Contact Import Formatter

CiviCRM Contact Import Formatter — How to Use

Importing contacts into CiviCRM from a CSV file is one of the most common tasks for nonprofit administrators and data migration consultants. However, CiviCRM's import wizard is strict about column headers, date formats, and required fields. A single misnamed column can cause hundreds of records to fail silently.

This tool lets you paste or upload your CSV data, then map each column to the correct CiviCRM field name. As you map columns, it automatically validates the data — flagging full names that should be split into first/last, phone numbers without digits, invalid email formats, and unrecognized country names.

Common Import Mistakes This Tool Prevents

• Full name in one column — CiviCRM expects separate first_name and last_name fields for Individual contacts. A "Full Name" column will not map correctly.
• Non-standard country names — CiviCRM uses ISO country names. "USA" will fail; use "United States" instead.
• Invalid phone numbers — Entries with no digits (e.g., "N/A", "unknown") should be cleaned or skipped before import.
• Bad email formats — CiviCRM validates email syntax on import. Rows with malformed emails will be rejected.

CiviCRM Import Field Names

CiviCRM's import wizard looks for specific column headers: first_name, last_name, email, phone, street_address, city, state_province, postal_code, country, birth_date, gender, and external_identifier. This tool outputs the correct header names so your import will match CiviCRM's expected format.