You cannot delete an email address from Gmail itself, but you can remove it from your Contacts list
Gmail does not have a feature to delete email addresses from the service's records. However, you can remove addresses from your personal Contacts list — the list that appears when you start typing a name in the "To" field. This is what most people mean when they ask how to delete an email address in Gmail.
Removing a contact from your list does not affect the person's account or any emails you have already sent or received. It only removes that address from your own autocomplete suggestions and contact directory.
Key Takeaways
- You can delete contacts from your Gmail Contacts list by opening Contacts, finding the person's name, and clicking the delete button.
- Deleting a contact removes it from your autocomplete suggestions but does not delete any emails you have already exchanged with that person.
- If you want to stop seeing emails from someone, use the block or unsubscribe feature instead of deleting their contact.
- You can also remove contacts in bulk by selecting multiple names at once before deleting.
- Deleted contacts cannot be recovered, so double-check the name before you remove it.
How to delete a single contact from Gmail
Open Gmail in your web browser and look for the Contacts icon on the left side of the screen. It looks like a person's head and shoulders. Click it to open your Contacts list.
Scroll through the list or use the search box at the top to find the email address you want to remove. Click on the contact's name to open their card. At the top right of the card, you will see a trash can icon. Click it, and Gmail will ask you to confirm. Click "Delete" in the popup window.
The contact is now removed from your list. The next time you start typing an email, that address will no longer appear in your suggestions.
How to delete multiple contacts at once
If you need to remove several contacts, you can select them together instead of deleting one at a time. Open your Contacts list and look for the checkboxes on the left side of each name. Click the checkbox next to each contact you want to delete.
Once you have selected all the contacts you want to remove, look at the top of the list. You will see a trash can icon appear. Click it, and Gmail will delete all the selected contacts at once. Confirm the deletion when prompted.
The difference between deleting a contact and blocking an email address
Deleting a contact only removes the address from your Contacts list. If that person sends you an email, it will still arrive in your inbox normally. You will just not see their address in your autocomplete suggestions anymore.
If you want to stop receiving emails from someone, use the block feature instead. Open an email from that person, click the three dots menu at the top right, and select "Block [name]". Blocked senders' emails go straight to spam, and they cannot see when you have read their messages.
Use delete for contacts you straightforward do not need in your list anymore. Use block for addresses you do not want to hear from at all.
What happens to your email history when you delete a contact
Deleting a contact does not delete any emails you have sent to or received from that person. All your past conversations remain in your inbox and in your sent folder. You can still search for and read those emails anytime.
The only thing that changes is that the address no longer appears in your Contacts list and will not autocomplete when you type. If you want to email that person again in the future, you can search your inbox for their old emails to find their address, or you can type their address manually.
How to recover a deleted contact
Gmail does not have an undo button for deleted contacts. Once you remove a contact, it is gone from your Contacts list permanently. However, you can recreate the contact by finding an old email from that person and adding them back to your Contacts.
Open an email from the person whose contact you deleted. Click on their name or email address at the top of the message. A small card will pop up. Click "Add to Contacts" and the address will be added back to your list.
Removing unwanted email addresses from your autocomplete list
Sometimes an email address appears in your autocomplete suggestions even though it is not in your Contacts. This often happens with addresses you have emailed before or that have been added to group emails. You can remove these from your suggestions without deleting a contact.
Start typing the email address or name in the "To" field. When the unwanted address appears in the dropdown, hover over it with your mouse. A small "x" will appear on the right side of that suggestion. Click the "x" to remove it from your autocomplete history. The address will no longer appear when you type, but the contact itself (if it exists) remains in your Contacts list.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does deleting a contact delete emails from that person?
No. Deleting a contact only removes the address from your Contacts list. All emails you have sent to or received from that person stay in your inbox and sent folder. You can still search for and read those emails anytime.
Can I undo a deleted contact?
Gmail does not have an undo feature for deleted contacts. However, you can recreate the contact by opening an old email from that person and clicking "Add to Contacts" on their name card.
What is the difference between deleting a contact and unsubscribing from an email list?
Deleting a contact removes the address from your list but does not stop them from emailing you. Unsubscribing removes you from a mailing list, usually a newsletter or promotional emails. Look for an "Unsubscribe" link at the bottom of marketing emails to stop receiving them.
Will the person know if I delete their contact?
No. Deleting a contact is something only you can see. The other person has no way of knowing that you removed their address from your Contacts list.
Can I delete contacts on the Gmail mobile app?
Yes. Open the Gmail app, tap the menu icon (three horizontal lines), select "Contacts," find the person you want to remove, tap their name, and tap the trash can icon at the top right.