CRM Data
Exporting your contacts
Taking a contact list out as a spreadsheet, the permission it needs, and what to think about before you do.
Last updated September 2, 2026
Export on the contacts list takes what you are looking at out as a spreadsheet — the filtered list, not the whole database. Filter first, then export.
The permission
Exporting needs Export CRM, which is held separately from the ordinary CRM permissions. That is deliberate: everything else in the CRM keeps data inside Gorilla Dash, and an export takes a copy of your customer list out of it.
If the button is not there, the role does not hold the permission. An administrator can add it to the role — worth doing consciously rather than by default.
Large exports
A big export is prepared in the background and emailed to you as a download link rather than downloading immediately. Nothing has gone wrong if the file does not appear at once.
Before you export
Better alternatives
- Sharing a list with a colleague — use a shared saved view.
- Reporting on activity — use the Activity Report.
- Calling a set of people — build a call list.
- A mail-out — use email marketing, which handles consent and unsubscribes properly.