How to Import Excel Into ClickUp

You can import Excel into ClickUp without retyping the tracker. ClickUp's Spreadsheets importer takes an Excel or CSV file, maps each column to a task field or a custom field, and creates tasks in a Space, Folder, or List you choose. One row is one task. Task name is the only required column. A file larger than 10,000 rows has to be split before you upload it.

This is the spreadsheet path. If you are leaving Trello, Asana, monday.com, or another app that has its own importer, use that path in how to switch to ClickUp and come back here for the sheet. The ClickUp hub links both.

Which files can you import?

ClickUp Help lists these formats for the Spreadsheet importer:

There is a 10,000-row limit. Help says to break a larger file into batches of at most 10,000 rows each.

A Google Sheet is not a direct upload. Help says to export it to one of the supported formats, then import the file.

The importer brings cell values through the fields you map. It does not bring the workbook's presentation:

• Hyperlink objects and friendly link text do not carry over. Put the raw URL in its own column and map it to Website or Text.
• Cell comments and notes are not imported.
• Bold, colors, merged cells, and other visual formatting are not imported.
• Embedded images and files are not imported. The Files custom field is unsupported.
• Task descriptions import as plain text.

If the sheet is a budget model, leave it as a sheet. Import the rows that are work: a name, an owner, a status, a date. The decision of what should leave the file is in spreadsheet vs project management software.

How should you prepare the spreadsheet?

Include a header row. Each column header must be unique. Rows can be in any order. Every row becomes a task, so do not put notes, totals, or a second header in the middle of the data.

Help's formatting rules that save a failed import:

• One task per row. Properties such as status, priority, assignee, and date are columns.
• For cells with several values, such as assignees or tags, separate items with a delimiter and no spaces between the item and the delimiter. The importer's default delimiter is a comma. You can change it in step 2 if the file uses something else, such as a pipe.
• Dates must match a format the importer accepts. Year-Month-Day (2025-12-31), Day/Month/Year (31/12/2025), Month/Day/Year (12/31/2025), and Year/Month/Day (2025/12/31) are accepted when you pick that format in the importer. Month names such as 2025-Dec-31 are the examples Help says will not be accepted for those patterns. ISO 8601 and a Unix timestamp in milliseconds are accepted regardless of the format you pick.
• Times are read as 24-hour time unless you add am or pm.

Priority is a number, not the word "High". Help's map is 1 for Urgent, 2 for High, 3 for Normal, and 4 for Low.

Subtasks have two patterns. If the subtask only needs a name, put the names in a Subtasks column on the parent row, separated by the delimiter (Subtask 1,Subtask 2). If each subtask needs its own status or priority, give every row a unique Task ID and use a Subtask IDs column on the parent. Help's example uses 2,3 in that column to say rows 2 and 3 are subtasks of row 1. Nested subtasks work the same way: a subtask row can list further IDs. The importer brings the full hierarchy with task properties. The older CSV importer did not.

Assignees can be names or emails. Help says the importer maps emails to existing ClickUp users more reliably. Assignees do not have to already be in the Workspace. You map imported users during the import.

How do you run the Spreadsheets importer?

Unlimited imports are available from the Import page on all plans. You can run up to 60 imports per day. You must use the web app. Guests and limited members cannot import. Admins and owners can. On Business Plus and Enterprise, members can import when they have the Importing custom role permission.

Help gives two ways to start:

From settings:

1. Click your Workspace avatar in the upper-left and select Settings.
2. Under Integrations and ClickApps, select Imports / Exports.
3. If the Workspace has no import or export history, the source page opens. Select Spreadsheet.
4. If it already has history, select Import items, then Spreadsheet.

From the sidebar: right-click a Space or Folder, select Imports, then Spreadsheet files.

On the Import Destination page, pick a Space, Folder, or List. Choose the date format that matches the file. Choose the delimiter for multi-value fields. Click Continue.

Upload by dragging the file in. A successful upload opens the Map fields page.

Mapping matches your columns to ClickUp task fields and custom fields. Help says the importer uses historical mappings from files with the same structure, and AI, to pre-map columns. Check every row anyway. Hover a row to see a data preview. If the preview does not match the ClickUp field, change the field in the dropdown. Columns you leave unmapped are excluded.

Status, priority, and task type must map to values that exist in the destination, unless you have permission to create new ones. If the sheet says Open and that status does not exist, you either create Open or skip that value. Custom fields you can pick are the ones available in the target location, not every field in the Workspace.

To create a field during mapping, open the field dropdown, go to Add New, and choose Add as new custom field. The field is named after the column. On the next page you pick the custom field type. If you do not have permission to create custom fields, that option is hidden. Field types and the Free Forever use limit are in ClickUp custom fields.

Task name is the only required field. A red error means either the file has no task-name column, or that column was not mapped to Task name. Add the column and start again, or map it manually on the Map fields page. The red badge clears when the mapping is fixed.

Before you click Import into ClickUp, the review screen lets you edit cells, search, sort, pin a column, find and replace, and replace empty cells. The Valid filter shows cells with a yellow background that will not import because of a formatting error. You can double-click those and fix them. The Invalid filter shows cells with a red background.

After the import, open Imports / Exports and click View details. The report's tabs vary. They can include Spaces, Folders, Tasks, and Custom Fields.

New custom fields and some default columns stay hidden in List view until you add them. Click the plus icon or Add, open Add existing, and toggle the field on.

Which fields import, and which do not?

Supported task fields include checklist (one checklist per task, named Checklist), task type, date created, description, due date, List, priority, start date, status, subtask IDs, subtasks, tags, task name, task ID, assignee, time estimate, and time tracked. A List column is special: every unique value becomes its own ClickUp List. Seven rows marked Engineering team land in an Engineering team List.

Supported custom field types include checkbox, date, dropdown, email, labels, money, number, phone, progress (manual), rating, text, text area (long text), and website. Phone numbers need an area code. Text fields have a 2,048-character limit. Long text has a 50,000-character limit. Rating is an integer from 1 to 5. Manual progress is a number from 0 to 100. Checkbox accepts true/false, t/f, 1/0, or checked/unchecked.

These custom fields are not supported: Button, Files, Formula, Location, People, Progress (Auto), Relationships, Rollup, Signature, Task links, and Voting. A People column will not become a People field. Use the task assignee column for owners instead.

Imported custom field values are visible only if the Custom Field ClickApp is on.

What breaks a large import on the free plan?

The import can succeed and the Workspace can still be too small for the result. ClickUp's import limits article says you may be asked to upgrade once you start using features the file just created. It lists Free Forever caps that show up after a big file, including 60MB of storage for attachments. Our plan comparison, taken from ClickUp's pricing page, also caps Free Forever at 5 Spaces, 40 Lists per Space, and 100 Folders per Space. Custom field values share a 60-use pool on that plan.

Prices were checked in October 2026. Free Forever is $0. Unlimited is $7 per user/month billed annually ($10 monthly) and adds unlimited storage and unlimited custom field uses. See ClickUp Free vs Unlimited before you import a file that needs dozens of fields.

After the tasks exist, statuses and views still need a pass. The importer can create a status that matched the sheet and still leave you with more statuses than the team will use. Trim them using ClickUp custom statuses. Then open the List in the view people will actually work in. Table view is the closest screen to the sheet you just left, and it is covered in ClickUp Table view.