8. Merge contacts
Merge duplicate contacts to bring their details and conversation history into one record. First confirm that both records represent the same person; a matching name alone is not enough.
You need an Admin account. Open a contact and select Merge, including where it appears beside a duplicate or held-identity warning.
Merge preview
- Select the other contact in Merge contacts.
- Read which contact is kept in the preview.
- Review the combined identities and any values listed as discarded.
- Check both records' blocking and communication preferences.
- Select Merge only when the result is correct, or Cancel to stop.
Retained contact
The more strongly identified contact survives. A signed external identifier ranks above other verified identities, which rank above held unverified identities, which rank above claims alone. When the records have equal rank, the contact you started from is retained. You cannot force the weaker record to survive simply by opening it first.
Retained information
| Information | Merge result |
|---|---|
| Contact identifier | The surviving contact ID remains; the other record is deleted. |
| Name and avatar | Survivor's value wins; missing survivor values can be filled. |
| Email and phone identities | Distinct identities move across; duplicate identity evidence keeps the stronger state. |
| Primary identity | Existing survivor primary is retained where present. |
| Custom attributes | Survivor values win on conflicts; missing values can be filled. |
| Tags | Tags from both contacts are combined. |
| Notes | Notes are joined. |
| Conversations and messages | History moves to the survivor; threads are not collapsed into one thread. |
| Assignment and workspace | Existing conversation assignments and workspace associations remain. |
| Blocking | Survivor's blocking state remains; the other block flag is not automatically inherited. |
| Email opt-out | An opt-out from either record is preserved. |
Other survivor fields, including WhatsApp-specific contact state, are not a general “most restrictive value wins” merge. Inspect communication state when these differ. Merging spans the business's contact record, including history from different workspaces; access to those conversations still follows role and membership.
Merge example
Consider these fictional duplicates:
- Record A: Alex, an anonymous visitor with a claimed email and the tag “Repairs”.
- Record B: Alex Morgan, with a signed external identifier, the tag “Customer” and the attribute Service plan = Annual.
The preview keeps B because its identity evidence is stronger. After merging, B has both tags and A's conversations. B's name and Service plan remain. Any additional non-conflicting identities move across. If A was blocked and B was not, inspect and explicitly set the final block state as needed.
Limits and recovery
You cannot merge a record into itself or merge across businesses. Automatic proof-based merging has a separate restriction against combining two signed host identities. Do not treat automatic and admin merging as identical.
There is no unmerge action. The removed record is deleted and a merge history entry is retained. If the preview is ambiguous, cancel and investigate before combining records. A matching name or an unproven email claim is insufficient evidence on its own.
Related guides: Identity states, Blocking, Attributes.