Overview
The CSV Profile Import feature lets you bring existing customer or subscriber data into Apex in bulk. By uploading a properly formatted CSV file, you can:
Populate your Audience list quickly
Apply a tag to every imported profile
Start sending Campaigns and building Journeys without manual data entry
Note: Custom property creation is not available at this time. You can only map CSV columns to existing Apex default profile properties.
Before You Begin
CSV requirements
File size ≤ 3 MB
First row must contain column headers
Minimum fields
Email (required)
Permissions
You must have permission to email the contacts in your file
Select Yes, they explicitly gave me permission to email them before proceeding. If you skip this step, the profiles will still be imported but marked as unsubscribed from email marketing by default.
Start The Import
Step 1: Upload Your CSV
Navigate to Audience → Import Profiles.
Drag-and-drop your .csv file into the upload box—or click Upload to browse.
If your file exceeds 3 MB or is not a valid CSV, you’ll see an inline error (e.g., “File bigger than 3 MB”).
Step 2: Map Your Columns
Click Continue to move to the Organize step.
You’ll see a list of all CSV headers with checkboxes:
Checked: column will be imported
Unchecked: column will be ignored
Ensure Email is checked and mapped to Email address.
For each additional column, select the matching Apex property from the dropdown.
The {{Birthday}} Apex property must be in the format YYYY-MM-DD
Tip: Preview sample values on the right to verify you’ve chosen the correct field.
Step 3: Tag Your Profiles
Click Continue to go to the Tag step.
Search for an existing tag or enter a new tag name to apply to all imported profiles.
Click Import profiles to start the process.
Step 4: Review Your Import Report
Once the import completes, you’ll see a Profile import report detailing:
✅ Number of profiles successfully added
⚠️ Any rows that failed (with row numbers & error reasons)
To retry failed rows, re-run the import with a filtered CSV containing only those rows.
Imported profiles immediately appear in Audience → Contacts and are available for Journeys and Campaigns.
Troubleshooting
Issue | Solution |
“File bigger than 3 MB” | Split your CSV into smaller files (≤ 3 MB each) or remove unnecessary columns. |
Invalid email format errors in report | Correct the email addresses in your CSV, then retry importing only the failed rows. |
Mapping dropdown doesn’t list a field | Ensure you’re using an existing Apex property; custom property creation isn’t available yet. |
FAQs
Can I update existing profiles?
Yes—tick If these people are already in my audience, update their profile on the upload step to enable upsert behavior.Will my existing tags be overwritten?
No—tagging only adds the selected tag to each profile; it does not remove existing tags.Where can I find imported profiles?
Go to Audience → Profiles, then filter by the tag you applied during import.