I have two iPhones (one for personal use, another for work) both signed in to the same iCloud account. This has been the case for the last 10 years or so.
Each phone has always had its own separate contacts and Phone contact favorites. My personal iPhone syncs contacts to iCloud, but my work iPhone syncs to Exchange. This has worked perfectly for 10+ years.
Now that I have updated both iPhones to iOS26, the contacts favorites on each have been merged. This means I now have a single much longer list of favorites common to both devices, with the numbers from my work iPhone contacts being unrecognised (i.e. just being listed as a number without contact name) on my personal iPhone and vice versa.
For numerous reasons, having both phones signed into the same iCloud account is what I need, but I want a separate set of favourites for work and out of work.
Having spoken to Apple, they have acknowledged my issue, but confirmed this is intended behaviour in iOS26!!
The phone support guy sympathised, but said there was nothing that can be done.
Has anyone else been affected by this and/or have any intel on changes upcoming in 26.1….??
Each phone has always had its own separate contacts and Phone contact favorites. My personal iPhone syncs contacts to iCloud, but my work iPhone syncs to Exchange. This has worked perfectly for 10+ years.
Now that I have updated both iPhones to iOS26, the contacts favorites on each have been merged. This means I now have a single much longer list of favorites common to both devices, with the numbers from my work iPhone contacts being unrecognised (i.e. just being listed as a number without contact name) on my personal iPhone and vice versa.
For numerous reasons, having both phones signed into the same iCloud account is what I need, but I want a separate set of favourites for work and out of work.
Having spoken to Apple, they have acknowledged my issue, but confirmed this is intended behaviour in iOS26!!
The phone support guy sympathised, but said there was nothing that can be done.
Has anyone else been affected by this and/or have any intel on changes upcoming in 26.1….??