# Merging duplicate records

> Compare duplicate companies, people or opportunities field by field and merge them into a single record.

When the same person was created twice, one deal is tracked in two opportunities, or a company created automatically from email clashes with one created by hand, merge them: pick a **main record**, everything linked to the others moves to it, and the duplicates are deleted.

## Finding duplicates {#find}

**Duplicates** in the header of a table view:

- **Companies** — similar names, or one name containing the other (the *Duplicate companies* page; *Merge field by field* on each group).
- **People** — the same email address, or the same name within a company (Turkish character differences are ignored: *Selin Arı* = *Selin Ari*).
- **Opportunities** — **open** opportunities of the same company with very similar names, or one name containing the other (*Streç film* and *Streç film tedarik*). Closed opportunities count as repeat business and are not suggested.

You can also start without a suggestion: select 2–5 records in a table view and click **Merge** in the bulk action bar.

## Comparison {#compare}

The merge page shows the records side by side. Choose the **main record** in the top row; for every field whose values differ (custom fields included) mark whose value to keep. Fields that are identical everywhere are summarised.

## What moves? {#moved}

| Record | What moves |
|---|---|
| Company | People, opportunities, visits, demos, quotes, orders, contracts, support cases, tasks, calendar, email threads and participant links, call recordings, notes, files, tags, favourites, custom field values, list entries |
| Person | Visits and call recordings, email links, sequences, notes, files, tags, list entries; the main contact flag is kept |
| Opportunity | Visits, demos, quotes, orders, tasks, emails, call recordings, **stage history** (plus a *Merged* entry), notes, files, tags, list entries |

A custom field that already has a value on the main record keeps it (unless you choose otherwise); values only the duplicates have are moved. If the same record ends up in a list twice, a single entry remains.

## Rules {#rules}

- Only **admins** can merge companies. For people and opportunities you need edit rights on every record; opportunities must belong to the same company.
- Up to 5 records can be merged at once.
- A database backup is taken before merging and the action is written to the audit log; it **cannot be undone**.