A common reason for Duplicate Contacts on iPhone is due to Apps like WhatsApp, Facebook, Gmail, Outlook and other accounts syncing or importing the same Contacts over and over again.
For example, if your Gmail or Outlook Contacts are on Facebook, your Contacts List on iPhone will end up with a duplicate set of Contacts, one from Gmail/Outlook and another one from Facebook.
If your Contacts List is small, you can easily scan through your short list of Contacts and manually delete Duplicate Contacts from your device.
Another way to deal with duplicate Contacts on iPhone is to use the merge or combine Duplicate Contacts into a single entry by using Link Contacts feature as available in the Contacts App.
Delete Duplicate Contacts from iPhone
If the Contacts List on your iPhone is littered with multiple duplicate Contacts, you can find below different methods to remove Duplicate Contacts from your iPhone.
1. Manually Delete Duplicate Contacts from iPhone
If your iPhone Contacts List is short, you can manually go through the Contacts list and delete them.
1. Open the Contacts App on iPhone > select the Duplicate Contact that you want to remove.
2. On the next screen, tap on the Edit option, located at top-right corner of the screen.
3. On the same screen, scroll down to bottom and tap on Delete Contact.
4. On the confirmation pop-up, select the Delete option to remove the duplicate contact from your device.
2. Merge Duplicate Contacts on iPhone
Another way to deal with Duplicate Contacts on iPhone is to use Link Contacts feature as available in Contacts App.
1. Open Contacts App and select the Duplicate Contact that you want to remove.
2. On the next screen, tap on the Edit option, located at top-right corner of the screen.
3. On the same screen, scroll down to bottom and tap on Link Contacts option.
4. On the next screen, select the Duplicate Contacts that you want to link and tap on the Link option located at top-right corner.
5. Make sure that you tap on Done to save this change on your iPhone.
Now, this particular Contact will appear as a single entry on your Contacts List and with two phone numbers.
For example, when you combine John with Home phone number and John with Mobile Phone Number, it will result in a single entry for John in the Contacts App with both Home and Mobile phone number.
3. Merge Duplicate Contacts Using Mac
As you may agree, the two methods of dealing with duplicate Contacts as provided above should be good enough for most users.
If you have long list of Contacts, you can remove Duplicate Contacts by opening Contacts App on your Mac and following the steps below:
1. Open the Contacts App on your Mac.
2. From the Card Menu, select Card > Look for Duplicates > click on the Merge option.
You can also make use of third-party apps as available on the App Store to manage and remove duplicate Contacts from your iPhone.