Short answer: in iOS 16 and later, open Contacts; if iOS finds duplicates, a Duplicates Found card appears under your own card. Tap View Duplicates › Merge All. iOS only matches identical names. For contacts that share a phone number or email under different names, and for incomplete entries, use Spaceclear, which backs up your contacts first.
Steps
- Open the Contacts app (or Phone › Contacts) and look for Duplicates Found at the top.
- Tap View Duplicates, review, then Merge each or Merge All.
- To catch more, open Spaceclear › Contacts: sets are matched by name, phone or email, and the merged result is shown before anything changes.
- Spaceclear saves a .vcf backup of all your contacts before the first merge; you can restore it any time.
FAQ
Does merging contacts delete information?
Merging combines every phone number, email and address into one card. Spaceclear shows the merged card before you confirm and keeps a backup.
Why does my iPhone show the same contact twice?
Usually because the contact exists in two accounts (iCloud and Gmail, for example) or was imported twice. Merging in iCloud fixes it on all your devices.
Are my contacts uploaded?
Not with Spaceclear: matching and backups happen on your iPhone.
Updated 2026-11-13