### [How to Export Form Entries to CSV in WordPress](https://wpforms.com/how-to-export-wordpress-form-entries-to-csv/) **Published:** October 16, 2020 **Author:** Hamza Shahid **Excerpt:** Do you want to export your WordPress form entries to a CSV file? Exporting to CSV lets you easily use your WordPress form data in other applications. Having your form data in a downloadable file makes it much easier to review, share, and organize. You can sort entries, filter details, or just keep a backup on hand. And honestly, it's way easier than most people think. You don't need to mess with any complicated code or plugins that do too much. In this article, I'll show you the easy way to export your WordPress form entries to CSV. You can also use this method to open contact form entries in Excel. **Content:** Do you want to export your WordPress form entries to a CSV file? Exporting to CSV lets you easily use your WordPress form data in other applications. Having your form data in a downloadable file makes it much easier to review, share, and organize. You can sort entries, filter details, or just keep a backup on hand. And honestly, it’s way easier than most people think. You don’t need to mess with any complicated code or plugins that do too much. In this article, I’ll show you the easy way to export your WordPress form entries to CSV. You can also use this method to open contact form entries in Excel. [Export Form Entries to CSV Now! 🙂](https://wpforms.com/pricing/) **Quick Guide** If you already have WPForms installed and are familiar with its interface, here’s the short version. - Open your WordPress dashboard and select **WPForms » Entries** from the left-hand menu. - Select the form whose entries you want to export. - Click on the **Export All (CSV)** button. - Use the checkboxes to select the form fields and metadata you’d like to include in the CSV export file. - Click on the **Download Export File** button (you can open the CSV file in Excel). Want to automate this instead? Skip ahead to Step 6 for scheduled CSV exports using the Entry Automation addon. [Get CSV Exports for Entries with WPForms Pro 🚀](https://wpforms.com/pricing/) ## How to Export Form Entries to CSV in WordPress If you’re new to WPForms, the steps below provide a complete, step-by-step tutorial for exporting WordPress form entry data to CSV. But first, let’s start by checking to make sure we have everything set up. ### Step 1: Install the WPForms Plugin The easiest way to export WordPress form submissions to CSV is with the [WPForms plugin](https://wpforms.com/pricing/). Its drag-and-drop interface makes it easy to create any kind of form and the [2,100+ form templates](https://wpforms.com/templates/) are perfect for getting started immediately. WPForms gives you extensive export options. You can either export complete forms at once or pull data from individual forms. You can also use it to move your information from WordPress to CRMs and custom applications. To make this as easy as possible, WPForms lets you quickly export individual form submissions to Excel, or export all of the entries from a form in 1 file. To export entries to CSV, you’ll need the [WPForms Basic license](https://wpforms.com/pricing/) or higher. [![The WPForms pricing page. ](https://wpforms.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/WPForms-Pricing-Page.png)](https://wpforms.com/pricing/)The most common file format for exporting form entries is CSV. The CSV file format is compatible with Excel, Google Sheets, and the Numbers app on Macs (though XML export isn’t supported by WPForms). After buying the plugin, click the download link in your WPForms account. Download the zip file to your computer. Then, in the WordPress admin area, navigate to **Plugins » Add New**. Upload the zip file to complete the installation. If you need help getting WPForms installed, here’s a [beginner’s guide to installing the plugin in WordPress](https://wpforms.com/docs/install-wpforms-plugin/) that will help you get set up. All done? Great. Now, we need to create a form. [Upgrade to WPForms Pro Now! 🙂](https://wpforms.com/pricing/) ### Step 2: Create a Simple Contact Form Next, you’ll need to publish a form on your WordPress website so you can get some entries. To do that, check out this guide to creating a [simple contact form](https://wpforms.com/how-to-create-a-simple-contact-form-in-wordpress/). It’ll show you how to publish a contact form on a WordPress page in less than 5 minutes. You don’t need to copy and paste any HTML to create your form. ![End the WPForms challenge](https://wpforms.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/end-wpforms-challenge.png)Don’t forget that you can use [smart conditional logic](https://wpforms.com/features/conditional-logic/) so that your forms are easier to fill out. When your form is complete, use the Embed button to embed it in a new page. You can also [publish your form in the sidebar](https://wpforms.com/how-to-add-a-contact-form-in-wordpress-sidebar-widget/) with a shortcode if you prefer. Now, we’ll just need to wait until we have a few entries in WordPress. You can go ahead and submit a few test entries or wait for a few visitors to fill out your form. Once you have some entries, it’s time to export them to CSV. ### Step 3: Export All Contact Form Entries to CSV Let’s log in to the WordPress dashboard so we can export our form entries. In this section, we’re going to export all of the entries from 1 form at the same time. Start by clicking **WPForms » Entries**. ![Opening the WPForms Entries page in the WordPress admin area](https://wpforms.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/wpforms-entries.png)Now you can see a list of all your forms. Scroll down and click on the name of the form you want to work with. To get started with the export, click **Export All** in the menu at the top. ![export entries wpforms](https://wpforms.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/export-entries-wpforms-1024x512.png)WPForms will open the Export page with a list of options. Let’s step through them one by one. #### Select Specific Fields and Form Metadata for Export Under **Form Fields**, select the fields that you want to include in your CSV export file. You can also check the checkboxes under **Additional Information** if you want to include metadata like the Entry Date or visitor IP address. ![Choose the fields to include in your WordPress CSV Excel export](https://wpforms.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/choose-csv-fields-export-excel.png)Now, let’s scroll down again to the **Export Option**s section. This is where you can control if you’d like to export entries as a Microsoft Excel file or a CSV. To download the export file as a CSV, simply leave the Export in Microsoft Excel (.xlsx) option unchecked. ![Exporting entries as a Microsoft Excel file](https://wpforms.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/export-entries-microsoft-excel.png)If your form includes a multiple choice field like Checkboxes, Dropdown, or Multiple Choices, you might see an additional option called **Separate Dynamic Choices into Individual Columns**. Checking this option will insert the selected choices into separate columns. ![Export options with dynamic choices option](https://wpforms.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/export-options.png)Remember that this field will only be available if you’ve received entries with multiple answers selected for a single field. Once you’re done here, let’s scroll to the next section. Under **Custom Date Range**, you can set a start date and an end date for the export if you want to. If you don’t want to use this, just scroll past. ![custom range export](https://wpforms.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/custom-range-export-983x1024.png)Now scroll down again to **Search**. This lets you filter your export file by field. For example, you could choose **Name** from the dropdown and type “Sullie” into the field provided to export only the contact form entries with the name Sullie in them. ![Use the search field to filter your CSV export file](https://wpforms.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/search-filter-csv-export-wordpress.png)We’ll actually leave this field blank for this export. OK, now we’re ready to click the orange **Download Export File** button. This will create the file and download the contact form entries to your computer. Once the export is finished, you’ll see a success message like this one. ![A form entries success message](https://wpforms.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/entries-export-success-message.png)Great! Now, you can open the exported WordPress form data CSV file in Excel or another spreadsheet program. So we’re done with step 3. But what if we only want to export 1 entry? You could use the search feature to filter the export, but there’s an easier method. Let’s look at the best way to export individual form entries to CSV. ### Step 4: Export an Individual Form Entry to CSV for Download Back in the WordPress dashboard, we’re going to show you how to export a specific WordPress form submission in WordPress. Begin by going to **WPForms » Entries** and clicking the form name as you did before. You’ll see all of the entries for your form here. If you like, you can use the filters at the top to find the entry you want. Next to the entry you want to export, click **View**. ![view entry wpforms](https://wpforms.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/view-entry-wpforms-1024x512.png)And now the entry’s open, let’s click the **Export (CSV)** link on the right. ![export entry to csv](https://wpforms.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/export-entry-to-csv-1024x855.png)WPForms will generate the export file just like before, and it’ll be downloaded in your browser. ### Step 5: Export an Individual Form Entry to CSV by Email The last way WPForms lets you export form entries to CSV is by including an entry CSV file in your form’s email notifications. This is one way to you can export form entries to CSV automatically. To set up entry CSV email notifications, open the form whose entries you want to receive in the form builder. Then click on the **Settings** tab on the left side of the builder and select **Notifications**. ![Accessing a form's notifications settings](https://wpforms.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/09/notifications-settings.png)If you haven’t already, you can customize your form’s email notifications here. Then click on the **Advanced** section to expand more settings and toggle on the **Enable Entry CSV Attachment** option. ![Enabling entry CSV attachments for an email notification](https://wpforms.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/enable-entry-csv-attachment.png)Next, use the multi-select dropdown to choose which fields and other entry information you want to include in your CSV file. ![Selecting what information to include in an entry CSV file](https://wpforms.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/entry-csv-attachment-information.png)And finally, you can change the default file name if you’d like to. Keep in mind that this file name will be used for all entries for this form. ![Naming the entry CSV attachment file](https://wpforms.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/entry-csv-attachment-file-name.png) ![Osama Tahir, Senior Writer at WPForms](https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/b32464525e95eb6ddc6d74529a78b6fc?s=180&d=mm&r=g) “💡 Pro Tip: Try to add only those fields in your CSV attachment that include the most critical information. This helps in focusing on essential data that matters without unnecessary clutter.” -Osama Tahir, Senior Writer at WPForms Once you’re done, make sure to click **Save** at the the top of the form builder. Your next email notification for this form should include a CSV file attachment with the entry information you specified. To make sure everything is working properly, we recommend [submitting a test entry](https://wpforms.com/form-testing-checklist/). ### Step 6: Automate Your CSV Exports The steps above all involve manual downloads. If you want your form entry data exported automatically, WPForms gives you a few ways to set that up. **Entry Automation Addon (Elite)** The [Entry Automation addon](https://wpforms.com/features/entry-automation-addon/) lets you schedule recurring CSV exports on a daily, weekly, or monthly basis. You pick the form, choose which fields to include, and select a destination. WPForms can deliver the exported files to your email, Google Drive, Dropbox, or an FTP server. This is especially useful if you need regular reports or want to keep an external system in sync with your form data without logging into WordPress every time. You can [automate your entry exports](https://wpforms.com/how-to-automate-your-wpforms-entry-export/) with a full walkthrough. ![export to dropdown automation](https://wpforms.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/export-to-dropdown-1024x396.png)**Google Sheets Addon (Pro)** If your goal is to get form entries into a spreadsheet automatically, the [Google Sheets addon](https://wpforms.com/features/google-sheets-addon/) pushes every new submission to a Google Sheets spreadsheet in real time. From there, you can download it as CSV whenever you need to. This skips the manual export step entirely. New entries appear in your spreadsheet the moment someone submits the form. ![form entry google sheets](https://wpforms.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/form-entry-google-sheets-1024x267.png)**Zapier and Webhooks** For more advanced workflows, you can connect WPForms to thousands of apps using the Zapier addon or send form data to any endpoint with the Webhooks addon. Both are covered in the FAQ section below. ### Bonus: Exporting Other Kinds of Information from WordPress Apart from form entries, you might want to export other types of data from WordPress. For example: - If you want to open a list of WordPress users in Excel, you can [export a CSV of your user data](https://www.wpbeginner.com/plugins/how-to-export-wordpress-users-data-to-a-csv-file/). - To export product information from WooCommerce, you can use a plugin called Product Import Export. It’s one of the best WooCommerce plugins if you want to [start an online store](https://wpforms.com/how-to-start-an-online-store/). And that’s it! Now you know all about how to export form entries in CSV or Excel file format in WordPress. Now let’s look at some of the most common questions about CSV exports in WordPress. ### Frequently Asked Questions on WordPress CSV Exports Are you having issues exporting form entries in WordPress? This FAQ covers the most common questions we get. Don’t forget that you can [reach out to the WPForms support team](https://wpforms.com/account/support/) if you have a question that isn’t answered here. #### Can I export entries to CSV in the free version of WPForms? WPForms Lite is designed to send email notifications for new form entries. It doesn’t save entries in the WordPress database, so it isn’t possible to export them. However, you can turn on the [Lite Connect](https://wpforms.com/docs/how-to-use-lite-connect-for-wpforms/) feature to back up your entries to the cloud while you’re using the free version of the plugin. This lets you unlock your form submissions after you upgrade to the paid plugin. If you upgrade from the free version of WPForms to [any of our paid licenses](https://wpforms.com/pricing/), you’ll be able to view and export entries from the point you turned on Lite Connect. Then you can export form entries in WordPress individually or in bulk. #### Does exporting form entries to CSV delete them from the WordPress database? No, your entries won’t be deleted. You can [delete form entries](https://wpforms.com/docs/how-to-delete-all-entries-for-a-form/) manually if you want to remove them from the WordPress database after the export is complete. #### Can I export form entries in real-time to a CRM? Yes, you can use the [WPForms webhooks addon](https://wpforms.com/addons/webhooks-addon/) to export leads in real-time using HTTP POST. To see how this works, check out our [webhooks documentation](https://wpforms.com/docs/how-to-install-and-use-the-webhooks-addon-with-wpforms/). If you’d like to use a less technical method, you can use the WPForms Zapier addon to export your leads to a CRM. Here’s a guide to [exporting form entries to Zoho CRM with Zapier](https://wpforms.com/zoho-forms-wordpress/). You can also use [Uncanny Automator](https://automatorplugin.com/) to easily export form entries to FluentCRM. #### Can editors export WordPress form entries to CSV? To export form entries using WPForms, you’ll need an Administrator account in WordPress. If you want Editors to be able to export form data to CSV, you’ll want to [grant them Editor access to WPForms](https://wpforms.com/docs/how-to-make-wpforms-available-to-editors/). We recommend that you read this [guide to using code snippets](https://www.wpbeginner.com/plugins/how-to-easily-add-custom-code-in-wordpress-without-breaking-your-site/) that explains the easiest way to add code to your site. #### Why do First Name and Last Name appear in the same cell in Excel? When you use WPForms as a WordPress form to Excel plugin, the name is stored in 1 field in the export. If you prefer to have the first name and last name in 2 separate cells, you can use a Single Line Text field for each part of the name on your form. Then, you can use our easy [multi-column layout](https://wpforms.com/docs/how-to-create-multi-column-form-layouts-in-wpforms/) buttons to place the fields side-by-side on your form. ![Putting a field in the left-hand column of a two-column layout](https://wpforms.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/two-column-layout-first-column.png)When you’ve done that, don’t forget to change the labels on the Single Line Text fields to **First Name** and **Last Name**. #### Are electronic signatures or file uploads included in the CSV export file? Yes, WPForms includes links to uploaded files in the CSV file so you can download them easily. If you’re using the [Signature addon](https://wpforms.com/addons/signature-addon/), you’ll see a link to an image of the signature for each entry in the CSV file. This will be super helpful if you’ve created [online contracts in WordPress](https://wpforms.com/how-to-create-service-agreements-in-wordpress-with-digital-signatures/). #### Why are columns missing leading zeros when I open the CSV export in Excel? In a CSV file, numbers will be exported with leading zeros if they were entered that way in the form. But when you open the CSV in a spreadsheet program like Excel, you may find that the leading zeros are not displayed. To fix this, you’ll want to use the Format Cells tool in Excel to change the number format. The format you need to use will vary depending on the type of data in the column. #### When I export WordPress form entries, why are they split into multiple rows in the CSV export file? By default, WPForms uses the comma `,` as a delimiter in the CSV export. This can cause issues in some versions of Excel. If this causes problems with the formatting of your entries, you can [change the delimiter used in the CSV export file](https://wpforms.com/developers/how-to-change-csv-export-delimiter/). #### How do I remove line breaks from my CSV export file? Sometimes you might want to remove line breaks in the CSV file. For example, in some versions of Excel, line breaks can cause multiple checkbox selections to appear in 1 cell. To fix this, use the following code snippet to remove the line breaks from your file: If you’re not sure how to use this code, check out this [guide to using code snippets](https://www.wpbeginner.com/plugins/how-to-easily-add-custom-code-in-wordpress-without-breaking-your-site/) that explains the safest and easiest way to add code in WordPress. ### Next, Export Your WordPress Forms Do you want to export your forms from the WPForms plugin and use them on other websites? WPForms can import and export forms from many WordPress form plugins. To find out how to do this, read [how to import a contact form in WordPress](https://wpforms.com/how-to-easily-import-a-contact-form-in-wordpress/). Want to export directly to Microsoft Excel as .xlsx files? Check out our guide on [how to export form entries into Excel](https://wpforms.com/how-to-export-wordpress-form-entries-to-excel/). [Build Your WordPress Form Now](https://wpforms.com/pricing/) Ready to build your form? Get started today with the easiest WordPress form builder plugin. [WPForms Pro](https://wpforms.com/pricing) includes lots of free templates and offers a 14-day money-back guarantee. If this article helped you out, please follow us on [Facebook](https://facebook.com/wpforms) and [Twitter](https://twitter.com/easywpforms) for more free WordPress tutorials and guides. **Categories:** WordPress Tutorials **Tags:** csv, export, form entries, import ---