Lead Deduplication, or <a href="/features/duplicates-remover">lead deduping</a>, is the process of finding, and merging duplicate records to have a clean list of unique entries.
A lead represents a person or a company. A duplicate lead is when there are multiple records for the same person or company.
Duplicate leads appear when you have several lead sources that pour into a single lead list. Examples of lead sources are lead magnets, webinars, newsletters, or manual entries.
👉 Check our <a href="/how-to/merge-duplicate-leads-without-losing-data">guide to remove duplicate leads from your list.</a>
The main steps for lead deduplication typically include:
<ol>
<li>
Data Collection: Gather the leads from various sources, such as online forms, CRM systems, marketing automation platforms, and manual entry. The best format to extract data from all sources is the <a href="/learn/csv/csv-meaning">CSV format</a>. Use our <a href="/csv-editor">CSV Editor</a> to import and consolidate all your files.
</li>
<li>
Data Cleansing: Cleanse and standardize the leads by removing any irrelevant or incomplete entries, correcting formatting issues, and normalizing data fields to ensure consistency.
</li>
<li>
Define Duplicate Scoring Algorithm: This involves setting what constitutes a duplicate. For lead deduplication, you want to define your matching criteria on unique identifiers: email address, phone number, or contact name. For company leads the best identifier is the company website. Then, you can select how to compare values between leads. Do you want an exact match on names, or use fuzzy matching to match duplicate leads with slight changes.
</li>
<li>
Duplicate Identification: Run the deduplication algorithm on your leads. Duplicate groups are created with leads having a high similarity score.
</li>
<li>
Data Consolidation: Merge or update the duplicate records to create a single, consolidated, and accurate lead entry. This may involve merging contact details, activity history, and any associated information. <a href="/features/combine-csv-files">Data Consolidation</a> can be done automatically using rules or manually for conflicting leads.
</li>
</ol>
👉 Check our <a href="/how-to/merge-duplicate-leads-without-losing-data">free tool for lead deduplication.</a>
<img src="/learn_images/marketing/leads-deduplication/leads-deduplication.png#1078x1056" alt="Datablist Lead Deduplication Tool">
👉 Check our <a href="/how-to/merge-duplicate-leads-without-losing-data">free tool for lead deduplication.</a>


**Lead Deduplication, or [lead deduping](/features/duplicates-remover), is the process of finding, and merging duplicate records to have a clean list of unique entries.**

A lead represents a person or a company. A duplicate lead is when there are multiple records for the same person or company.

Duplicate leads appear when you have several lead sources that pour into a single lead list. Examples of lead sources are lead magnets, webinars, newsletters, or manual entries.

👉 Check our [guide to remove duplicate leads from your list.](/how-to/merge-duplicate-leads-without-losing-data)

The main steps for lead deduplication typically include:

1. Data Collection: Gather the leads from various sources, such as online forms, CRM systems, marketing automation platforms, and manual entry. The best format to extract data from all sources is the [CSV format](/learn/csv/csv-meaning). Use our [CSV Editor](/csv-editor) to import and consolidate all your files.

1. Data Cleansing: Cleanse and standardize the leads by removing any irrelevant or incomplete entries, correcting formatting issues, and normalizing data fields to ensure consistency.

1. Define Duplicate Scoring Algorithm: This involves setting what constitutes a duplicate. For lead deduplication, you want to define your matching criteria on unique identifiers: email address, phone number, or contact name. For company leads the best identifier is the company website. Then, you can select how to compare values between leads. Do you want an exact match on names, or use fuzzy matching to match duplicate leads with slight changes. 

1. Duplicate Identification: Run the deduplication algorithm on your leads. Duplicate groups are created with leads having a high similarity score.

1. Data Consolidation: Merge or update the duplicate records to create a single, consolidated, and accurate lead entry. This may involve merging contact details, activity history, and any associated information. [Data Consolidation](/features/combine-csv-files) can be done automatically using rules or manually for conflicting leads.

👉 Check our [free tool for lead deduplication.](/how-to/merge-duplicate-leads-without-losing-data)

![Datablist Lead Deduplication Tool](/learn_images/marketing/leads-deduplication/leads-deduplication.png#1078x1056)

👉 Check our [free tool for lead deduplication.](/how-to/merge-duplicate-leads-without-losing-data)

When to dedupe leads?

Lead Deduplication, or lead deduping, is the process of finding, and merging duplicate records to have a clean list of unique entries.
A lead represents a person or a company. A duplicate lead is when there are multiple records for the same person or company.
Duplicate leads appear when you have several lead sources that pour into a single lead list. Examples of lead sources are lead magnets, webinars, newsletters, or manual entries.
👉 Check our guide to remove duplicate leads from your list.
The main steps for lead deduplication typically include:
Data Collection: Gather the leads from various sources, such as online forms, CRM systems, marketing automation platforms, and manual entry. The best format to extract data from all sources is the CSV format. Use our CSV Editor to import and consolidate all your files.

Data Cleansing: Cleanse and standardize the leads by removing any irrelevant or incomplete entries, correcting formatting issues, and normalizing data fields to ensure consistency.

Define Duplicate Scoring Algorithm: This involves setting what constitutes a duplicate. For lead deduplication, you want to define your matching criteria on unique identifiers: email address, phone number, or contact name. For company leads the best identifier is the company website. Then, you can select how to compare values between leads. Do you want an exact match on names, or use fuzzy matching to match duplicate leads with slight changes. 

Duplicate Identification: Run the deduplication algorithm on your leads. Duplicate groups are created with leads having a high similarity score.

Data Consolidation: Merge or update the duplicate records to create a single, consolidated, and accurate lead entry. This may involve merging contact details, activity history, and any associated information. Data Consolidation can be done automatically using rules or manually for conflicting leads.


👉 Check our free tool for lead deduplication.
Datablist Lead Deduplication Tool
👉 Check our free tool for lead deduplication.


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Answers to Frequently Asked Questions about marketing. Tips and articles about data deduplication, data enrichments, and lead generation.

What is lead deduplication?