How to Delete a Contact From Gmail

Clean up your Gmail contact list by deleting out-of-date contacts

by Heinz Tschabitscher
A former freelance contributor who has reviewed hundreds of email programs and services since 1997.
Updated November 09, 2019

It's not unusual for a Gmail address book to bloat with contacts you haven't heard from in years. Streamline your address book by deleting no-longer-relevant contacts.

Someone deleting a contact from Gmail
Lifewire / Derek Abella

Delete a Contact From Gmail

To remove a contact or email address from your Gmail address book, delete the record from Google Contacts:

  1. Open Google Contacts.

    Google Contacts home page

  2. Check all the contacts you want to delete. To check an entry, hover the mouse button over the contact's icon to the left of his or her name or email address, then click the checkbox that appears.

    Alternatively, use the search field at the top to find specific address book entries and place a checkmark next to them, but a new search deselects any previously checked contacts.

    Checked checkbox for 8 contacts to be deleted in Google Contacts

  3. Click the three-dot icon that appears in the upper right corner and select Delete from the toolbar that appears.

    Delete button in Google Contacts

  4. When prompted, confirm the action by selecting Delete from the menu that appears.

    Delete confirmation button in Google Contacts

In earlier versions of Gmail, click More in the toolbar and select Delete contacts from the menu that appears.

Contacts in Different Places

The procedure we've outlined removes a contact from Gmail, so when you use the web version of Google's email program, you won't see these records anymore. However, if you use Gmail with a desktop application like Microsoft Outlook or Windows Mail, or if you add a Gmail account to an app-based mail program like iOS Mail or Outlook, you may still see other contacts.

Desktop and mobile email programs often include other address lists that are specific to the program or combined address lists that span all of the accounts that the program touches. Removing a Gmail contact may or may not have any effect on contacts that are managed outside of Google's direct control.