The Manage Duplicates area collects Contacts that Crelate flags as possible duplicates, based on your organization’s Duplicate Detection Settings. It stores them only when the Show duplicate records throughout Crelate option in Duplicate Detection is left unchecked. If that option is checked, duplicates appear throughout Crelate with a banner instead. For each flagged contact in Manage Duplicates, you can merge it into an existing record, allow it as a separate new record, or remove it from the list. Manage Duplicates works only for Contacts, and only for new duplicates going forward, not for records already in your database.
What does Manage Duplicates do?
Manage Duplicates collects Contacts that have been flagged as duplicates. Crelate decides what to flag using your organization’s Duplicate Detection Settings, and all sources follow these settings, including imports. For details, see Enabling Duplicate Detection.
It has three limits:
It stores duplicates only when one setting is unchecked. Manage Duplicates collects flagged Contacts only when Show duplicate records throughout Crelate is left unchecked in Duplicate Detection. See the next section.
It does not look back. It does not sort through your existing database for duplicates. It works on new potential duplicates added from now on.
It does not cover other record types. It is designed for Contacts only. It does not manage duplicate Companies. See “How do you handle duplicate Companies?” below.
How does the Duplicate Detection setting change where duplicates appear?
The Show duplicate records throughout Crelate option in Settings > Data Quality > Duplicate Detection decides where flagged duplicate Contacts are handled.
| Option unchecked | Option checked |
Where duplicates appear | Only in Manage Duplicates in Settings. | On the Contact Record, with a banner and a Duplicate status. |
How you handle them | In Manage Duplicates, with Merge into..., Allow Duplicate, or the removal option. | On the Contact Record, where you can merge it or mark it as not a duplicate. |
Stored in Manage Duplicates | Yes. | No. |
When the option is checked, duplicates are not stored in Manage Duplicates, so the list stays empty even though duplicates exist. Look for the duplicate banner on Contact Records instead.
Changing the setting applies only to new records going forward. Duplicates that were flagged before you changed it are not affected. A Contact that already has a banner keeps it, and a Contact that is already in Manage Duplicates stays there. Nothing changes on those records.
What happens when a duplicate is detected, depending on how the Contact was created?
What you see depends on how the Contact was created.
When you create a Contact manually
If you create a new Contact manually and Crelate identifies a possible duplicate, a pop-up always appears before the Contact is saved. The choices depend on your Duplicate Detection Settings:
If duplicates are allowed to be saved anyway, you can select Merge to merge with the existing record, or Just Save It to create a separate Contact.
If duplicates are not allowed to be saved anyway, your only choice is Merge.
Because you decide before saving, Crelate does not add a duplicate banner afterward.
When a Contact is created automatically
Crelate flags a possible duplicate without asking you first in these cases:
Importing Contacts by forwarding a resume to your organization’s Crelate-provided email address.
Auto-enrichment with Insights, when it matches another Contact based on your Duplicate Detection Settings.
With Show duplicate records throughout Crelate checked, these Contacts show a banner on the record. With it unchecked, they are stored in Manage Duplicates.
What does the duplicate banner look like?
When Show duplicate records throughout Crelate is checked, a flagged Contact shows a banner at the top of its record.
The banner says that the Contact appears to be a duplicate of another Contact, and asks whether you would like to merge or mark it as not a duplicate. The record also shows a Duplicate status in its header. The banner appears only on Contacts, not on other record types.
You have two choices:
Merge with the other Contact. Select the Merge with link in the banner. For what happens when records are combined, see Merging Records.
Mark as not a duplicate. Select the Mark as not a duplicate link. This removes the duplicate status and the banner. It tells Crelate that the Contact is not a duplicate of the record it was flagged with, but it does not stop the Contact from being flagged as a duplicate of any other record.
💡 Pro Tip: If a banner keeps appearing for two Contacts that are different people, select Mark as not a duplicate. This removes the banner for that pair. Closing the banner with the X only hides it until you open the record again.
Why is Manage Duplicates empty?
If the Manage Duplicates list is empty, check these in order:
The Duplicate Detection setting. Go to Settings > Data Quality > Duplicate Detection, and check Show duplicate records throughout Crelate. If it is checked, new duplicates show a banner on the Contact Record and are not stored in Manage Duplicates. To use Manage Duplicates, uncheck the option. The change applies only to new records, so duplicates already in the list stay there.
Whether detection is on for Contacts. Duplicate Detection must be turned on for Contacts, with the fields to match on selected. Crelate flags only the Contacts that match your settings.
Whether the duplicates are new. Manage Duplicates does not search your existing database. It collects only the duplicates that were added after detection was in place.
Whether you have Duplicate Prevention. If your plan includes AI Agents, Contacts with the same LinkedIn URL or primary email address as an existing Contact are never created, so they do not appear in the list.
💡 Pro Tip: Choose where you want to review duplicate Contacts. Leave Show duplicate records throughout Crelate unchecked to collect them in one list in Settings > Data Quality > Manage Duplicates. Check it to see a banner on each duplicate Contact, so you can merge it or mark it as not a duplicate right where you find it.
How to open Manage Duplicates
Go to Settings > Data Quality > Manage Duplicates.
You see the Contacts that were flagged as duplicates.
What can you do with a flagged Contact?
You have three options for each flagged Contact.
Option | What it does |
Merge into... | Merges the flagged Contact with an existing record in your Crelate database. |
Allow Duplicate | Keeps the flagged Contact as a separate, new record, and marks it as not a duplicate of the Contact it was flagged with. |
Selected Contacts | Opens a menu for the Contacts you selected, which gives you the option to remove them from the Manage Duplicates list. |
To use an option, select the flagged Contact, and then choose the option.
For steps and what to expect when records are combined, see Merging Records. Merging deletes one of the two records, so review both before you confirm.
💡 Pro Tip: When you search for an existing Contact to merge into, enter the name as “last name, first name.” For example, type “Jolly, Santa.” This gives the best results.
How do you handle duplicate Companies?
Manage Duplicates does not include duplicate Companies. To handle them yourself:
Use Find to search for possible duplicates, using keywords or identifiers that the Companies share, such as the Company name or website.
When you find duplicates, merge them manually. For steps, see Merging Records, which covers Companies.
Key takeaway
Manage Duplicates collects Contacts that Crelate flags as possible duplicates, based on your Duplicate Detection Settings, and lets you merge them into an existing record, allow them as separate records, or remove them from the list. It stores duplicates only when Show duplicate records throughout Crelate is left unchecked. When it is checked, Contacts flagged by automated processes show a banner on the record, where you can merge them or mark them as not a duplicate. When you create a Contact manually, a pop-up lets you merge or select Just Save It before saving. Changing the setting affects only new records, not duplicates that were flagged earlier. Manage Duplicates does not search your existing database, and it does not cover Companies. Plans that include AI Agents also have Duplicate Prevention, which stops a Contact with the same LinkedIn URL or primary email from being created.
What's Next?
Learn how to merge records and how to set up duplicate detection.