My Smartphone Address Book Is a Mess. How Can I Clean It Up?

Next, tap View Duplicates. Names are shown for each person where more than one so-called contact card is found.

In one fell swoop, you can tap Merge All to unify each duplicate in a single card entry for that contact. Or tap Ignore All and put this chore off for another day.

I suspect that, like me, most of you will examine each duplicate individually.

Tap View All to see what will be merged for a given contact. If satisfied, tap Merge, then Merge again when asked if you’re sure. Tap Ignore to leave the duplicate as is.

If any information no longer applies, tap the contact name, Edit in the upper right corner of the screen, and make the necessary changes.

About linking versus merging

Somewhat confusingly, Apple also lets you manually link contacts for the same person in different accounts so they appear just once under All Contacts. Linked accounts may be unified, but they’re not technically merged. That’s because if you change information in a linked account, changes are copied to each source account.

To link contact listings for the same person, choose one of the listings, tap Edit | Link contacts… and tap the other listing you want to link. Tap Link in the upper right corner, then Done.

Only one name appears on the unified card, meaning if you link with a spouse or anyone else who has the same or different last name, you must decide which name to use. Open the linked contact and scroll to the bottom under Linked Contacts. Tap the listing of choice, then Use This Name for Unified Card.

How to merge contacts on an Android phone

Android phones are all different.

On a Google Pixel, tap Contacts to launch the app, then Organize at the bottom right corner of the display. Tap Merge & fix | Merge duplicates. This option is visible only if you have duplicate contacts on your phone.

Tap the down arrow to review the details of the phone numbers, emails and other contact information that are duplicative. Tap Merge to complete the operation or Dismiss to leave the status quo.

On a Samsung Galaxy, tap Contacts, then the three horizontal lines ≡ on the upper left corner of the screen. Tap Manage contacts | Merge contacts, and tap the circles next to the duplicate entries you want to unify. Samsung reveals duplicates by phone number, email and name separately.

You also can choose a default contact listing among the duplicates shown that you want to keep for a given person. When ready, tap Merge at the bottom of the screen.

Bonus tip: You can share contact info easily

If a friend or colleague asks for the number, email or address for one of your contacts, you can certainly rattle off the particulars. But if they’re not in an immediate position to write down what you tell them, it may be simpler to send them the listing, assuming you’re comfortable doing so.

You don’t need to retype it in a text.

On an iPhone, tap the contact, scroll to Share Contact and tap the circle next to each bit of information you’re willing to share for that person, just an email perhaps but not their phone number or home address.

Click Done on the upper right corner of the screen, then choose with whom and how you want to share the contact from options on a share sheet that include the Mail app or Messages.

On a Pixel, tap the contact and the three vertical dots ⋮ on the upper right. Tap Share and select the information from that contact you’ll share. Tap Continue. As with an iPhone, you get to choose who you’re sharing with and how you want to share it.