Export / Import Contacts

What you'll learn

Common Use Cases

Once you're comfortable exporting and importing, here's what you can start doing right away.

📥

Bring In A List From Anywhere

Move contacts from an old system, a spreadsheet, or a payment processor straight into your account with an import.

📦

Export For Reporting Or Backup

Pull a copy of your contact list out any time you need it for reporting, a backup, or to share with someone else.

🏷️

Tag And Track Every Import

Label each import with a tag like the source and date, so you always know exactly where a contact came from.

🧩

Keep Your Database Clean

Use the right import setting to fill in missing details on existing contacts instead of creating messy duplicates.

Key definitions

Terms worth knowing

A bulk action that takes the contacts you've selected and downloads them as a file, so you can save, share, or report on your list outside your CRM.

The process of uploading a file of contacts, mapping its columns to fields in your CRM, and bringing that data into your account.

The file format your import needs. The first row must be the titles of the data underneath it, like First Name, Email, and Phone.

Matching each column in your spreadsheet to the correct field in your CRM, like matching a column called Email to your Email field.

The status shown during mapping when a column doesn't match any existing field yet. You can map it manually or choose not to import it.

A saved list you can create for an import so every contact that came in from it is grouped together and easy to find later.

"Remember, you get out of it what you put into it. So let's get out of your software what you put into it, and go ahead and get those contacts imported."

How it works

Exporting And Importing Your Contacts

A bulk action from your contacts list

From your Contacts tab, select the contacts you want to export using the checkbox, then choose Export from the bulk action options. Confirm that you want to export those contacts, and it will start processing. You can track it under your bulk actions, then open the statistics and click the arrow to download your exported file. If your list is set to show 20 or 100 contacts per page, make sure you've selected everyone you want before you export.

Get your spreadsheet ready first

Before you upload anything, open a CSV file and know what you're importing, contacts or opportunities. For contacts, it helps to download the sample file first so you can see the format expected: phone, email, first name, last name, business, source, additional emails, additional phone numbers, notes, and tags. The first row always needs to be the titles of your data. If your spreadsheet has a field your CRM doesn't have yet, like gender, create that as a custom field in Settings before you import, and organize it into your Contacts folder so it's ready to map. It also helps to add a tag, like Customer Import, and a note to every row so you know exactly where and when that contact came from.

Upload your file and match your columns

From Contacts, select Import, choose Contacts as the object, and select Next. Upload your CSV, then choose how to import: Create Contacts for a brand-new list, or Create and Update Contacts if you already have some of these people in your account and want to fill in missing details. You'll also choose whether existing contacts are matched by email then phone, or phone then email. Next comes mapping. Each column from your spreadsheet lines up with a field in your CRM. Anything that shows Pending didn't match automatically, you can map it yourself using the arrow, or check the box to skip importing unmapped columns. Custom fields only show up here if you created them first, so double-check your spreadsheet's column titles match your custom field names exactly.

Confirm the details before you start

The verify step lets you create a smart list for the new contacts coming in, which makes it easy to find them all later. You can also add every imported contact to a workflow, and add tags to the whole batch if you didn't already tag them in your spreadsheet. Before you start the import, you'll confirm that every contact has consented to hear from you, that you've contacted them within the last year, and that the list isn't from a third party. This matters for staying compliant with text and email rules. Once you're ready, select Start Import.

Wait for completed, then review your stats

Your import shows up under bulk actions. Wait for the status to show Completed in green before you check the statistics, especially on a large list. The statistics show your success and error counts, and you can download that report to see exactly what happened. Common causes of errors include duplicate contacts when your settings don't allow duplicates, mismatched CSV headers, missing required fields like name, email, or phone, an invalid phone number format such as a missing country code, unmapped custom fields, and file size issues. Fix the problem in your original spreadsheet, then re-import using Create and Update Contacts so you fill in the gaps instead of creating duplicates.

Tips

Worth remembering

Create any custom fields you need, like gender or a special interest, before you start your import, not after.
Download the sample file and use it as your format guide so your columns line up cleanly the first time.
Tag every import with something simple like Customer Import or the source it came from, and add the date if it helps you track it.
Always create a smart list for your import so you can see exactly who came in and double-check the count.
If you get import errors, check the phone number format first. Most numbers need a country code, like a leading 1 for the US.

Check yourself

Quick Knowledge Check

Four quick questions on this lesson. One attempt each, and the answer is revealed either way.

0 of 4 answered

Your spreadsheet has a gender column that your CRM doesn't have as a field yet. What should you do first?

You already have some of these contacts in your account and want to fill in missing details without creating duplicates. Which import option should you choose?

During mapping, a column shows as Pending. What does that mean?

A batch of imported contacts came back with errors saying the phone number couldn't be read. What's the most likely cause?

Apply it

Try this with your favorite AI

📋Build my import prep checklist

You are helping me get ready for my first contact import into my CRM. Here is my situation: - Where my current contact list lives right now: [spreadsheet, another system, payment processor, etc.] - Fields my list has that I'm not sure my CRM already has: [list them, e.g. gender, referral source] - How I want to tag this import so I know where it came from: [describe] Based on that, give me a short, ordered checklist for preparing my file before I upload it, including which custom fields I should create first and how to format my columns to match a standard sample import file.

🔍Troubleshoot my import errors

You are helping me figure out why part of my contact import failed. Here is my situation: - What the error report said: [paste the error message or describe it, e.g. "could not read phone number"] - How many contacts succeeded versus errored: [numbers] - Whether my account is set to block duplicate contacts: [yes, no, not sure] Based on that, walk me through the most likely cause, what to fix in my original spreadsheet, and whether I should re-import using Create Contacts or Create and Update Contacts.