Custom contact fields let you store project-specific information on contacts beyond the built-in fields, by creating fields in Contacts → Fields (choosing the correct type like Text, Number, or Date & Time, setting agent access, and optionally featuring the field), then using the field reference in flows (for example via Update Contact with @results variables) so data stays consistent across messages, exports, and automation.

You can set a preferred language for each contact in RapidPro.app so they receive the correct translation when your flows are translated, either by updating the Language field on the contact profile, setting it automatically in a flow using Update Contact, or applying it in bulk via import with ISO language codes that are already enabled in your workspace.

Contact Information Anonymization permanently removes personally identifiable information (PII) from contacts—such as names and addresses (URNs)—while keeping operational data like UUID, groups, language, and custom fields usable for segmentation, flows, campaigns, and anonymized exports, making it suitable for privacy-first or compliance-driven programs where identities aren’t required for operations.

Custom fields created inside a flow are set to Text by default, so if you need a field to behave like a Number or a Date & Time (especially for campaign scheduling), you can update its type from Contacts → Fields by selecting the field, choosing the correct Field Type, and saving—then ensuring existing stored values match the new type.

A contact is an end-user record in your RapidPro.app workspace who can be created manually, automatically when a new address interacts through a channel, or imported in bulk, and whose fields, addresses (URNs), and preferred channel settings determine how you store data and how messages are delivered across SMS, Telegram, Messenger, and other channels.

A “Featured” contact field is a field you mark to appear prominently at the top of a contact’s profile (and sometimes as visible columns in the Contacts list), so your team can quickly see the most important data for each person, with only non-empty values showing until a field is populated.

Each contact in RapidPro.app has a status that controls whether they can receive outbound messages, how inbound messages are handled, and how they behave in groups and workflows—so understanding statuses helps you manage opt-outs, spam/unwanted traffic, and safe database cleanup (including archiving before deletion).

You can edit contact data in RapidPro.app manually on an individual contact, automatically in a flow using Update Contact, or in bulk via import, including updating default fields like name, groups, and addresses (URNs), adjusting address priority for correct outbound routing, and maintaining custom fields—while keeping in mind that manual date-only edits on Date & Time fields can change the time portion when you save.

You can automatically change a contact’s status inside a flow using the Update Contact action, which is useful for managing opt-outs, spam/abuse, and cleanup workflows by setting contacts to Active, Stopped, Blocked, or Archived—while keeping in mind that inbound messages can reactivate Stopped contacts unless your channel provider still enforces an opt-out.

RapidPro.app requires contacts to be archived before deletion, so the safest way to prepare many contacts at once is to identify the target set (often via a group or a smart group built from Last Seen On searches) and run a flow that updates Status to Archived, after which you can review the Archived folder and permanently delete those contacts when you’re ready.