Voicemails Disappeared after iOS 27.0 Update

I had this exact thing happen to me when I updated to iOS 27. What worked for me is I first verified they were still on my carriers server... ie: I called my phone number to listen to my voicemails. They were indeed on there and I was able to listen to them. These are messages from family members that have since passed away since 2016. I listened to each one and chose the save option from the end of the voicemail just to be sure they stayed there. Then I went into my iPhone's settings and went to General>Transfer or Reset iPhone>Reset All Network Settings.

It reset, then automatically restarted. When it came up, I reconnected to my WiFi at home and then I checked voicemails and they were all there. I hope this works for you!

I just noticed this change 10/6/26 when I received a new VM, despite everything being fine yesterday 10/5. I clicked on the VM notification banner and it went to an empty VM box. I panicked as well. I found that in the phone call logs, if you click on the number to get information about the call, it now says Details | Voicemails. When I clicked Voicemails, every (played but undeleted) VM from that number came up. I listened to the one I was panicking about, it played, and then it showed up in the general VM box. It’s also the only VM showing in the general box despite there being several plus the one I hadn’t listened to yet. I’m going to leave my VM box alone to see if it self corrects. In the meantime, this was a reminder to save the recording elsewhere

What's the time frame? When exactly did you upgrade your device? Were you previously using a beta version of the iOS? I've had what I expected to be a lost voicemail reappear after 4 or 5 days or so. The voicemails weren't especially meaningful, but my recollection at the time was a few days to a week passed before they reappeared. I didn't do anything special or attempt a restore. Sorry for your experience losing the voicemails and wish the best for you.

mecon94 wrote:

I updated my iPhone to iOS 27.0 and after the update several voicemails disappeared.

Not every issue an individual encounters on their device can be attributed to an iOS update. If the update itself were the root cause, then every device running that same version of iOS would exhibit the identical problem. In such a scenario, the forums would be flooded with countless posts reporting the same malfunction, creating an unmistakable wave of complaints that no one could possibly overlook. The absence of such widespread reports strongly indicates that the issue is not systemic, but rather specific to the device in question.

Live Voice Mail Vs Traditional Voice Mail

Live Voicemail (iOS Feature)

Live Voicemail is an iOS feature introduced in iOS 17 that provides real-time transcription of incoming voicemails as they are being recorded. This feature works on-device, meaning it does not rely on the carrier for transcription. However, your carrier must support conditional call forwarding for Live Voicemail to function properly.

Traditional Carrier Voicemail

Separate from Live Voicemail, regular voicemail is a carrier-provided service, meaning your cellular provider handles the voicemail storage and retrieval. This includes:

• • Basic Voicemail (Dial-in system)
  • Visual Voicemail (Introduced in iOS 1, displays voicemail messages in a list format within the Phone app)

Key Differences

• Live Voicemail transcribes in real-time on your device and allows you to pick up the call while the message is being recorded.
• Carrier Voicemail stores messages on the carrier's servers, and transcription (if available) is dependent on the carrier.
• Live Voicemail requires iOS 17+, while Carrier Voicemail works on all phones that support voicemail (even non-smartphones).

With Live Voicemail in iOS 17, you can view a real-time transcription of the message someone is leaving you as they speak, ...

Use Live Voicemail on your iPhone

Tap Voicemail, then tap Set Up Now. · Create a voicemail password. · Choose a greeting—Default or Custom; if you choose Custom, you can record a new greeting.

Set up your voicemail on your iPhone

Cw02 wrote:

I have experienced the same issue and lost a dozen or so voicemails from family members that are very special to me. I tried every possible solution and yet no resolution. Apple please help.

Are you aware that ALL of your voicemail messages are stored on your carriers servers, not Apple's? If you are missing voicemail messages, contact your carrier is your only hope of recovering them. Apple has nothing to do with voicemail at all.

I’m so sorry this happened. I haven’t been able to recover the voicemails — it’s been a frustrating week of multiple calls with my carrier (Verizon) and Apple, and neither has been able to explain why the messages were mysteriously wiped. I’ve tried every online fix I could find, checked Phone > Voicemail > Deleted Messages, restarted the phone, verified carrier settings, and called *86 to check the carrier mailbox; nothing has restored the messages. Apple suggested restoring a backup, which I attempted, but that did not recover the voicemails either as iCloud does not back up Voicemails.

These messages are incredibly special to me, so I will keep you posted if I find a resolution.

I’m reporting that the voicemails were missing after the update; I’m not asserting the update caused their disappearance, only noting the timing. These messages are irreplaceable and this has been very distressing.

This also happened to me, I contacted apple support and they tried everything they could and then advised my carrier could restore them. I have AT&T and this is not true for that company. To make matters worse the representative at AT&T was very rude and said Apple should have warned all of their customers the IOS update would wipe out voicemails.

I have also tried the tips below from other users. For me, my moms voice is gone forever now. This even has been absolutely soul crushing.

Thank you! I updated the software on Monday. Hoping that mine reappear like yours.

Have you had any update on this? I just lost all of my irreplaceable voicemails. 😭

I have experienced the same issue and lost a dozen or so voicemails from family members that are very special to me. I tried every possible solution and yet no resolution. Apple please help.

If they do not appear in the Phone app, have you tried calling the providers voicemail number (mine is 121) to hear them.

or is that not a thing in your country?