It still surprises me how many times I’ve seen orphaned page layouts.
I’m working with a new client, and there were 5 layouts for the contact object.
- ABC Contact Layout
- Classy Contact Layout
- Contact Layout
- Contact Layout (a second one)
- Contact Lightning Layout
At a quick glance, you would expect the Contact Lightning Layout to be used. But you’d be wrong. It was one of the Contact Layouts.
Of course, the only way to know this is by clicking on “Page Layout Assignment”. Luckily the same layout was used for all profiles.
After a quick cleanup, only a single layout remained.
What was interesting was the client’s hesitation to delete these unused layouts. I had to reassure them that no data would be impacted and the remaining layout could always be updated to show any fields.
The takeaway
When working with page layouts, stick to the KISS principle. Also consider Lightning Record Pages.