Use “Last Seen On” to find inactive contacts in a few steps
If you just need the essentials, follow this:
- Understand what Last Seen On measures and when it updates
- Run a contact search using last_seen_on operators
- Create a smart group from the search results (optional)
- Use Last Seen On in a campaign event for automated inactivity follow-ups
- Troubleshoot: why dates don’t change and why campaigns didn’t trigger
You’re done. You can now monitor engagement and automate re-engagement or cleanup based on inactivity.
Step-by-Step Process
The Last Seen On contact field records the most recent date a contact interacted with your RapidPro.app workspace.
You can use this field to identify inactive contacts, target re-engagement messages, clean up your contact database,
and drive campaign events based on inactivity.
Last Seen On is automatically updated when a contact:
- sends a message to your workspace
- interacts with a flow
- communicates through any connected channel
You do not need to update this field manually.
You can use contact search queries to find contacts based on their last interaction date using last_seen_on.
Supported query operators
- last_seen_on = “YYYY-MM-DD” → contacts seen on an exact date
- last_seen_on > “YYYY-MM-DD” → contacts seen after a date
- last_seen_on < “YYYY-MM-DD” → contacts seen before a date
- last_seen_on >= “YYYY-MM-DD” AND last_seen_on <= “YYYY-MM-DD” → contacts seen within a date range
- last_seen_on != “YYYY-MM-DD” → contacts not seen on a specific date
- last_seen_on = “YYYY-MM-DD” OR last_seen_on = “YYYY-MM-DD” → contacts seen on multiple specific dates
[CAPTURE: Contacts search bar showing a query using last_seen_on.]
After running a Last Seen On search:
- Review the resulting contacts.
- Click Create smart group.
- Name the group (for example, Dormant).
- Save.
[CAPTURE: Search results page showing the “Create smart group” button.]
[CAPTURE: Smart group creation dialog with the group name “Dormant”.]
You can now send a reminder message, start a flow, or exclude/delete inactive contacts using that group.
You can also use Last Seen On directly in a campaign, without creating a group.
For example, you can send a message 90 days after a contact’s last interaction.
- Create or edit a campaign.
- Add a campaign event.
- Choose Last Seen On as the reference field.
- Set the offset (for example, 90 days after).
- Add the message or flow to send.
[CAPTURE: Campaign event configuration showing “Last Seen On + 90 days”.]
This approach is useful for automated follow-ups, inactivity reminders, and gradual database cleanup.
Common use cases
- Identify contacts who haven’t replied in weeks or months
- Re-engage users before removing them
- Automatically follow up without manual searches
- Monitor contact engagement over time
Common Issues & Quick Fixes
Problem: A contact appears active but has an old “Last Seen On” date.
Fix: Last Seen On updates from inbound interactions. If the contact hasn’t sent any inbound messages recently, the date may remain old even if other activity occurred.
Problem: I can’t edit the “Last Seen On” value.
Fix: This is expected because the field is system-managed. Instead of editing it, use flows, searches, smart groups, or campaigns that react to the value.
Problem: A campaign didn’t trigger as expected.
Fix: Double-check the offset direction (before vs after), confirm the event timing, and make sure the campaign is active.