Importing Subscribers with CSV Files

A comma-separated value (CSV) is the standard format for importing and exporting contacts. Gmail, Apple Mail, Outlook, and all other email software all use this format.

You can use a variety of different programs for editing or creating CSV files :

Online spreadsheet editor Google Drive / Docs
Free spreadsheet app in OpenOffice
Free Calc app in LibreOffice
Numbers for macOS

If you have an Excel spreadsheet, here's how you can save it as a CSV file:

In your Excel spreadsheet, click File.
Click Save As.
Click Browse to choose where you want to save your file.
Select "CSV" from the "Save as type" drop-down menu.
Click Save.

Imported subscribers are automatically "confirmed" and will not receive a subscription confirmation email. Consider yourself a spammer if these people never asked to be on your list. Read more.

You can import your subscribers by going to the MailPoet > Subscribers page and clicking the "Import" button:

Here's an example of a sample CSV file:

Email, First Name, Last Name
john@doe.com, John, Doe
mary@smith.com, Mary, Smith
johnny@walker.com, Johnny, Walker

Do note that semicolons or tabs can sometimes be used instead of a comma.

If column headings are available, MailPoet will try to match headings with existing fields. Using the above CSV example, the following matches will be made:

Importing custom fields

MailPoet allows you to import custom fields that can be used to personalize your newsletter. If the custom field does not exist, you can create one during the import process. For example, we'll create and name a new "city" field:

Result:

If you want to create a new value for a custom field during an import, a workaround is to create that custom field along with the value for that field in a Subscription form. The value will then be selected in the subscriber's profile after the subscriber is imported with the custom field.

Changing Subscribers Status

Once the tables with the subscribers are showing up, you can then modify a few options at the bottom before running the import. You can first pick what list(s) you'd like your subscribers to be added to. The list can be created beforehand or you can create it on the go:

Then, you can select the status of your subscribers after the import. You can select between "Subscribed", "Inactive", and "Unsubscribed" for new and existing subscribers. In the case of existing ones, you can select "Don't update" if you don't wish to modify their current status after importing:

Importing existing subscribers

Importing an already existing email address will not duplicate it. By default, MailPoet will update your subscribers' data unless you turn that option off: