Iphone duplicate contacts

I've seen this topic in earlier posts but haven't found a solution so am hoping maybe someone has figured this out. I have an iphone 4; sync with mobile me and my desktop (imac G4). All of my contacts on the phone have become duplicated. Some of the duplicates have duplicates so for some contacts I have 40 entries. My contact list on the desktop is fine- no duplicates. Why has this happened and does anyone have a solution. In itunes I have selected the option on contacts where I only sync via mobile me and not from the computer. I have restored the phone. Any other ideas?

Not sure where you have looked, but the following has been provided a number of times answering this question.
Syncing contacts over the air with your MobileMe account on your iPhone and direct with a supported address book application on your computer via the iTunes sync process - selected under the Info tab for your iPhone sync preferences with iTunes will duplicate the contacts on your iPhone.
Deselecting sync contacts under the Info tab for your iPhone sync preferences with iTunes alone after the fact changes nothing on your iPhone. Contacts are included with your iPhone's backup, so restoring your iPhone with iTunes from your iPhone's backup puts you right back where you started and accomplishes nothing in this regard.
If your contacts are correct with your MobileMe online address book and sync contacts is deselected under the Info tab for your iPhone sync preferences with iTunes, on your iPhone go to Settings > Mail, Contacts, Calendars. Select your MobileMe account. Turn Contacts off for over the air syncing. A warning message will be provided indicating this will remove the contacts on your iPhone downloaded from and being kept synchronized with your MobileMe online address book, and a prompt to save these contacts locally on your iPhone. Decline this prompt. This will not delete the contacts on your iPhone that were synced direct with the address book application on your computer via the iTunes sync process.
Follow this by turning Contacts back on for over the air syncing.
You will be provided a merge prompt which you want to select.
This should get rid of the duplicates and the contacts on your iPhone that were synced direct via the iTunes sync process.

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Once Mac address book synched from iphone and contacts deleted they won't resynch back

I have a problem and have spent hours researching but to no avail
1. I got a new iphone 4S and put in my mail info from yahoo, gmail and low and behold I had a contact list now in my phone. I thought, "I just love Apple!"
2. I spent all afternoon on my iphone updating my contact list with contact photos, birthdays and all the stuff I never put in on my email program or my MacPro Leopard mac addressbook.
3. With trepidation, I synched via usb with itunes my contacts and suddenly I had 3 (or more versions of my contacts on every site or device). To see what was going on (as I wasn't sure if my mac would erase iphone contacts or add to them etc) I tried putting a test contact "iphone test" on my phone, yahoo test on my yahoo account, and mac test contact on my laptop address book, and gmail test in my gmail's contacts, and synched again.... For the most part every test contact showed up everywhere (not yahoo test in gmail's account mind you)
4. GREAT I thought. I will just DELETE the contacts in the mac address book, yahoo, gmail accounts, fix my iphone duplicate contacts so I have one perfect set on the iphone and resynch and I should have my iphone contacts filling in all the right places (yahoo, gmail, and mac address book from the iphone) and they will all now be identical... SO WRONG!
5. None of the prior contacts would sync. Only new contacts will synch (ones that were never before synched, ie, a new iphone test contact WILL show up in my Mac address book but the other 100 won't (apparently the computer knows they were already synced or something.)
I am now left with all my contacts on my phone and none in my computer! I have synched in itunes about 10 times with "contacts" checked trying different settings for yahoo, gmail but no source will retake my iphone contacts now that it was synced and the mac address book deleted...
Can anyone help???

Thanks for your timely response. I really appreciate the heads up on the My Contacts Backup App since when you have gone from 4 copies of contacts to one you are starting to feel insecure...
Unfortunately, after following this to a "T" (2x) no luck... The mac address book was empty to begin with so I added three new contacts, synched and then started from there...
I unchecked the sync box and synched. Deleted 2 of the 3 contacts and checked the "sync contacts"--all contacts (I have no groups). It synched without prompting me for a merge and the new single contact did not show up in the iphone... bummer. Any other thoughts would be appreciated.
SORRY, I ACCIDENTALLY GAVE MYSELF HELPFUL POINTS AND THEY WERE FOR RANDERS4....

I currently use an iPhone, an iPad, and a Mac computer for business. The three devices have Contacts Managers that sync with each other through both Google and through Mobile Me. Currently, this has created a mess of duplicate contacts. Please researc

I currently use an iPhone, an iPad, and a Mac computer for business. The three devices have Contacts Managers that sync with each other through both Google and through Mobile Me. Currently, this has created a mess of duplicate contacts. Please advise me on the steps necessary for removing these duplicates and establishing a syncing solution that doesn't regenerate the duplicates. There are several applications available that remove duplicates, but I am not sure which ones work or don't work. I want information on this, but most importantly I want to understand how to fix this problem permanently. Also, I read somewhere that Mac's new operating system, Lion, can help deal with duplicates. I don't have Lion, but I would be willing to get it, if this would fix the problem.

Had the same problem with 4 devices (two computers, an iPhone and an iPod). The solution is simple: open the Address Book application in your mac, ask it to locate duplicate entries (under one of the top menu items, "edit" I think), and then ask it to consolidate them: it took me all of three seconds after I figured it out: worked like a charm! PS: if you have more than one mac with unconected Address Books, repeating the operation in the second one may be a good idea.
Message was edited by: mfduran

Deleted duplicate contacts from icloud and want to sync updated contacts to iphone and ipad?

Can anyone help with this?
Deleted duplicate contacts from icloud and want to sync updated contacts to iphone and ipad? Did it on icloud cause have duplicates on ipad and iphone also

Check icloud.com to be sure you contact list is correct there. If it is, just go to Settings>iCloud on your device and turn Contacts to On to sync the contacts to your device. If contacts are already set to On and you still see duplicates, you may be viewing a duplicate contact group in addition to the iCloud contacts. Open Contacts, tap Groups, then tap any groups other than iCloud to uncheck them, then tap Done. See if the duplicates are still there.

Duplicate Contact/Address Book entries on iPhone

why do I have duplicate contact and address books entries on my iPhone? I never had this problem until I upgraded to iCloud. I have an iPhone 4 and it is upgraded to the current OS.

If you are using Outlook 2011, make sure you have the latest service pack and update.
Make sure your Mac Book and all devices have the latest update.
If the Calendar on the Mac Book is correct go to step 3
Assuming Mac Book Calendar is correct, remove accounts from iPhone, iPad.
Reconnect account to iPhone, iPad account.
All calendars should now be in sync.
There are times when the Mail, Calendar, Contact application has been corrupted (Outlook 2011, Mac Mail, Entourage, etc). This will cause all kinda of issues on your devices. You have to repair the mail client first. In the case of Outlook you can delete the profile and recreate it. In Mac Mail you can rebuild (from Tools on the menu bar)

TS4147 Syncing contacts only through iCloud with Outlook 2007 and iPhone & iPad I have duplicate contacts only on the iPhone & iPad. If I remove one of the duplicates the other one is also removed. A solution would be appreciated.

Please tell me how to elimante duplicate contacts on my iPhone & iPad. I am syncing Outlook 2007 contacts through iCloud (NOT iTunes). There are no duplicates in Outlook, nor in iCloud, but there are duplicates on the iPhone & iPad. If I remove one of the duplicates the other duplicate disappears. Thank you.

Go to contacts on your phone/ipad, click groups, make sure that the only checked contacts are icloud. That shoud do.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1UjL9U66G3o

DUPLICATE CONTACTS IN ADDRESS BOOK ON iPHONE

I have duplicate contacts for every name in my address book on my iPhone. This morning, I opened my address book in my AppleBook and erased all duplicates. I synced my iPhone again, and still have duplicate addresses. Can anyone explain the problem and help me resolve it? Thanks

This means you've also selected to sync contacts direct with the Address Book on your Mac via the iTunes sync preferences, which duplicates the contacts on your iPhone.
To remove the duplicates on your iPhone, deselect sync Contacts under the Info tab for your iPhone sync preferences with iTunes followed by selecting Apply.
On your iPhone go to Settings > Mail, Contacts, Calendars.
Select your MobileMe account.
Turn Contacts off for over the air syncing. This will erase all contacts downloaded from your MobileMe online address book with a warning message provided indicating this will occur. This will not erase contacts synced direct with the Address Book on your Mac via the iTunes sync process.
Select OK and wait a minute or two for the online contacts to be deleted from your iPhone.
Follow this by turning Contacts back on for over the air syncing. This will provide a merge prompt, which you want to select. This will eliminate the duplicates.

TS4147 I have duplicate contacts on my iPhone, but there are no duplicates in ICloud or in Outlook. Can I just delete the iCloud account on my phone and then let it refresh my contacts?

I have duplicate contacts on my iPhone, but there are not duplicates in Outlook on my PC or in iCloud. Can I just remove my iCloud on my account and recreate it so that the contacts refresh?

Be sure that you don't have syncing turned on in iTunes, otherwise you'll get data from both iCloud and the iTunes connection.

DUPLICATE CONTACT INFORMATION, ON MY IPHONE, ICLOUD

this is NOT about duplicate contacts but about on the iphone>contact>groups
has redundant lists
ALL CONTACTS
ON MY IPHONE>ALL ON MY IPHONE + CATEGORIES
ICLOUD>ALL ICLOUD + CATEGORIES
i don't understand all these lists. since everything is synced via icloud
why the whole list on 'on my iphone'? is it because the iphone list sits
in the memory on the iphone and the icloud list is actually accessing what is in icloud
(so for example if you lost contact with icloud there would be nothing there?).
just don't understand the concept. and how to simplify all the scrolling by eliminating
for example 'on the iphone'

If you synced your phone with iTunes on your Mac, check iTunes/Settings/Devices and see if there is a recent backup of your phone listed. If yes, use it to restore from, contacts are part of the backup.
Also check if syncing contacts is selected in the Info pane in iTunes with your phone connected.
If it says that your contacts can be or are synced from your address book on your Mac, and your address book does have your contacts listed, your contacts will be synced again to your phone the next time you sync it.
Just make sure to have at least one contact listed on the phone, syncing to an iPhone without contacts listed will erase the info on your computer as well.
Contacts
To sync contacts with your computer, choose "Sync Contacts with" within iTunes for Windows, or "Sync Contacts" in OS X v10.8, or "Sync Address Book Contacts" in OS X v10.7 and earlier.
You can sync your contacts with:
Microsoft Outlook 2003, Microsoft Outlook 2007, Microsoft Outlook 2010 (Windows XP, Windows Vista, Windows 7, and Windows 8)
Windows Address Book (Windows XP)
Windows Contacts (Windows Vista, Windows 7, and Windows 8)
Address Book (Mac OS X v10.7 and earlier)
Contacts (Mac OS X v10.8)
Microsoft Entourage 2004, Microsoft Entourage 2008, or Microsoft Outlook 2011 for Mac
Notes:
When syncing contacts, you can choose to sync all of your contacts or only selected groups. The option to sync selected items may not show up until after the first sync.
You can select a group of contacts to which all new contacts created on your iOS device will be added.
Additional options for syncing include syncing your contacts with Yahoo or Gmail/Google Mail. You will need to configure it with the user name and password for your Yahoo or Google account.
copied from iOS: How to transfer or sync content to your computer

Why do I have so many duplicate contacts on my iPhone? I use Verizon backup assistance

Why in the world are my contact at 14,000 and have so many duplicate contacts. How in the world do I get ride of these contacts? Its the stupid Verizon Backup assistance that created all these contacts. This has occurred since I upgrade to a new IPhone

Use iCloud or iTunes to back up your phone. Then go online and delete all contacts from backup assistant.(it keeps them in the trash.) Then reset your phone and reload from your backup, then use backup assistant or Verizon cloud. Sounds like a lot but it doesn't take long.

What is the easiest way to remove duplicate contacts on my Iphone?

What is the easiest way to remove duplicate contacts on my Iphone and avoid them in the future?

There are apps that will locate and remove duplicate contacts, such as My Contacts Backup Pro. As for preventing them in the future, if you are syncing contacts both with iTunes and iCloud this will create duplicates. If you are, pick one and disable the other.

I have a PC , iPad, iPhone 4S . Some how I have duplicate contacts on my I phone, how do I get ride of the duplicates

How did I get duplicate contacts on my iPhone ? How do I get ride of my duplicates.

Welcome to the Apple community.
I can't fully tell from the information you have provided, but I suspect your duplicates resulted from having one set of contacts in your "iCloud "account and another set of contacts in your "on my Mac" account.
I further suspect that you have then deleted the contacts from your "Icloud "account, and thereby removed them from all devices. You now need to copy the contacts from your "on my Mac" account back to your "iCloud" account and delete the originals from your "on my Mac" account. You can do this by selecting groups, selecting your "on my Mac" group, and then selecting all the contacts within it and dragging them onto your "iCloud " account.
You might also take a look at this User Tip, to ensure you understand the differences between the different accounts in Address Book before adding the contacts back.

How do I remove duplicate contacts on my iphone?

How do I remove duplicate contacts from my iphone?

Is it from iCloud?
If it is, call Apple(1-800-MY-APPLE) and they will assist you with deleting them quickly.

I have many duplicate contacts on my iphone and want to delete them all at once and sync with my mac that has the contacts correct. Is there a way to delete them all from my iphone?

I have many duplicate contacts on my iphone and want to delete them all and start over by syncing to my mac's address book. Is there a way to delete the contacts all at once? I started icloud and the iphone caused duplicates there also.

I have exactly the same problem on my ipad. It is happening on only some contacts but, as with you, when I delete one of the contacts on the ipad, the second ipad contact and the contact on the imac are also deleted. This is even the case when I have differentiated the two contacts on the ipad and can see the one I have deleted on the ipad is not the same one as is then deleted on the imac.

HT204150 I deleted my duplicate contacts one by one on my iPad but have lost over 600 contacts on my iPad they are all on my iPhone but when I sync my iCloud I only have 200 contact on my iPad but have all 820 on my iPhone can any one help

I deleted my duplicate contacts one by one on my iPad but have lost over 600 contacts on my iPad they are all on my iPhone but when I sync my iCloud I only have 200 contact on my iPad but have all 820 on my iPhone can any one help

Welcome to the Apple Community.
First check that all your settings are correct, that contact syncing is checked on all devices (system preferences > iCloud on a mac and settings > iCloud on a iPhone, iPad or iPod).
Make sure the contacts you are adding are added to your 'iCloud' group and not an 'On My Mac', 'On My Phone' or other non iCloud group (you can do this by checking in groups), non iCloud contacts will not sync.
If you are sure that everything is set up correctly and your contacts are in the iCloud group, you might try unchecking contact syncing in the iCloud settings, restarting your device and then re-enabling contact syncing.

Iphone duplicate contacts

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