10 Hacks for the Contacts App Every Apple User Should Know

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The Contacts app is the bedrock of all my communication on my iPhone, and to a large extent, also on my MacBook. On the surface, Contacts appears to be a basic app that stores names, numbers, and other things you want to remember about people or businesses. However, it has some great features hidden under the surface, such as the ability to quickly delete duplicate contacts, smart lists, and faster ways to bulk share or delete contacts. Here are the 10 best Contacts app hacks for iPhone, iPad, and Mac:

iPhone 18 Pro

$1,199.00 at Apple

$1,199.00 at Apple

iPhone Duo

$1,999.00 at Apple

$1,999.00 at Apple

MacBook Pro with PROLED XDR Display

$2,899.00 at Apple

$2,899.00 at Apple

14-inch MacBook Pro with M6 Chip

$1,999.00 at Apple

$1,999.00 at Apple

Use this hidden search feature to delete duplicate contacts

Credit: Pranay Parab

If you have the same number or email address saved under multiple contacts, you can easily clear these from your iPhone. iOS shows you a prompt at the top of the list of contacts that lets you remove duplicate contacts easily. The same feature is hidden in the Mac version of Contacts. To try it, open Contacts on the Mac, and select the Card menu at the top of the screen. Then, click Look for Duplicates. This will identify duplicate contacts for you, and you can quickly merge or delete them.

Try the two-finger swipe gesture to select multiple contacts

It's pretty easy to select multiple entries when you use the Contacts app on the Mac. You can hold the Shift or Ctrl buttons and use arrow keys or click multiple contacts to select them all. On your iPhone or iPad, this feature is available via a hidden gesture. You need to use two fingers and swipe upwards or downwards on the list of contacts. Once you get the gesture right, you'll be able to select multiple contacts quickly. After you select one batch of contacts, you can scroll up or down and use the same gesture to add more contacts to your selection. This is the fastest way to execute bulk actions in your iPhone's Contacts app.

Copy a contact and paste it in Messages to share phone numbers quickly

When you share a contact, iOS shows you a prompt to select the fields you wish to send. This is great for privacy because you don't want to send your partner's home address, birthdate, your anniversary, nicknames, or other personal details by default. However, this extra step adds a little bit of friction while sharing contacts. If you want a faster way to send a contact on your iPhone, you can copy and paste it in the Messages app. To try it, open the Contacts app and scroll till you see the contact's name. Hold the contact's name and press Copy. Open Messages, paste it in any chat, and send it. Unfortunately, this doesn't work with third-party messaging apps like WhatsApp, but it's great for texts and iMessage.

Hold the message button in a contact card to switch to a different messaging app

On your iPhone, you can use Contacts to message people on WhatsApp, Signal, Telegram, or other apps. Just open a contact and hold the messaging button. This will reveal a list of apps where you can ping that person. WhatsApp doesn't have access to my contacts, which makes it a bit annoying to message people I know. Since I started using the Contacts app to start chats on WhatsApp, the process of pinging new people has become a lot faster.

Hold the call button to change the app used to call a person

Just as you can use Contacts to message people on third-party apps, you can also use it to call them on those apps. Go to any contact in the Contacts app on your iPhone, and hold the call button. This will let you call them on WhatsApp, Signal, or any other apps where their phone number is linked.

Delete a contact quickly by long-pressing its name

Credit: Pranay Parab

iOS makes it hard to delete contacts quickly. This prevents accidental deletions, but it can be annoying when you just want to remove people who you last spoke to in high school. To speed this up, open Contacts on your iPhone and hold any contact's name. In the popover menu, select Delete to remove the contact. To remove multiple contacts quickly, use the two-finger swipe gesture to select multiple contacts, and hold any of the selected contacts. In the popover menu, you can select Delete X Contacts, where X is the number of contacts you've selected.

Use the Mac app to export your contacts and back them up offline

To export your entire address book, you can use the Contacts app on your Mac. Once you have it open, go to File > Export > Export vCard. This will save all your contacts in a vcf file, and you can import that into Google Contacts or other apps or services. You also have the option to export contacts as a PDF file. Just select File > Export as PDF to get it done.

Remove fields you don't use when adding new contacts on Mac

When you create a new contact on your Mac, the app shows multiple fields that you may never use. If you just need to save phone numbers and email addresses, you can delete all the other blank fields from the template. To do this, open Contacts on your Mac, and go to Card > Add Field > Edit Template to add or remove fields from the default contact template.

Use smart lists to filter contacts on your Mac

Credit: Pranay Parab

If you added a number recently, such as a salesperson at a car dealership, but forgot their name, the Contacts app doesn't make it easy to find the contact. Instead of scrolling through the entire list of contacts and trying to guess which one could be the person you spoke to, you can use the Contacts app on your Mac to locate them quickly. It lets you create smart lists to sort contacts by recently added. Open Contacts on your Mac, and go to File > New Smart List. Now select Card in the first drop-down menu, followed by has changed in for the second one. You can then add the number of days, such as 10 days, in the final field, and click OK. Click the newly created smart list in the left pane, and you'll see all contacts that were either created or updated in the last 10 days, which will include the hypothetical car salesperson.

Smart lists also allow you to quickly create groups of related contacts. For instance, I've saved all my former colleagues' details with the company name in the contact. To find them all quickly, I created a smart list that groups all contacts with that company's name.

Optimize your contact card to avoid sharing unnecessary information

NameDrop is one of my favorite Apple features. It lets you bump two Apple devices together to exchange contact information quickly. Try holding your iPhone near another person's iPhone, and you'll see a full-screen pop-up asking if you want to share your contact with someone, or if you'd just like to receive their contact information. To protect your privacy, you should limit sending information to others. Updating your contact card is the best way to do this. Open the Contacts app on your iPhone, and tap your name up top. Hit the Edit button and remove information you don't wish to share. I recommend updating your profile picture too. Instead of sharing a candid photo, you can use an emoji or a professional headshot that you're comfortable sharing in public.

10 of the Most Iconic Patrick Stewart Roles Beyond Captain Picard

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Sir Patrick Stewart, an actor equally at home onstage at the Royal Shakespeare Company and on the bridge of the Starship Enterprise, has died at the age of 86. Unexpectedly for most of us, in part because he kept his final illness private, but more so because it once seemed as though nothing could fell the man who looms so large in our cultural consciousness.

The thoughtful, erudite performer who had a troubled childhood in working-class Yorkshire; the committed socialist who was eventually knighted by Queen Elizabeth; the advocate who put his money and his considerable voice toward the fights for LGBTQ+ acceptance and animal welfare and against domestic violence, his presence and performances meant the world (the galaxy, even) to myself and so many others. But those who knew him personally can offer better tributes; perhaps it's best left to Shakespeare's Player King, performed by Stewart himself opposite David Warner's Hamlet back in 1965:

Where joy most revels, grief doth most lament;Grief joys, joy grieves, on slender accident.

Much of Stewart's finest work was on the stage; other performances remain rather shockingly hard to come by (whither I, Claudius?). Nonetheless, he left a true legacy behind him, well beyond Captain Picard and Professor X. Here are 10 of his most iconic other roles.

Jeffrey (1995)

A goofy, feel-good gay rom-com with the HIV/AIDS crisis still very much in the foreground, Jeffrey was a near-impossibility in the mid-1990s: a movie that neither villainized its queers nor treated them as pitiable martyrs. Steven Weber and Michael T. Weiss are the leads, joined by a cast that includes Christine Baranski, Victor Garber, Nathan Lane, Olympia Dukakis, and Sigourney Weaver but, for all those names, Stewart is the undeniable standout as Sterling, the irrepressible gay best friend: a swishing, mincing, sassy, high-camp character who steals every scene without ever becoming a caricature. He's the leader of the "Pink Panthers," a squad of queers who defend locals from gay bashers, and that is the key to the character's power: He's as gay as they come, but not ashamed and not even a little weak. This movie, and the presence of Captain Picard himself in it, might have saved my life back in 1995. Stream Jeffrey on Prime Video, Tubi, and The Roku Channel.

Jeffrey (1995)

at Prime Video

at Prime Video

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Excalibur (1981)

A sprawling, epic, and appropriately lusty take on the King Arthur stories from John Boorman, Excalibur is a mixed bag full of stunning visuals and iconic moments that never quite coalesce into something entirely coherent. Standing out among the film's many characters, Stewart is entirely memorable as Leodegrance, the boisterous, boorish, but ultimately faithful father of Guenevere who is among the first to pledge his loyalty to Arthur. Rent Excalibur from Prime Video.

Excalibur (1981)

at Prime Video

at Prime Video

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Green Room (2015)

Darcy Banker is erudite and intellectual, in his way, and even capable of charm, but otherwise has no redeeming qualities whatsoever. It's bad enough for the punk band Ain’t Rights that they've booked a last-minute gig at an Oregon bar without realizing that it's a haven for white supremacists. It's even worse when they witness a murder and become trapped in the title's green room, with Stewart as the lead skinhead. He's quite simply one of the all-time great (meaning absolutely terrifying) villains in this thriller that's pretty much a horror movie. Stream Green Room on Netflix.

Green Room (2015)

at Netflix

at Netflix

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Logan (2017)

Patrick Stewart's role as Professor Xavier in the X-Men is almost as pop-culture iconic as that of Captain Picard, spanning 26 years and nine movies, including the forthcoming Avengers: Doomsday. In most of those, he looks like he's having an awful lot of fun, but he gives his finest performance in the role in this elegaic installment, playing a dying Professor in profound cognitive decline, his dream in tatters and his bravado worn down to prickly dependence. We rarely get to see our superheroes at the ends of their days, and there's a lovely bravery to this depiction of the Charles' journey. Logan will likely be the toughest of his films to rewatch in the coming days. Stream Logan on Disney+.

Logan (2017)

at Disney+

at Disney+

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A Christmas Carol (1999)

This stagey television movie isn't the most sumptuous of the many filmed versions of the Dickens story, but you won't be surprised to learn that there are few better portrayals of Ebenezer Scrooge. It's rather a shame that Patrick Stewart didn't do more Dickens adaptations, since his booming voice and ability to play thoroughly heightened characters without ever resorting to caricature is as valuable as in Shakespeare. Rent A Christmas Carol from Prime Video.

A Christmas Carol (1999)

at Prime Video

at Prime Video

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Hamlet (2009)

Famously referred to as that "unknown British Shakespearean actor" when starting out on Star Trek: The Next Generation, Stewart was an associate of the Royal Shakespeare Company for twenty years before his most famous role came along. As is the way of live theater, much of his career lives on as an essential link in the chain of Shakespeare performances in the twentieth century...but not in a way that we can conveniently stream. We do, however, have this impressively mounted modern-dress stage production, in which Stewart plays King Claudius with characteristic brilliance against David Tennant's melancholy prince. Buy Hamlet from Prime Video and Apple TV.

Hamlet (2009)

at Prime Video

at Prime Video

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Match (2014)

As a cinematic actor, Stewart's greatest strength was bringing humanity to larger-than-life, even operatic roles, whether they be Arthurian knights, Dickensian villains, or superheroes. That ability is an absolute necessity if one is going to have any success doing Shakespeare, as Stewart did for decades. Match is something rather different, though, and it's rather lovely to see him play something just a bit more mundane—even if the film's Tobi Powell is a choreographer with a nearly legendary reputation. Teaching at Juilliard School, with his career winding down, he's confronted with the living embodiment of the past he left behind to pursue his career. The ensuing relationships grow more complex, with the film building to a climax that's surprising and deeply devastating, made all the more so by Stewart's muted, subtle performance. Stream Match on AMC+.

Match (2014)

at AMC+

at AMC+

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Robin Hood: Men in Tights (1993)

This is not the greatest Mel Brooks movie, not by a long shot, but it is a great comedic performance from Patrick Stewart. He loved to recount, with self-effacing embarrassment, the story of having shouted "We are not here to have fun" at his co-workers during a rowdy day on set at Star Trek: The Next Generation. By 1993, he was clearly past any such pomposity, and clearly having fun in his cameo as King Richard, a memorably silly take on a character he might well have played with seriousness elsewhere. Rent Robin Hood: Men in Tights from Prime Video.

Robin Hood: Men in Tights (1993)

at Prime Video

at Prime Video

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Dune (1984)

Stewart's first real foray into science fiction was in this big, bold, divisive, and thoroughly bonkers Frank Herbert adaptation from director David Lynch. Stewart plays troubadour and warrior Gurney Halleck, and does what he does best: bringing gravitas and believability (and it must be said, bald sexiness) to even the wildest material. Stream Dune on Tubi.

Dune (1984)

at Tubi

at Tubi

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The Kid Who Would Be King (2019)

Stewart plays an aged Merlin in this rather shockingly good modern reimagining of the King Arthur legendarium. His Merlin is all wild hair and rock band T-shirts, possessed of an essential kindness that makes him a valued mentor, and one deserving of his character's poignant farewell at the film's conclusion.Stream The Kid Who Would Be King on Disney+ and Prime Video.

The Kid Who Would Be King (2019)

at Disney+

at Disney+

These Proton Pass Black Friday Deals Get You Up to 60% Off Password Management

Deal pricing and availability subject to change after time of publication.

Anyone still reusing the same password across several accounts or relying on a browser to remember all of them may find a dedicated password manager worth considering, especially with Proton’s current Black Friday discounts: A one-year subscription to Proton Pass Plus is 60% off, bringing it to $1.99 a month, or $23.88 billed upfront for the first year, before renewing at $35.88 annually. The discounts also extend to Pass Family, which covers six individual Pass Plus accounts and costs $2.79 a month ($33.48 for the first year, renewing at $59.88 annually), and Proton Unlimited, which bundles the password manager with Proton VPN, Mail, and Drive for $6.49 a month ($77.88 for the first year, renewing at $119.88 annually). All three offers are limited to new users and come with a 30-day money-back guarantee, giving you some time to decide whether the subscription is worth keeping.

The biggest convenience with Proton Pass is that you no longer have to come up with passwords yourself or remember which variation you used for a particular website. It generates strong, unique passwords for your accounts, saves them, and automatically fills in your credentials when you return. It also earns its keep through a built-in two-factor authenticator, dark web breach alerts, secure sharing, and unlimited email aliases. Those aliases are where Pass differs most from the password manager built into your browser—each one is a separate address that forwards mail to your regular inbox, so you can give one to a retailer at checkout, and when it starts attracting spam, you switch it off without changing your real email.

Beyond passwords, Proton Pass also works as an encrypted digital vault for information you might otherwise keep scattered across notes, emails, and physical documents. You could save your passport details for booking flights, store payment card information for online purchases, or keep copies of important documents accessible while traveling. That said, there’s more to Proton Pass than these everyday uses, and our guide walks you through some of its lesser-known features to help you get more out of your subscription.

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10 Shows Like 'The Diplomat' You Should Watch Next

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Following its recently concluded fourth season, Netflix's political thriller The Diplomat has been renewed for a fifth season, and even better, it's the rare streaming show that seems to keep to a fairly regular schedule, meaning there's likely to be more of the Keri Russell-led espionage drama coming by late next year. If you're looking for something with the same political thriller vibes to watch in the meantime, here are 10 other series to stream now.

Homeland (2011 – 2020)

Diplomat creator Debora Cahn got her start on The West Wing, but honed her political-espionage craft on this show, for which she served as writer and, later, executive producer. The series begins with CIA case officer Carrie Mathison (Claire Danes) coming to suspect that decorated Marine Corps scout sniper Nicholas Brody (Damian Lewis), recently rescued from an al-Qaeda compound, has been turned and is planning a terrorist attack on the United States. As she has been diagnosed with bipolar disorder, her superiors don't give Mathison's suspicions much credence, kicking off a cat-and-mouse/is-he-or-isn't he? game between the two. As the show progresses, Carrie moves up the ranks until she's working directly for the president. Both leads won Emmys for their performances, and the series took the Outstanding Drama prize in its first year. Stream Homeland on Hulu and Netflix.

Homeland (2011 – 2020)

at Hulu

at Hulu

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Slow Horses (2022 – )

Focusing largely on the seedier side of international espionage, Slow Horses, based on the novels by Mick Herron, shares with The Diplomat a dry sense of humor about the consequences of institutional and human failures. With nods to the great spy dramas of John le Carré, Slow Horses updates the setting without losing either the thrills or the style of a time-honored genre. The “Slow Horses” of the title are a group of has-been MI5 agents—they’ve all made messes of significant jobs, but are still seen as having some use, if only in dull administrative tasks. Naturally, the members of the group (led by Gary Oldman's endlessly flatulent Jackson Lamb) find themselves in deeper waters than anyone thought them capable of navigating. Kristin Scott Thomas is the spymaster, navigating political pressures, misogyny, and her own unrepentant ambition in trying to do her job. Stream Slow Horses on Apple TV.

Slow Horses (2022 – )

at Apple TV

at Apple TV

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The Night Agent (2023 – )

An action drama that plays a bit like a spy thriller, The Night Agent stars Gabriel Basso as Peter Sutherland, an FBI agent who works overnights in the basement of the White House watching a phone that never, ever rings (dream job, honestly), until the night it does. Peter gets a call from Rose Larkin, a cybersecurity expert whose aunt and uncle were just killed; unbeknownst to her, they were also government operatives, and rescuing Rose sees Peter delving deep inside a web of conspiracy and corruption that plays out over three seasons, with a fourth and final on the way. While a bit more action-heavy than The Diplomat, it still plays in that realm of government secrets and conspiracies. Stream The Night Agent on Netflix.

The Night Agent (2023 – )

at Netflix

at Netflix

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The West Wing (1999 – 2006)

There was a moment, around the turn of the millennium, when The West Wing seemed like a heightened but not entirely implausible picture of politics in action; its ripped-from-the-headlines style gave it an edge that allowed us to imagine smart, thoughtful people getting jobs in government, trying to do the more-or-less right thing despite systemic and personal flaws (it's also where The Diplomat's creator Debora Cahn started her TV writing career). The show's world can be a little frustrating when contrasted against our more explicitly appalling actual one, but it's a thoroughly pleasing fantasy nonetheless, with President Matin Sheen leading a White House staff through various diplomatic, military, and political crises. Stream The West Wing on Netflix and HBO Max.

The West Wing (1999 – 2006)

at Netflix

at Netflix

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Borgen (2010 – 2022)

Sidse Babett Knudsen stars as Birgitte Nyborg in this popular import. She's a minor Danish politician who watches other politicians fall to scandal and incompetence as she rapidly and unexpectedly ascends to the job of prime minister. The espionage and action are entirely incidental (but not nonexistent) here, as the show deals instead with the moral and political compromises that are seemingly intrinsic to statecraft. There's been talk of an American remake for years now, but you should just watch the original. Stream Borgen on Netflix.

Borgen (2010 – 2022)

at Netflix

at Netflix

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Scandal (2012 – 2018)

Shonda Rhimes was already a powerhouse producer and screenwriter with several successful seasons of Grey's Anatomy under her belt when Scandal debuted, but its blend of political thrills and sexy, soapy drama truly solidified her brand—and her spot atop the modern TV landscape. Kerry Washington stars as Olivia Pope, head of the D.C.-based crisis management firm Olivia Pope & Associates (OPA), who is the person to call when you've got a PR disaster to fix. If you want to get a sense of the stakes involved, consider that Tony Goldwyn costars as Fitzgerald Grant III, who is both the president of the United States. and also Olivia's lover. Stream Scandal on Hulu and Netflix.

Scandal (2012 – 2018)

at Hulu

at Hulu

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Madam Secretary (2014 – 2019)

Téa Leoni plays Elizabeth McCord, a former CIA analyst who gave up that hectic life to become a political science professor. That's all going great until the Secretary of State dies under mysterious circumstances and she's called up by her old CIA boss, who's now the president, to take over the job. With her outsider's perspective and resistance to political considerations, she's surprisingly good at the gig, navigating foreign and domestic crises while also trying to figure out who the hell killed her predecessor, and whether they're coming for her, too. Stream Madam Secretary on The Roku Channel.

Madam Secretary (2014 – 2019)

at The Roku Channel

at The Roku Channel

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Designated Survivor: 60 Days (2019)

You could absolutely watch the original American take on this show, which stars Kiefer Sutherland—they have essentially the same premise—but this South Korean remake earns a few extra points by only running for a compact 16 episodes, making it far leaner and meaner. Education Minister Park Mu-jin (Ji Jin-hee) is fired from his job one day before an attack occurs amid an announcement of peace talks with the North, wiping out the entire presidential line of succession. His dismissal having not yet been finalized, the largely unambitious Minister Park is forced into the job, even as questions linger over the attack that put him in the role. Stream Designated Survivor: 60 Days on Netflix.

Designated Survivor: 60 Days (2019)

at Netflix

at Netflix

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The Americans (2013 – 2018)

It's a different time and setting, but all the Keri Russell spy action you could want as a Diplomat fan. Set during the Cold War 1980s and created by former CIA officer Joe Weisberg, The Americans follows Soviet KGB intelligence agents Elizabeth (Russell) and Philip Jennings (the ever-reliable Matthew Rhys), living undercover lives posing as an American couple in the DC metro area—and raising their American-born children. The critically acclaimed show makes much of its period setting and a central conflict that places two spies in the heart of suburban America, even as they're tasked with undermining the Reagan-era government under which their children are growing up. Stream The Americans on Hulu.

The Americans (2013 – 2018)

at Hulu

at Hulu

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The Whirlwind (2024)

A power struggle for leadership of an entire country is at the heart of this juicy political thriller. Prime Minister Park Dong-ho comes to believe that the president has been corrupted by powerful, wealthy individuals and companies (something that could only happen in South Korea, obviously). Deputy Prime Minister Jeong Su-jin sees the problem, too, but she's not so sure about his solution: He wants to have the president assassinated. But how much better is he than the man he would be replacing? And how pure are her motives in potentially putting herself in line for the top job? Stream The Whirlwind on Netflix.

The Whirlwind (2024)

at Netflix

at Netflix