How to Export Contacts from Airtable

Exporting your contact data is a fundamental part of effective CRM management. Whether you're backing up your records, preparing for a migration, analyzing sales results, or ensuring compliance, it’s crucial to understand how to export contacts from Airtable efficiently. In this guide, we’ll walk through the step-by-step process of exporting contacts from Airtable. Additionally, we’ll explore how to supplement your exported data with fresh, verified contact information from LinkedIn using our Chrome extension, LinkAir.

Why Export Contacts from Airtable?

Businesses export contacts from Airtable for several reasons:

• Data Backup: Protecting against accidental data loss or corruption.
• CRM Migration: Moving to a new CRM without losing valuable contact information.
• Analysis & Reporting: Using advanced tools like Excel or Google Sheets for deeper analysis.
• Compliance: Meeting company policies or industry regulations for data archiving (GDPR, CCPA).
• Team Collaboration: Sharing filtered contact lists with team members or collaborators.

Before You Export: Important Considerations

Data Privacy and Compliance

When exporting contact data from Airtable, ensure you comply with GDPR, CCPA, or any relevant regulations. Only export necessary data, respect user consent preferences, and store any exported files securely.

What Data Gets Exported

Airtable exports all visible fields in your current view. This includes fields like:

• Name
• Email
• Phone Number
• Custom fields (such as Company, Address, Notes)

Hidden fields or fields excluded from your view won’t be included in the export. Attachments and some complex field types may not export flawlessly and could require manual adjustments afterward.

Export Limitations

Be aware of these limitations in Airtable:

• CSV Format Only: Airtable allows direct export of table views as CSV files. Other formats like Excel require manual conversion.
• View-Based Export: Only records and fields visible in the selected view will be exported.
• API Usage Limits: For advanced exports using the API, free plans have a monthly API request cap.
• No Automated Scheduled Export (natively): Regular exports must be handled manually or through integrations.

Step-by-Step Export Process

Preparing for Export

Before exporting contacts, follow these steps:

1. Clean up your contacts table. Remove duplicates and check for incomplete or outdated records.
2. Create or select a view. Filter and organize the columns/fields you want to export. Hide any fields you don’t wish to include.
3. Check your filters. Ensure your view is filtered to only display the records you want to export.

Exporting Contacts from Airtable

Exporting is straightforward:

1. Open your base and navigate to the table containing your contacts.
2. Select the view with the fields and filters you need.
3. Locate the view name at the top left. Click the downward arrow next to the view name.
4. Click “Download CSV” from the dropdown.
5. Save the exported CSV file to your desired location.

Tip: Only visible fields and records in the selected view will be included in the CSV export. Create a designated export view if needed.

Export Format Options

• CSV (Comma-Separated Values): Airtable exports are in CSV format by default. CSVs are universally compatible and can be opened with Excel, Google Sheets, or imported into other CRMs.
• Excel (XLSX): For an Excel file, open the CSV in Excel and save it as XLSX.
• API/3rd-Party Integrations: For other formats or automated exports, use integrations or the Airtable API.

Working with Exported Data

Understanding Your Export File

Your CSV will include column headers matching your view’s fields, followed by each contact as a row of data. Important points:

• Special field types (attachments, lookups) may require manual review.
• Data will appear as plain text for straightforward import elsewhere.

Data Cleaning and Validation

Best practices:

• Review for duplicates or errors.
• Validate email and phone fields for formatting.
• Check for missing required fields.

Common Issues and Solutions

• Missing fields? Ensure they’re visible in your export view.
• Character encoding problems? Open the CSV in Google Sheets or Excel using UTF-8 encoding.
• Formatting errors? Double-check delimiters and import settings in your target application.

Alternative Export Methods

If you require more advanced exporting options:

• Airtable API: Export data to external tools using a Personal Access Token (see Airtable documentation).
• Integrations: Connect Airtable to Google Sheets, Excel, or other apps via platforms like Coupler.io, Unito, Zapier, or Make for automated or scheduled exports.
• Chrome Extensions: Some extensions (like Airtable Extractor) can export shared views to Excel or JSON.

Building Fresh Contact Databases with LinkAir

While exporting existing data is useful, sales and business development often require fresh information. LinkAir lets you instantly build new, verified contact databases by sourcing contact info directly from LinkedIn and adding it to Airtable.

Why Fresh Data Beats Exported Data

Exported contacts can become outdated quickly—people change jobs, emails, and phone numbers. Fresh, verified LinkedIn data gives you:

• More accurate outreach
• Up-to-date job positions and companies
• Less wasted time on bounced emails or invalid numbers

How LinkAir Complements Your Export Strategy

LinkAir is a Chrome extension that finds verified contact information from LinkedIn profiles and adds them directly to Airtable. By combining exports with LinkAir, you can:

• Refresh aging contact lists
• Enrich existing exported data with new fields
• Rapidly build prospect lists for sales and recruitment

Best Practices for Contact Data Management

Regular Export Schedules

Set a monthly or quarterly export schedule for your Airtable contacts as a backup or compliance measure.

Data Security and Storage

• Always store exported contact files securely—consider encrypted drives or secure cloud storage.
• Limit who has access to exported data.
• Delete outdated or unnecessary exports.

Keeping Data Current

• Periodically update your Airtable database with new or updated contacts.
• Use LinkAir to continuously add current, verified LinkedIn contacts.

Common Export Use Cases

CRM Migration

Export contacts when moving from Airtable to another CRM. Organize your data in a format that’s easily imported into your new CRM.

Data Analysis and Reporting

Export to CSV or Excel to perform detailed analysis, generate business reports, and visualize trends.

Team Distribution

Share filtered contact lists with sales, recruitment, or external partners in universally readable formats.

Compliance and Auditing

Provide data exports for regulatory compliance checks or audits.

Building Your Next Contact Database

Today’s sales teams rely on the freshest, most accurate contact information. LinkAir transforms LinkedIn profiles into verified CRM records in Airtable, reducing manual work and driving better results.

Getting Started with LinkAir

1. Install LinkAir from the Chrome Web Store.
2. Browse to a LinkedIn profile.
3. Click the LinkAir extension to find and verify contact info.
4. Add contact details to Airtable with one click.

LinkAir vs Traditional Data Sources

• Recency: LinkedIn data via LinkAir is up-to-date—the moment you add it.
• Verification: Emails and phones are verified, minimizing bounce rates.
• No manual entry: Avoid errors and save hours compared to manual CSV imports or data sourcing.

Conclusion

Exporting contacts from Airtable is simple and invaluable—for backup, migration, compliance, or business analysis. But to keep your CRM data truly current and actionable, combine exports with live, verified contacts from LinkAir.

Ready for a smarter, fresher contact database? Try LinkAir now and see how easy it is to enrich Airtable with fresh, verified LinkedIn leads. For more modern CRM tips and tools, explore Add to CRM.