Delete all iOS contacts

Primarily aimed at local contacts, since cloud-synced contacts can be removed from the device by disabling contact syncing. Back up first; deletions are permanent.

Native method (iOS 16+)

Two-finger drag to multi-select contacts, then long press the selection to open the context menu and tap "Delete Contacts". Tedious for more than a few dozen.

Delete Contacts Pro.

This free (no IAP) app deleted over 43,000 contacts in a minute or two: Delete → View all contacts → More (⋯) → Select all → Delete Selected → Delete contacts

Scriptable

Shortcuts lacks a native "Delete Contact" action, but Scriptable (free; donations accepted via IAP) allows you to interact directly with the iOS Contacts API, e.g.,

// 1. Fetch all containers
let containers = await ContactsContainer.all();

// 2. Prepare the selection menu
let alert = new Alert();
alert.title = "Select Container";
alert.message = "Choose a container to delete ALL contacts from.";

// Keep track of valid options to map the button click back to the container
let options = [];

for (let c of containers) {
  // We fetch the count so you know if it's the empty one or the full one
  let contacts = await Contact.all([c]);

  // Handle the missing name issue you saw earlier
  let displayName = c.name;
  if (!displayName || displayName.length === 0) {
    displayName = "Unnamed/Local";
  }

  alert.addAction(`${displayName} (${contacts.length} contacts)`);

  options.push({
    container: c,
    count: contacts.length,
    name: displayName
  });
}

alert.addCancelAction("Cancel");

// 3. Show the menu (Sheet view on iPhone/iPad)
let index = await alert.presentSheet();

// If user pressed Cancel (index -1), stop.
if (index === -1) {
  console.log("Operation cancelled.");
  Script.complete();
  return;
}

// 4. Get the chosen container
let selection = options[index];

// 5. FINAL CONFIRMATION ALERT
let confirmAlert = new Alert();
confirmAlert.title = "🛑 Final Warning";
confirmAlert.message = `Are you sure you want to permanently delete ${selection.count} contacts from "${selection.name}"? This cannot be undone.`;

confirmAlert.addDestructiveAction("Delete Everything");
confirmAlert.addCancelAction("Cancel");

let confirmIndex = await confirmAlert.presentAlert();

if (confirmIndex === 0) {
  // 6. Perform Deletion
  let contactsToDelete = await Contact.all([selection.container]);

  for (let contact of contactsToDelete) {
    Contact.delete(contact);
  }

  // Save changes to database
  await Contact.persistChanges();

  // Show success message
  let successAlert = new Alert();
  successAlert.title = "Success";
  successAlert.message = `Deleted ${selection.count} contacts.`;
  successAlert.addAction("OK");
  await successAlert.presentAlert();

} else {
  console.log("Deletion cancelled by user.");
}

Script.complete();

❧ 2026-01-30