Deduplication (Dedupe)
Deduplication, or dedupe, is the process of identifying and merging or removing duplicate records in a CRM or marketing database. The goal is for each person and each company to be represented by a single, accurate record, so contacts are not emailed twice, attribution is not split, and reporting reflects reality.
Duplicates are usually matched on identifiers like email address, name plus company, or domain, using exact or fuzzy matching to catch near-identical entries. Once found, records are typically merged so engagement history, activity, and field values are consolidated rather than lost. Dedupe runs both as a periodic cleanup and as automated rules that prevent new duplicates at form submission or import.
A common pitfall is merging too aggressively and combining two genuinely different people, or losing data during the merge. Deduplication is a core part of data hygiene and directly affects email frequency, lead routing, and the trustworthiness of database counts.
Last updated: 14 June 2026