Import | Frequently Asked Questions

Find answers and general information quickly about the import tool in HubSpot.

• What file formats can I import?
  
• Why is my import showing errors?
  
• How does HubSpot treat import files with existing records?
  
• How do I associate records during an import?
  
• Will importing records with assigned owners trigger notifications for the owners?
  
• How do I include foreign language characters in my import file?
• How do I import more than one type of record in one file?
  
• Who has access to import information?
  
• How many columns can I include in the CSV import file?
  
• If I import a list with existing contacts, will the lifecycle stage for those contacts be overwritten?
  
• Why is my import taking a long time?
  
• Why does my import from Salesforce create fewer contacts than expected?
  

What file formats can I import?

The import tool accepts CSV, XLS, or XLSX files.

Why is my import showing errors?

Import errors occur for different reasons. To view these errors, on the import row with the errors, click the More dropdown menu and select Download error file. The downloaded file will show the rows and their errors. Some common errors are: Header and row sizes don't match and Cannot parse property. Learn more about resolving contact import errors.

How does HubSpot treat import files with existing records?

Importing a file containing information on existing records will update matching properties in these records on HubSpot, if HubSpot is able to match the information to these records. Learn how HubSpot automatically matches/deduplicates contacts and companies.  You can also use object IDs to match entries with existing records in your CRM.

How do I associate records during an import?

HubSpot can automatically associate contacts to companies. You can also associate different types of records via an import.

Will importing records with assigned owners trigger notifications for the owners?

No. When you're importing records, new or existing, with a column for the record owner, no notifications will be triggered for any owners. This prevents the assigned users from receiving an inordinate number of notifications during an import of a large file.

How do I include foreign language characters in my import file?

To import a file that includes foreign language characters, ensure that your file is UTF-8 encoded.

How do I import more than one type of record in one file?

Learn how to import more than one type of record in one file.

Who has access to import information?

Any user with the permission to import will have access to import information. Learn how to edit a user's permissions to grant or revoke import permissions.

How many columns can I include in the CSV import file?

There is a limit of 1,000 columns per CSV import.

If I import a list with existing contacts, will the lifecycle stage for those contacts be overwritten?

An import will not set an existing contact's Lifecycle stage value backwards, but will overwrite the existing value if the import has a value further down the funnel compared to the contact's existing value. For example:

• The lifecycle stage of an existing contact is Lead.
• This contact is re-imported with a lifecycle stage of Marketing Qualified Lead in the import file. 
• The lifecycle stage for your example contact will change from Lead to Marketing Qualified Lead because it is further down the funnel.

Why is my import taking a long time?

The larger the file, the longer it takes to import the objects. HubSpot also only imports a maximum of three files at one time.

Why does my import from Salesforce create fewer contacts than expected?