Will Uninstalling/Reinstalling App Affect Mixpanel's Distinct ID?

Sakir · 2025-08-20T07:39:31.548Z

Uninstalling and reinstalling the app by the same user will cause the same thing? i mean will mixpanel generate a new distinct ID in such a case?

Will Uninstalling/Reinstalling App Affect Mixpanel's Distinct ID? | Mixpanel Community

5 comments

· Sorted by Oldest

kapa.ai
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Hi Sakir, Please stand by as I search the Mixpanel knowledge base for an AI-powered answer. I normally take about 15 seconds or so. In case AI cannot answer your question, feel free to reach out to Mixpanel support at mixpanel.com/get-support. If you have follow-up questions for this thread, please tag me again with your question: @kapa.ai <follow-up question> 👋
Feel free to ask a follow-up question once I've answered by mentioning me with @kapa.ai
kapa.ai
APP
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Yes, uninstalling and reinstalling the app will cause Mixpanel to generate a new distinct_id for the user. When a user uninstalls the app, the distinct_id, $device_id, and any super properties stored locally are removed from the device. Upon reinstall, the Mixpanel SDK will generate a new random distinct_id and $device_id for the user. If you later call identify with the user's known identifier, Mixpanel will reconcile and attribute the data to the correct user profile in the Mixpanel UI Identity Management in Mixpanel FAQ.
kapa.ai is still learning and improving, please let me know how I did by reacting below.
ℹ️ Tip: Mention @kapa.ai in the thread for follow-ups or DM the app for 1-to-1 help.
Sarath K.
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kapa.ai what happens when the user logs out and does login with a different account. Before the user log in, the distinct id ($device, would be the same or different)?
kapa.ai
APP
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Let me check the knowledge base for you again. One moment! 📚
kapa.ai
APP
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When a user logs out, the recommended practice is to call the reset() method. This action clears the local storage (including the distinct_id and $device_id) and generates a new $device_id for the next session. If you follow this best practice, the next user who logs in will have a different $device_id (and thus a different distinct_id before identification).If you do not call reset() on logout, the $device_id (and distinct_id) will remain the same. This means that when a different user logs in and you call identify() with their user ID, Mixpanel will merge the previous and new user IDs into a single identity cluster, causing events from both users to appear under the same profile—which is not recommended for shared devices Identity Management in Mixpanel FAQ | Identifying Users (Simplified) - Example User Flows.Summary: - If you call reset() on logout: the $device_id will be different for the next user. - If you do not call reset(): the $device_id remains the same for the next user until reset or app data is cleared.
kapa.ai is still learning and improving, please let me know how I did by reacting below.
ℹ️ Tip: Mention @kapa.ai in the thread for follow-ups or DM the app for 1-to-1 help.

kapa.ai
APP
·
·
Hi Sakir, Please stand by as I search the Mixpanel knowledge base for an AI-powered answer. I normally take about 15 seconds or so. In case AI cannot answer your question, feel free to reach out to Mixpanel support at mixpanel.com/get-support. If you have follow-up questions for this thread, please tag me again with your question: @kapa.ai <follow-up question> 👋
Feel free to ask a follow-up question once I've answered by mentioning me with @kapa.ai
kapa.ai
APP
·
·
Yes, uninstalling and reinstalling the app will cause Mixpanel to generate a new distinct_id for the user. When a user uninstalls the app, the distinct_id, $device_id, and any super properties stored locally are removed from the device. Upon reinstall, the Mixpanel SDK will generate a new random distinct_id and $device_id for the user. If you later call identify with the user's known identifier, Mixpanel will reconcile and attribute the data to the correct user profile in the Mixpanel UI Identity Management in Mixpanel FAQ.
kapa.ai is still learning and improving, please let me know how I did by reacting below.
ℹ️ Tip: Mention @kapa.ai in the thread for follow-ups or DM the app for 1-to-1 help.
Sarath K.
·
·
kapa.ai what happens when the user logs out and does login with a different account. Before the user log in, the distinct id ($device, would be the same or different)?
kapa.ai
APP
·
·
Let me check the knowledge base for you again. One moment! 📚
kapa.ai
APP
·
·
When a user logs out, the recommended practice is to call the reset() method. This action clears the local storage (including the distinct_id and $device_id) and generates a new $device_id for the next session. If you follow this best practice, the next user who logs in will have a different $device_id (and thus a different distinct_id before identification).If you do not call reset() on logout, the $device_id (and distinct_id) will remain the same. This means that when a different user logs in and you call identify() with their user ID, Mixpanel will merge the previous and new user IDs into a single identity cluster, causing events from both users to appear under the same profile—which is not recommended for shared devices Identity Management in Mixpanel FAQ | Identifying Users (Simplified) - Example User Flows.Summary: - If you call reset() on logout: the $device_id will be different for the next user. - If you do not call reset(): the $device_id remains the same for the next user until reset or app data is cleared.
kapa.ai is still learning and improving, please let me know how I did by reacting below.
ℹ️ Tip: Mention @kapa.ai in the thread for follow-ups or DM the app for 1-to-1 help.