settings app.
  2. Tap on your name at the top (aka your Apple Account settings).
  3. Tap on iCloud.
  4. Tap on Notes.
  5. Turn on "Sync this iPhone" (green = on). If it is already on, turn it off and on again.
  6. In the Notes app, wait several minutes for your notes to be restored from iCloud.

We began monitoring this issue earlier this week, but it is unclear what the underlying cause is. Apple did not respond to our request for comment.

Tag: iCloud

Popular Stories

imac video apple feature

Apple Unveils First New Products of 2026

Monday January 26, 2026 1:55 pm PST by
Apple today introduced its first two physical products of 2026: a second-generation AirTag and the Black Unity Connection Braided Solo Loop for the Apple Watch. Read our coverage of each announcement to learn more:Apple Unveils New AirTag With Longer Range, Louder Speaker, and More Apple Introduces New Black Unity Apple Watch BandBoth the new AirTag and the Black Unity Connection Braided...
iPhone 5s

iPhone 5s Gets New Software Update 13 Years After Launch

Monday January 26, 2026 3:56 pm PST by
Alongside iOS 26.2.1, Apple today released an updated version of iOS 12 for devices that are still running that operating system update, eight years after the software was first released. iOS 12.5.8 is available for the iPhone 5s and the iPhone 6, meaning Apple is continuing to support these devices for 13 and 12 years after launch, respectively. The iPhone 5s came out in September 2013,...
Second Generation AirTag Feature

Apple Unveils New AirTag With Longer Range, Louder Speaker, and More

Monday January 26, 2026 6:07 am PST by
Apple today introduced the second-generation AirTag, with key features including longer range for tracking items and a louder speaker. For those who are not familiar, the AirTag is a small accessory that you can attach to your backpack, keys, or other items. Then, you can track the location of those items in the Find My app on the iPhone, iPad, Mac, Apple Watch, and iCloud.com. The new...
Apple Creator Studio

Apple's Next Launch is Today

Tuesday January 27, 2026 2:39 pm PST by
Update: Apple Creator Studio is now available. Apple Creator Studio launches this Wednesday, January 28. The all-in-one subscription provides access to the Final Cut Pro, Logic Pro, Pixelmator Pro, Motion, Compressor, and MainStage apps, with U.S. pricing set at $12.99 per month or $129 per year. A subscription to Apple Creator Studio also unlocks "intelligent features" and "premium...
Apple Logo Spotlight

Apple to Launch These 20+ Products This Year

Sunday January 25, 2026 6:02 pm PST by
2026 promises to be yet another busy year for Apple, with the company rumored to be planning more than 20 product announcements over the coming months. Beyond the usual updates to iPhones, iPads, Macs, and Apple Watches, Apple is expected to release its all-new smart home hub, which was reportedly delayed until the more personalized version of Siri is ready. Other unique products rumored for ...

Top Rated Comments

antiprotest Avatar
16 months ago
"Our unique integration of hardware and software ensures the total destruction of your data."

Privacy. That's iPhone.
Score: 11 Votes (Like | Disagree)
mystery hill Avatar
16 months ago
There is no way to batch export all notes on iPhone and iPad to a folder on the device, or to an external drive.

You have to completely depend on iCloud and hope that a bug doesn’t delete all your notes.
Score: 7 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Egk Avatar
16 months ago
Safari can’t even keep my bookmarks up to date. I will *never* trust Apple with anything critical when it comes to sync.
Score: 7 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Hank001 Avatar
16 months ago

That would be a disaster for most people! I know it’s rare but shows the risk of cloud computing.

Can you still create notes on your mac locally? And if so how do you back them up?
Calm down please. One can simply store them on the iPhone as well.


Attachment Image
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)
tywebb13 Avatar
16 months ago
would simply making a new note make all the others come back?

i heard that this was a simpler way to fix it.

but more concerning is apple's silence on the matter.

why the silence?

refusal to acknowledge the bug, when it is blatantly obvious to the rest of the internet?

well as big as apple is, the internet is bigger!

and not even helping people with a workaround to fix it, leaving it up to sites like macrumors to provide the workaround?

that’s very poor form on apple's part
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)
ellpee Avatar
16 months ago
Only a matter of time before everything you have in iCloud disappears. Nothing about it works smoothly, even adjusting settings will induce hiccups. Always print your favorite photos!
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)