Importing Your Deals from Pipedrive: A 10-Minute Migration Guide

Migration anxiety is real. You've spent months building your pipeline in Pipedrive, and the thought of losing deals, contacts, or conversation history keeps you locked into a platform that's costing you more than it should. But data migration doesn't have to be scary—with the right approach, you can switch from Pipedrive in under an hour with zero data loss.

This step-by-step guide walks you through the exact process: what to export, how to clean your data, and how to import everything into your new CRM without breaking your workflow. For context on why teams are leaving, see our Pipedrive Alternative Guide.

Pre-Migration Checklist: What to Document

Before exporting anything, document your current Pipedrive setup. You'll need this information to rebuild workflows in your new CRM.

Critical Information to Capture:

• Pipeline stages: List all deal stages and their order (Lead → Qualified → Proposal → Negotiation → Won)
• Custom fields: Screenshot every custom field with its name, type, and options (especially dropdowns)
• Automations: Document workflow rules (e.g., "When deal reaches Proposal stage, assign to Sarah")
• Email templates: Export or copy/paste your most-used templates
• Filters and views: Note your custom filters (e.g., "Deals over $10k closing this quarter")
• Integrations: List connected tools (Zapier, Slack, email accounts)

This documentation prevents post-migration surprises. You'll know exactly what needs to be recreated in your new system.

Step 1: Export Deals from Pipedrive

Pipedrive allows CSV exports for deals, contacts, and activities. Here's the exact process:

Exporting Deals:

1. Navigate to Deals: Go to Pipeline view or List view
2. Apply filters: If you only want active deals, filter by status. To get everything, remove all filters
3. Click Actions → Export: Top-right corner of the deals page
4. Select fields: Choose "All fields" to ensure nothing is missed
5. Download CSV: File will include deal titles, values, stages, owners, dates, and custom fields

Exporting Contacts (People + Organizations):

1. Go to Contacts: Select "People" or "Organizations" tab
2. Export each separately: People and Organizations are different entities in Pipedrive
3. Include all fields: Email, phone, custom fields, tags

Exporting Activities (Notes, Calls, Meetings):

Pipedrive's activity export is limited. You can export activity data, but it won't include full note text or email threads. This is a known limitation—most teams only migrate recent activities manually or accept that older activity history will live in Pipedrive archives.

Handling File Attachments:

Files attached to deals aren't included in CSV exports. You'll need to manually download critical documents before migration. Most teams only migrate recent files (last 90 days) to avoid unnecessary bloat.

Step 2: Clean Your Data Before Import

Never import dirty data. Use this opportunity to clean up years of cruft.

Data Cleanup Tasks:

• Remove dead leads: Delete contacts with no activity in 2+ years
• Fix duplicates: Use Excel's "Remove Duplicates" or Google Sheets to merge duplicate contacts
• Standardize formatting: Phone numbers should follow one format (e.g., +1-555-123-4567)
• Fill missing data: Add company names, fix email typos, complete incomplete records
• Validate deal values: Ensure currency symbols match (all USD or all EUR, not mixed)

Clean data imports faster and reduces post-migration troubleshooting.

Step 3: Import into Your New CRM

Most modern CRMs offer CSV import with field mapping. Here's the process when you switch from Pipedrive:

Field Mapping:

Your new CRM will ask you to map Pipedrive fields to its own fields. Common mappings:

Pipedrive Field	New CRM Field
Deal Title	Deal Name / Opportunity Name
Deal Value	Amount / Value
Deal Stage	Pipeline Stage
Person Name	Contact Name
Organization Name	Company Name / Account Name
Owner	Assigned To / Deal Owner

Custom Fields:

Create custom fields in your new CRM before importing. Match field types exactly:

• Pipedrive text field → New CRM text field
• Pipedrive dropdown → New CRM dropdown (with same options)
• Pipedrive date → New CRM date field

Mismatched field types cause import failures or data corruption.

Test Import First:

Most CRMs allow test imports with 10-50 records. Always test before running the full migration. Check:

• Do deal values import correctly?
• Are contacts linked to the right companies?
• Did custom field data come through?
• Are dates formatted correctly (MM/DD/YYYY vs DD/MM/YYYY)?

Fix issues in your CSV, then run the full import.

Step 4: Post-Migration Verification

Don't celebrate yet. Run these checks to ensure nothing broke:

Spot-Check Records:

• Pick 10 random deals and verify all data migrated correctly
• Check high-value deals (your biggest opportunities) manually
• Verify contact emails match (typos here break email campaigns)

Rebuild Automations:

Your Pipedrive automations don't transfer. Use your pre-migration documentation to recreate workflows in your new CRM. This is also a good time to eliminate unnecessary automations—most teams find they only need half of what they had.

Test Email Sync:

If you're syncing Gmail or Outlook, send a test email to a migrated contact and verify it logs in the CRM correctly.

Train Your Team:

Schedule a 30-minute walkthrough for your team. Show them:

• Where to find deals and contacts
• How to update deal stages
• Where activity logs are
• How to use new features (especially if your new CRM includes email marketing or AI sequences)

Common Migration Mistakes to Avoid

1. Skipping Data Cleanup

Importing 10 years of dead leads clogs your new CRM and makes it harder to find active prospects. Clean before you migrate.

2. Not Testing First

Running a full import without testing is how teams lose data. Always do a 50-record test import first.

3. Forgetting to Recreate Custom Fields

If you import before creating custom fields in your new CRM, that data will be lost. Create fields first, then import.

4. Migrating Everything at Once

Some teams try to migrate deals, contacts, activities, and files simultaneously. Break it into phases: Contacts → Deals → Activities. This reduces complexity and makes troubleshooting easier.

5. Not Documenting Pipeline Stages

If you don't recreate your exact pipeline stages before importing deals, all your deals will land in "Stage 1." Document stages first.

Frequently Asked Questions

Next Steps

Migration is easier than you think. The hardest part is committing to the switch. Once you've decided to switch from Pipedrive, the actual process is straightforward: export, clean, import, verify.

If you're evaluating alternatives, look for platforms with guided import tools and dedicated migration support. For a full comparison of what you gain by switching, see our Pipedrive Alternative Guide—it breaks down every feature and shows exactly what you're missing.