> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.langmail.me/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# delete_contact

> Delete a contact by id, removing it from the account and from every device syncing the address book.

Removes a contact card from the account. Find the id with [`search_contacts`](/reference/mcp/search-contacts).

To drop one field rather than the whole record — a stale phone number, an old address — use [`update_contact`](/reference/mcp/update-contact) with the matching `removed…` list instead.

<Warning>
  The deletion syncs to every device connected over CardDAV. This tool is annotated destructive; clients that gate on `destructiveHint` will ask before calling it.
</Warning>

## Parameters

<ParamField body="contactId" type="string" required>
  The contact id, as printed by `search_contacts` under `contact_id`.
</ParamField>

## What deletion means depends on where the record came from

Deletion is not one thing on this surface, and the result says which one happened:

| `source`   | After deletion                                                                                                                                                                                                    |
| ---------- | ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| `authored` | Gone. Nothing brings it back; recreate it with `create_contact` if that was a mistake.                                                                                                                            |
| `imported` | Gone from the account address book. It does not come back on its own.                                                                                                                                             |
| `derived`  | Gone **until the next sighting**. The record was built from mail headers and calendar attendees, and collection has no memory of a deletion — the next message or invitation from this person recreates the card. |

Deleting a derived contact is therefore a reset, not a suppression. Permanently suppressing a person would need a block list, which this surface does not have yet; the tool says so in the result rather than refusing the call.

## Example

```json Call theme={null}
{ "contactId": "c17" }
```

```text Result theme={null}
Deleted the contact "Robin Fairweather" (contact_id: c17). It was authored here, so nothing will bring it back — recreate it with create_contact if that was a mistake. The deletion syncs to every device connected over CardDAV.
```

## Errors

* `No contact with id <id>.` — the id does not resolve. Find it with `search_contacts`.