Duplicate contacts appear when the same person writes from two channels or when a phone number is saved in two formats. This article shows how to merge them and how to keep your contact data tidy.
- The same customer contacts you on WhatsApp and later on Instagram. Each channel creates its own contact until you merge them.
- A number was imported as
0533337458 in one file and +966533337458 in another.
- An email address was typed with different spelling or capitalisation.
- Open a conversation with the contact you want to keep, so its details show in the contact panel.
- In the contact panel choose Merge contact.
- In the Merge Contact window, search by name, email or phone for the other contact.
- Select it and choose Merge Contacts.
The contact you started from is kept. The other contact's conversations, channel identities and messages move to it, and the duplicate record is deleted. Merging cannot be undone, so check both records first.
Screenshot: the Merge Contact window with a search result selected
- Store numbers in international format with a plus sign and country code, for example
+966501234567. When you edit a phone number in the contact panel, HueChat asks you to include the country code.
- When importing a file, choose the correct country code for local numbers. HueChat converts local numbers and skips rows that match an existing phone or email, so a clean import does not create duplicates.
On the Contacts page use the filters:
- Phone: Missing phone shows contacts without a number.
- Email: Missing email shows contacts without an email address.
- Labels, Companies and Locations narrow the list further.
Open each contact to add the missing field, or delete records you no longer need.
- Filter the Contacts page to the records you want to remove.
- Tick the checkbox on each row, or use the header checkbox to select all contacts on the page.
- Choose Delete selected and confirm.
Deleting a contact removes the contact record. Review the selection carefully before confirming.
- Ask agents to check the contact panel before creating a new contact by hand.
- Use labels such as
lead and customer consistently so lists and reports stay meaningful.
- Export your contacts from time to time and review the file in a spreadsheet to spot duplicates.