How do I delete duplicate contacts in my icloud?

lathemaster Said:

"How do I delete duplicate contacts in my icloud?: […]The risk of deleting cards completely just by deleting duplicates in the Address Book app remains a concern. Perhaps I need to experiment with some sample cards.”

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Selecting Cards by Duplicates:

Did you try my above reply to do so? Report back if it works.

When Apple ID is signed in Mac and application contact is turned on https://support.apple.com/en-gb/guide/mac-help/mh36834/mac

If you select duplicate contacts from Mac and delete them , automatically they will be deleted from iCloud.com

The duplicates contacts ( they will be under iCloud section > in All iCloud ) are shown in Mac address book as well as in iCloud.com if these duplicate contacts are selected from Mac address book use command and A keys and click on command and delete key they will be deleted condition they must be in series and not randomly placed , as important contacts will also be deleted .

If they are randomly placed select important contacts that are not to be deleted in on my Mac section , just select use command and A keys , copy use command and C keys and paste use command and V keys .

The duplicate contacts can also be in various groups in iCloud.com Create a group of contacts on iCloud.com - Apple Support created and they will be shown in All contacts of Mac address book ( see the first option ) .

You need to find out duplicate contacts of address book search from various groups , All contacts , All iCloud and another way is create a group name as say duplicate contacts1 find out all duplicates and club in this folder and finally delete this folder it will be removed from address book / iCloud.com

Note : another method to avoid it , disconnect the desired device by just signing out from Apple ID account , then delete the duplicate contacts in each device .

Sorry but, with respect, I can't understand printed English without at least a bit of punctuation. Even allowing for that, there are further unanswered questions. The Apple support page talks about selecting the duplicate contacts and clicking on "Merge" under the Cards menu. I see no Merge option when I drop down this menu. There's Links, but no Merge (MacOS Big Sur 11.6.1). Even my "Me" card is duplicated. It's a f****** nightmare…

Post a screen shot of address book , hide contacts / mail address ( which contacts are duplicated ) , if card is duplicated right click on it and click on delete card .

Merge contact cards in Contacts on Mac - Apple Support

Delete contacts in Contacts on Mac - Apple Support

I also notice that the browser version can't show smart groups.

Did you create a condition like this in screen shot .

Read Create and change Smart Groups

The risk of deleting cards completely just by deleting duplicates in the Address Book app remains a concern.

The same card using your first and last name can be duplicated by you , it has nothing to do with cards in smart group , if the address book is corrupted , create a new admin account in users and groups Set up users, guests and groups on Mac - Apple Support

lathemaster Said:

"How do I delete duplicate contacts in my icloud?: I have duplicate contacts in my icloud account (some contacts are duplicated 4 times!) as well as on my iphone and mac. How do I get rid of the duplicates without going to each contact and delete or merge each one individually?"

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Use the Command Key to Select:

Open the Contacts App. Then, you could sort them by name (click the name tab on top of the Finder window), and then delete every other one. Hold-down the command key to select multiple items. Right-Click on one of them, and delete the card.

I notice that when I open contacts in iCloud via the browser, they display correctly, so the problem must be with device-specific apps including - or even especially - the Mac. I also notice that the browser version can't show smart groups which makes me wonder if smart groups could be the root cause of the duplications in the Address Book app. Most of the duplicated cards appear in one particular smart group - my Christmas card list! Whatever, I am somewhat reassured to know that my contacts list is correct in iCloud. The risk of deleting cards completely just by deleting duplicates in the Address Book app remains a concern. Perhaps I need to experiment with some sample cards.

Yes, I just tried deleting one of the duplicates in the Contacts app; just one of them. BOTH appearances of the card were deleted. After a minute or two the card also disappeared from the Address Book (browser version). The card is gone completely. That's why there's no way I'm going to go through all the duplicated cards and delete just one of each. I'll lose the whole lot (or be forced to restore from a backup).