Telegram Displays Deleted Contacts and Adds Them to Google Contacts – How to Fix The Sync Problem on Android

In this article I will explain why you can see deleted contacts in Telegram (or vice versa – why you don’t see people who you recently added to Google Contacts in Telegram) and how to fix the problem.

From time to time I hear such questions from my friends:

• Why does my Telegram app display people that I deleted from contacts a very long time ago?
• When I installed Telegram and allowed it to restore from its server backup it added old contacts to my Google Contacts app and now there is a mess there! How can I fix that?
• How can I delete a contact from my Telegram messenger? I removed that person from the Contacts app on my Android phone but it is still on my contact list in Telegram!

Why Deleted Contacts are Still Displayed in Telegram App?

The short answer is: because of the glitch of Telegram’s sync procedure. For the very first time I faced the issue about a year ago but it still hasn’t been fixed even today.

In my case I actually didn’t care about what contacts display in my Telegram app but I did notice that some people details that I deleted about a year ago appeared again in the Google Contacts app on all my Android phones and tablets. I was really surprised and had no idea how that happened.

Of course, I deleted those people manually again and forgot about the accident.

But a few month later I reinstalled the Telegram app and agreed to restore it from the server backup. And I immediately saw the old contacts deleted contacts in Google phone again. This time there was no doubt that the Telegram was causing the problem.

How to Delete a Contact from Telegram

You cannot delete a single person from the messenger. The Telegram app is designed to sync to Google Contacts. When you add someone to Telegram it should appear in your main contacts app. You should delete a person there and wait for Telegram to sync.

How to Stop Telegram from Adding Old Contacts to Google Contacts on Android

If you believe that your old and deleted contacts are still displayed in Telegram I advise you to reset the sync in the app. Do the following:

1. Open your main Contacts app. In my case it is Google Contacts for Android.
2. Manually delete unnecessary people including those “restored” by inaccurate Telegram sync: 
3. After that open Telegram.
4. Tap the Menu icon.
5. Select Settings.
6. Scroll down and enter the Privacy and Security item.
7. Scroll down to the Contacts section: 
8. Tap on Delete Synced Contacts: 
9. And confirm the deletion by tapping OK.
10. Restart the app. It will re-sync everything and the problem should be solved.

Wrapping Up

That’s all. Now you should see only actual people details in both Telegram and Contacts by Google.

We hope, that this simple method will help you fix the problem that occurred as a result of a Telegram synchronization glitch.

We also want to believe that the developers of the popular messenger will finally pay attention and fix all their sync related issues.

If you have any additions on the topic, please feel free to share your thoughts in the comments. Thank you and good luck!