Source: https://cli.nylas.com/docs/commands/contacts-show

# nylas contacts show

Show full details for a specific contact.

Written by [Qasim Muhammad](https://cli.nylas.com/authors/qasim-muhammad) Staff SRE

Published February 13, 2026

Updated June 21, 2026

## What does nylas contacts show do?

The nylas contacts show command displays all stored fields for a single contact: name, email addresses, phone numbers, company, job title, physical addresses, notes, and group memberships. Use --json to extract specific fields with jq. Works with Google Contacts, Outlook People, Exchange, Yahoo, iCloud, and IMAP providers.

## Usage

```bash
nylas contacts show <contact-id> [grant-id]
```

## Flags

| Flag | Description |
| --- | --- |
| --json | Output as JSON |
| --no-color | Disable color output |
| --verbose(-v) | Enable verbose output |
| --config | Custom config file path |
| --help(-h) | Show help for the command |
| --limit | Limit results (most list commands) |
| --yes(-y) | Skip confirmations |

## Examples

The nylas contacts show command displays all stored fields for a single contact: name, email addresses, phone numbers, company, job title, physical addresses, notes, and group memberships.

### Show full contact details

```bash
nylas contacts show contact_abc123
```

### Extract all email addresses with jq

```bash
nylas contacts show contact_abc123 --json | jq '.emails[].email'
```

## Example output

```text
Contact: Alice Chen (contact_abc123)
  Email:     alice@example.com
  Phone:     +1-555-123-4567
  Company:   Acme Corp
  Job Title: Engineer
  Source:    address_book
```

## Troubleshooting

### Contact not found

Verify the contact ID with nylas contacts list --json or nylas contacts search --email. IDs are provider-specific.

### Some fields are empty

Not all providers return all fields. Google Contacts includes notes and groups; some IMAP providers return only name and email.

## Related commands

[nylas contacts createCreate a new contact in your address book.](https://cli.nylas.com/docs/commands/contacts-create)

[nylas contacts deleteDelete a contact](https://cli.nylas.com/docs/commands/contacts-delete)

[nylas contacts groups createCreate a group](https://cli.nylas.com/docs/commands/contacts-groups-create)

[nylas contacts groups deleteDelete a group](https://cli.nylas.com/docs/commands/contacts-groups-delete)

[nylas contacts groups listList contact groups and labels.](https://cli.nylas.com/docs/commands/contacts-groups-list)

[nylas contacts groups showShow group details](https://cli.nylas.com/docs/commands/contacts-groups-show)

## Recommended guides

[List Fastmail emails from the CLIList Fastmail emails from the CLI through Nylas IMAP access, using app passwords, inbox filters, JSON output, and Fastmail-specific auth troubleshooting.](https://cli.nylas.com/guides/list-fastmail-emails)

[Manage contact groups from the CLIManage contact groups from the CLI: list, create, rename, and delete groups, then map Google groups and Microsoft contact folders with verified flags.](https://cli.nylas.com/guides/manage-contact-groups-cli)

[Why Cloud Servers Block SMTP PortsAWS, GCP, and Azure block outbound SMTP port 25 while ports 587 and 465 stay open. Confirm the block and send email over an HTTPS API instead.](https://cli.nylas.com/guides/smtp-ports-blocked-on-cloud-servers)

[Send Email From a Docker ContainerCloud providers block SMTP port 25 from containers. Send email over an HTTPS API on port 443 with one command and no mail daemon at all.](https://cli.nylas.com/guides/send-email-from-docker-container)

[MailerSend vs Nylas: Email ComparedMailerSend sends transactional email from verified domains. Nylas reads and syncs user inboxes across 6 providers. Compare features, pricing, and use cases.](https://cli.nylas.com/guides/mailersend-vs-nylas)

[Customer.io vs Nylas: Email ComparedCustomer.io sends lifecycle emails to your user base. Nylas reads and sends from real user inboxes via OAuth. Compare use cases, data access, and AI agents.](https://cli.nylas.com/guides/customerio-vs-nylas)

Run `nylas contacts show --help` for full help output.