iPhone notes disappeared? Check which account saved them

From Folders, check the account headings before opening a folder. When you search, choose All Accounts if that option appears. Search with a word you remember, then try the title. Search only matches the titles of locked notes. For a note you kept under On My iPhone, look on the iPhone where you saved it. If that account is hidden, check Settings → Apps → Notes for the On My iPhone Account switch.

Open Notes on iCloud.com with the same Apple Account you use on the iPhone. If you find the note there, open Settings → your name → iCloud → Notes on the iPhone. Tap See All if needed and make sure Sync this iPhone is on. If it is already on and the note still does not appear, restart the iPhone and check again. Notes on iCloud.com are the ones stored in iCloud. If Notes is unavailable on the web because web access is off, check a trusted Apple device where you already sync Notes.

For notes kept in a mail account such as Gmail or Yahoo, open Settings → Apps → Notes → Notes Accounts, tap that account and check that Notes is on. On older iOS versions, Notes settings may appear directly in Settings. If you deleted a note stored in a mail account, check that account’s Trash in Mail. If you find it there, copy its contents into a new note.

For a deleted iCloud note, open Recently Deleted under iCloud in Folders. Swipe left on the note, tap Move and choose a folder. You have up to 30 days unless the note was permanently deleted earlier. If you removed a shared note you did not own, try the original invitation link or ask the owner to share it again.