iPhone user looking for the same information? Tap or click here to learn how to bulk delete your contacts from your iPhone.
Take your Android phone, open your contacts and choose everything. Now take a moment to scroll down. How does it look? Cluttered? Outmoded? Stuffed with names and numbers you don’t even recognize?
It’s easy for your Android address book to get a little out of control, but there are steps you can take to clean it up. Over time, your contact list grows. You may end up with duplicate contacts or multiple entries for the same person. If you sync with Gmail or another email service, you might also have tons of email addresses.
There are several methods you can use to declutter your Android contacts. You can do it by hand, let Google help you clean it up, or use an app to optimize your address book.
Delete a single contact
It’s simple to delete a single contact when you need it. Open the Contacts app and tap the contact. Tap the three dots in the upper right corner and select “Delete”. Confirm deletion and you’re done.
To delete multiple contacts, start on the main page of your Contacts app and press and hold the first contact you want to delete. A small box will appear checked next to the contact with empty boxes next to the others. Check the boxes of all the contacts you want to delete, tap the three dots and choose “Delete”.
While this method is handy on occasion, you may not want to tackle dozens or even hundreds of contacts this way. For more intensive decluttering, you can adjust your contacts settings and get help from an app.
Check out 7 great ways to personalize your Android phone.
Desynchronize contacts from certain accounts
You may have more accounts than you think to power your Android contacts. To see which accounts are syncing with (and possibly cluttering up) your address book, open Contacts, tap the three dots in the corner, and select “Manage Accounts.”
Tap an account to see if it automatically syncs contacts. If that’s the case and you want to put an end to it, just turn off the sync setting. This will remove those people from contacts on your phone, but won’t remove them from the original account.
Merge duplicate contacts
Merging duplicate contacts can be a little tricky depending on the version of Android you’re using, so we’ll stick to the easiest way to do it. Head to your Google contacts in a browser and tap or click the menu indicated by three bars in the upper left corner. Click on “Duplicates” to see a list of contacts that may need to be merged. There is an option to skip or merge every possible duplicate.
When I tried this, Google automatically generated a message telling me that it had found 32 duplicates. If you receive this notice, simply click “View” and you can choose to dismiss suggestions or merge contacts on a case-by-case basis.
Check out the 6 clever tricks Google users wish they had known sooner.
Try an app
Sometimes you need an extra push to help you manage your contacts. That’s where practical application can come in. Here’s what a Komando writer found.
Contact Optimizer: I tested contact optimizer, which promises to deep clean your contacts, on my Moto G5 Plus. I started with 1,654 contacts, a number that even I found surprising. I was immediately able to remove 27 duplicate entries, which was satisfactory. That’s as far as the app will go for free.
To access the app optimization wizard and a full set of tools, you need to upgrade to the $1.99 pro version. You can preview the app’s tools, such as the contact merge feature, to see if it’s worth the small upgrade price. The app can also help you find missing information, discover invalid contacts, and delete contacts in bulk. If you really want to clean your contacts, then $1.99 is a small price to pay for this privilege.
Cloze Relationship Management: While Contacts Optimizer is all about cleaning your contacts, Close wants to completely replace your old address book. The app acts as a personal assistant by learning which contacts are important to you. It tracks your interactions and updates your contacts based on changes to their email signatures. The base app is free, but to unleash its most powerful features, you’ll need to consider a subscription that starts at $13.33 per month.
Anyone can use Cloze, but it’s aimed at professionals who want extra help in organizing and managing their important business contacts. It can even remind you to contact key people you haven’t been in contact with for a while. If you need to track clients and people in your professional network, then Cloze is worth a look.
Now that you’ve cleaned up your address book, you can enjoy a less cluttered experience on your Android phone. There’s a sense of satisfaction that comes with getting a little corner of your tech life in order.
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