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

# Delete a contact

> Permanently remove a contact from your Peoplewisher account.

<RequestExample>
  ```bash cURL theme={null}
  curl --request DELETE \
    --url 'https://api.peoplewisher.com/v1/contacts/4812' \
    --header 'Authorization: Bearer YOUR_API_KEY' 
  ```
</RequestExample>

<ResponseExample>
  ```json 200 OK theme={null}
  {
    "success": true
  }
  ```
</ResponseExample>

## How it works

Deleting a contact removes the contact from the Peoplewisher account. It does not delete the Celebration Group or change the workflow configured for that group.

## Authentication

Include your Peoplewisher API key as a Bearer token on every request:

```http theme={null}
Authorization: Bearer YOUR_API_KEY
```

Your API key is available in **Peoplewisher → Settings → API**. Keep it private and never expose it in browser-side code or public repositories.


## OpenAPI

````yaml openapi.yaml DELETE /contacts/{contact_id}
openapi: 3.0.3
info:
  title: Peoplewisher API
  version: 1.0.0
  description: |
    The Peoplewisher API lets an application synchronize contacts and place
    those contacts into Peoplewisher Celebration Groups. Peoplewisher then
    runs the celebration workflows configured for those groups in the
    Peoplewisher application.

    The public API is intentionally focused: applications provide people data
    and group membership. Templates, channels, schedules, celebration
    settings, and workflow behavior are managed in the Peoplewisher UI.
servers:
  - url: https://api.peoplewisher.com/v1
    description: Peoplewisher API
security:
  - bearerAuth: []
tags:
  - name: Contacts
    description: Manage the people whose celebrations Peoplewisher handles.
  - name: Celebration Groups
    description: >-
      Manage the Peoplewisher groups that determine which celebration workflow
      applies to a contact.
paths:
  /contacts/{contact_id}:
    delete:
      tags:
        - Contacts
      summary: Delete a contact
      description: >-
        Permanently removes the specified local contact from the authenticated
        Peoplewisher account.
      operationId: deleteContact
      parameters:
        - $ref: '#/components/parameters/ContactId'
      responses:
        '200':
          description: Contact deleted
          content:
            application/json:
              schema:
                $ref: '#/components/schemas/SuccessResponse'
              example:
                success: true
        '404':
          $ref: '#/components/responses/NotFound'
        '429':
          $ref: '#/components/responses/RateLimited'
      x-codeSamples:
        - lang: curl
          source: |-
            curl --request DELETE \
              --url 'https://api.peoplewisher.com/v1/contacts/4812' \
              --header 'Authorization: Bearer YOUR_API_KEY' 
components:
  parameters:
    ContactId:
      name: contact_id
      in: path
      required: true
      description: Peoplewisher contact ID.
      schema:
        type: integer
        minimum: 1
  schemas:
    SuccessResponse:
      type: object
      properties:
        success:
          type: boolean
    ErrorResponse:
      type: object
      required:
        - success
        - error
        - message
      properties:
        success:
          type: boolean
        error:
          type: string
        message:
          type: string
        request_id:
          type: string
          nullable: true
  responses:
    NotFound:
      description: The requested resource does not exist in the authenticated account.
      content:
        application/json:
          schema:
            $ref: '#/components/schemas/ErrorResponse'
          example:
            success: false
            error: not_found
            message: Contact not found.
    RateLimited:
      description: The API request was rate limited.
      content:
        application/json:
          schema:
            $ref: '#/components/schemas/ErrorResponse'
          example:
            success: false
            error: rate_limited
            message: Too many requests. Please retry later.
  securitySchemes:
    bearerAuth:
      type: http
      scheme: bearer
      bearerFormat: API key
      description: |
        Use the API key generated in Peoplewisher Settings as a Bearer token.

````