When was the last time you scanned through your contacts on your Android device? After migrating from device to device to device, I notice that contacts can be duplicated sometimes. This can also be a problem if you’ve imported contacts from different sources or if you just added the contact without knowing it was already there.
Regardless of why you got those duplicate contacts, what do you do? Do you live with them or do you do something about it? Leaving them as they are can make your experience a little less than efficient. When you are going to send/share/contact a person, you will have to choose from several agencies and that is not exactly the most optimal way of working. Therefore, the best thing you can do is merge those duplicate entries and I’m going to show you how to do that.
Requirements
All you need is an Android device with your contacts on it. As long as the version of Android is relatively new (for example, version 10 and newer), you should be able to follow it. I will be demonstrating with Android 12 on a Pixel 6 Pro†
That said, let’s merge those duplicates.
Merge duplicate contacts
1. Open Contacts
The first thing to do is open the Contacts app. Swipe up to reveal your app drawer and find the Contacts app (Figure 1†
The Contacts app is located in the Android app drawer. Image: Jack Wallen
2. Restore your contacts
With Contacts open, tap Restore & Manage at the bottom of the app (Figure 2†
The Contacts app Troubleshoot & Manage tab allows you to troubleshoot various issues. Image: Jack Wallen
In that window, tap on Merge & Fix and then in the resulting screen (figure 3), tap Merge Duplicates.
Merge & fix offers a few useful options, such as adding people you email often. Image: Jack Wallen
In the next screen (Figure 4), you have the option to merge contacts one by one or all of them at once. Tap Merge All at the bottom right to speed up the process.
Merging all your duplicates at once is a single tap away. Image: Jack Wallen
If you’ve never done this before, you’ll likely find quite a few duplicate entries, so merging everything together is probably the best option. After tapping Merge All, you will be asked to confirm merging the contacts duplicated by Android (Figure 5†
I have 86 duplicates in my Contacts app. Image: Jack Wallen
Tap OK and the contacts will be merged and your Contacts app will then be a little cleaner and more efficient.
And that’s all there is to merge duplicate contacts in Android. Do this every once in a while to keep those contacts clean and you’ll find your Android experience getting simpler and easier.