How to create a Mailing List in CiviCRM using email addresses from a Spreadsheet, step by step guide

Here are the step-by-step instructions to create your new mailing list, prepare your spreadsheet, and import the email addresses into CiviCRM.

Part 1: Create a New Mailing List Group in CiviCRM

This section will guide you through creating a dedicated group in CiviCRM for your new mailing list.

1. Log in to CiviCRM:

   • Go to your CiviCRM login page (you should have this link from your administrator).

   • Enter your Username and Password.

   • Click Log in.

2. Navigate to Groups:

   • Once logged in, look for the main navigation menu at the top or side of the screen.

   • Hover your mouse over "Contacts".

   • In the dropdown menu that appears, click on "Groups".

3. Add a New Group:

   • On the "Manage Groups" page, you will see a list of existing groups.

   • Look for a button that says "Add Group" or "New Group". Click on it.

4. Enter Group Details:

   • Title: Type a clear and descriptive name for your mailing list. For example, "Newsletter Subscribers - August 2025" or "Event Attendees - Fall Conference". This is the name your group will be known by in CiviCRM.

   • Group Type: Make sure "Mailing List" is selected or select it if there are other options.

   • Description (Optional): You can add a brief description if you wish, for example, "List of people who signed up for our latest newsletter."

   • Visibility: For a mailing list, usually, you'll want to choose "Public Pages" or "User and User Admin". If you're unsure, "User and User Admin" is a safe choice as it means it's visible within CiviCRM for users and administrators.

   • Leave other settings as default unless you have specific instructions from your administrator.

5. Save Your New Group:

   • Scroll to the bottom of the page and click the "Save" button.

   • You should see a confirmation message that your group has been created successfully.

Part 2: Save Your Spreadsheet as a CSV File (Using Microsoft Excel)

Before you can import your email addresses into CiviCRM, your spreadsheet needs to be in a specific format called CSV (Comma Separated Values).

1. Open Your Spreadsheet in Microsoft Excel:

   • Locate the spreadsheet file you want to use and open it with Microsoft Excel.

2. Organize Your Data (Important!):

   • Make sure your spreadsheet has clear column headings (e.g., "First Name", "Last Name", "Email Address").

   • Crucially, ensure that all email addresses are in a single column.

   • If you have other information (like first name, last name), it's best to have separate columns for each piece of information.

3. Go to "File" Menu:

   • In Excel, click on "File" in the top-left corner.

4. Select "Save As":

   • From the "File" menu, click on "Save As".

5. Choose a Location:

   • Click "Browse" (or similar option) to choose where you want to save the file on your computer (e.g., your Desktop or Documents folder). Remember this location!

6. Select "Save as type":

   • In the "Save As" window, there will be a dropdown menu next to "Save as type:" (or "Format:" depending on your Excel version).

   • Click on this dropdown menu.

   • Scroll through the options and select "CSV (Comma delimited) (*.csv)". It might also appear as "Comma Separated Values" or "CSV UTF-8 (Comma delimited)". Choose any option that says "CSV" and "Comma delimited".

7. Give Your File a Name:

   • In the "File name:" box, give your CSV file a memorable name (e.g., "NewMailingListImport.csv").

8. Click "Save":

   • Click the "Save" button.

   • Important Pop-up: Excel might show a message like "Some features in your workbook might be lost if you save it as a CSV (Comma delimited)." This is normal and okay for our purpose. Click "Yes" or "OK" to proceed.

Part 3: Import CSV as Contacts and Add to the New Mailing List Group in CiviCRM

Now, you will use CiviCRM's import tool to bring in your contacts and automatically add them to the group you created.

1. Log in to CiviCRM (if you're not already):

   • Follow the steps in Part 1, Step 1 if you are logged out.

2. Navigate to Import Contacts:

   • Hover your mouse over "Contacts".

   • In the dropdown menu, click on "Import Contacts".

3. Select Your CSV File:

   • On the "Import Contacts" page, make sure "Import Type" is set to "New Contacts".

   • Click the "Choose File" or "Browse..." button.

   • Navigate to where you saved your CSV file (from Part 2, Step 5).

   • Select your CSV file (e.g., "NewMailingListImport.csv") and click "Open".

4. Review Import Settings (Step 1 of 4):

   • Data Type: Leave as "Contact".

   • File Type: Should be "Comma Separated Values (CSV)".

   • Character Set: Usually "UTF-8" is correct. If you encounter strange characters later, you might try a different one (like "ISO-8859-1"), but UTF-8 is standard.

   • Does the first row contain column headers? YES, this should always be checked. This tells CiviCRM to use your spreadsheet's column names.

   • Click "Continue".

5. Map Fields (Step 2 of 4):

   • This is a crucial step! CiviCRM needs to know which column in your spreadsheet corresponds to which field in CiviCRM.

   • On the left, you'll see "Your Fields" (these are your spreadsheet's column headings). On the right, you'll see "CiviCRM Fields".

   • Match them up:

     • If you have a column named "Email Address" in your spreadsheet, select "Email (Main)" from the CiviCRM Fields dropdown next to it.

     • If you have "First Name", select "First Name".

     • If you have "Last Name", select "Last Name".

     • Important: You must at least map the Email Address field. If a contact only has an email, CiviCRM will create a "Partial Contact" for them.

     • If you have columns you don't need to import (e.g., "Notes" or "ID numbers" from your old system), leave the CiviCRM Field dropdown as "-- do not import --".

   • Scroll down and click "Continue".

6. Pre-Import Data Review (Step 3 of 4):

   • CiviCRM will show you a preview of how your data will be imported.

   • Review this carefully! Look for any errors or strange formatting.

   • If something looks wrong, click "Previous" to go back and adjust your mapping or CSV file.

   • Dedupe Rules: Look at the "Matching Rule" or "Dedupe Rule" section. This tells CiviCRM how to avoid creating duplicate contacts. The default "Email" rule is usually good, as it prevents importing a new contact if an existing contact already has that email address. If you're confident you have no duplicates, you can choose "No Dedupe Rule", but it's generally safer to use a dedupe rule.

   • On Duplicate: For new imports, "Skip" or "Update" usually makes sense. "Skip" means if a contact with that email already exists, it won't import the new record. "Update" means if a contact with that email exists, it will update their information with what's in your spreadsheet. For this initial import, "Skip" is often a good choice to avoid accidental updates.

   • Add to Group: This is the most important part for your mailing list!

     • Find the section titled "Add new contacts to the following groups".

     • Click the checkbox next to the name of the mailing list group you created in Part 1 (e.g., "Newsletter Subscribers - August 2025").

   • Click "Continue".

7. Confirm and Import (Step 4 of 4):

   • This is the final step! You'll see a summary of what will be imported.

   • Double-check that the "Add to Group" section correctly lists your new group.

   • Click the "Import" button.

8. Import Confirmation:

   • CiviCRM will process the import. Once complete, you will see a confirmation message indicating how many contacts were added, updated, or skipped.

You're Done!

Your contacts should now be in CiviCRM and added to your new mailing list group. You can verify this by:

• Going to "Contacts" > "Manage Contacts" and searching for some of the imported email addresses.

• Going to "Contacts" > "Groups" and clicking on your new group's name. You should see the imported contacts listed there.

If you encounter any issues or have questions at any point, please don't hesitate to contact us.