# Export and duplicates

Download your CRM records as CSV files, merge contacts saved twice, and decide whose conversation an unmatched chat is.

Updated Oct 28, 2026. Source: https://smallbusinesschatbot.com/docs/user-guides/crm/export-and-duplicates

## What this does

The **Export CRM data** card in the Small Business Chatbot CRM settings downloads your records as CSV files. The **Needs review** tab holds decisions for you to make: contacts that share a phone or email, and chats whose details don't clearly match one contact. Nothing there changes until you confirm.

## Export your records

1. **Open the export**

   In the app, open **[CRM › Contacts](https://smallbusinesschatbot.com/app?panel=contacts)**, click the **Settings** tab, then click **Export data** on the **Export CRM data** card.

   ![The export setup with Contacts ticked, a timezone, date filters and the Review export button](https://smallbusinesschatbot.com/static/images/docs/user-guides/export-and-duplicates-export-2026-10-28.webp)
   *CRM › Contacts › Settings, October 2026*

2. **Choose the records**

   Tick one or more of **Contacts**, **Companies**, **Opportunities**, **Tasks**, **Notes**, **Activity history** and **Pipelines and stages**. Check the **Timezone**, which the date filters use.

3. **Filter and pick columns**

   Each record type has its own date filters, **More filters** such as status, tags or archived records, and **Columns**. A filter on one type leaves the other types as they are.

4. **Review the export**

   Click **Review export**. This is a preview: the app shows how many records match each type, with up to ten sample rows. The file is made in the next step.

   ![The export review with the number of matching contacts and three sample rows](https://smallbusinesschatbot.com/static/images/docs/user-guides/export-and-duplicates-review-2026-10-28.webp)
   *CRM › Contacts › Settings, October 2026*

5. **Download it**

   Click **Export and prepare download** to create the file. **Export history** opens. When the export reads **Ready**, click **Download**.

One record type downloads as a CSV file. Several record types, or **Pipelines and stages** on its own, download as a ZIP of CSV files. An export holds up to 100,000 rows, one export runs at a time, and a download link expires after 24 hours. **Use choices again** reloads an earlier export's choices.

> **Tip:** When you open the file in Excel, import phone numbers and IDs as text so they keep every digit.

## Merge duplicate contacts

The **Needs review** tab appears next to **Contacts** when something is waiting, with a count beside it.

1. **Open Needs review**

   In the app, open **CRM › Contacts** and click **Needs review**. Under **Duplicate contacts**, each group names the email address or phone number its contacts share.

2. **Pick the contact to keep**

   Click the contact to keep. The app counts the opportunities, notes, tasks, activity records and conversations that will move onto it.

3. **Merge**

   Click **Merge N duplicates**, then confirm. The other contacts leave your list, and everything saved on them moves to the one you kept.

> **Careful:** A merge is permanent.

If more than one of the contacts is in an active sequence, choose the one to keep under **Active sequence impact**. The others stop and their open tasks are cancelled.

The kept contact keeps every opt-out box that was checked on any of the merged contacts. [Opt-outs and STOP](https://smallbusinesschatbot.com/docs/user-guides/texting/opt-outs-and-stop) covers those boxes.

## Link a conversation to a contact

Under **Conversations to link**, each card is a chat whose details didn't clearly match one contact. **Why this needs review** gives the reason. Pick an option, then click the button under it.

| Option | What happens | Button |
|---|---|---|
| **Link to** a listed contact | The conversation moves to that contact. Later chats from this visitor link there on their own. | **Link conversation** |
| **Create a new, separate contact** | A new contact is made for this visitor. | **Create new contact** |
| **Leave unlinked** | The conversation stays out of the CRM, and the app stops suggesting these contacts for this visitor. | **Leave unlinked** |

If several people share the email or phone, such as a family or office inbox, tick the box under the options. The app then stops using it to match the listed contacts, other than one you link to.

## Move records to another CRM

To move your records once, export them here and import them in the other CRM. To keep sending new ones, use an [HTTP request](https://smallbusinesschatbot.com/docs/integrations/automation/http-request) step or [Zapier](https://smallbusinesschatbot.com/docs/integrations/automation/zapier).

## If something goes wrong

| What you see | Why | What to do |
|---|---|---|
| **Choose at least one object.** | No record type is ticked. | Tick at least one record type. |
| **No records match. Adjust the filters before exporting.** | The filters leave nothing. | Remove a filter or widen a date range. |
| **Too many records. Narrow the filters to stay within the export limit.** | More than 100,000 rows match. | Export one record type or a shorter date range at a time. |
| **Choose which active sequence to keep before merging these contacts.** | More than one of the contacts is in a running sequence. | Pick one under **Active sequence impact**, then merge. |