How Switchboard handles duplicates on a list

When you upload a CSV to Switchboard — whether it's a phone list or an email list — the system automatically removes duplicates so you don't have to clean your file manually first.

Switchboard identifies duplicates based on the key identifier for the type of list you're uploading:

• Phone lists: Duplicates are matched on phone number. Before comparing, Switchboard normalizes all phone numbers into a standard format (E.164, e.g. +12025551234), so entries like 202-555-1234, (202) 555-1234, and 12025551234 are all recognized as the same number.

• Email lists: Duplicates are matched on email address. All email addresses are lowercased before comparison, so John@Example.com and john@example.com are treated as the same contact.

What Happens When Duplicates Are Found

Switchboard checks for duplicates at three levels:

1. Within your upload file: If the same phone number or email appears in multiple rows of your CSV, those rows are merged into a single contact (see below for how field values are resolved).

2. Within the list: If a contact already exists on the list you're uploading to, the system won't create a second entry.

3. Within your organization: If the phone number or email already exists as a record in your organization, Switchboard links to the existing record rather than creating a new one. So, you can safely re-upload the same CSV without worrying about creating duplicates — the system handles it at every level.