# How to import candidates from a CSV

> Add a list of people to OpenATS from a spreadsheet, and how existing people are matched and filled in.

An admin opens **Settings → Data & privacy → Contact import**, chooses **Import CSV**, and picks a `.csv` file with a name column and any of email, phone, LinkedIn, headline, location and tags. People already in OpenATS are matched and only have their empty fields filled in; nothing is overwritten.

*Imports · Last updated 2026-11-10*

---

## Prepare the file

The first row names the columns. OpenATS recognises these (any capitalisation, and `_` reads as a space):

| Column | Also accepted |
| --- | --- |
| **name** (required) | full name |
| **email** | email address |
| **phone** | phone number, mobile |
| **linkedin** | linkedin url, linkedin profile, profile url, link, url |
| **headline** | title |
| **location** |  |
| **tags** | Separate several with `;` |

## Import it

1. Open **Settings → Data & privacy**.
2. Under **Contact import**, choose **Import CSV** and pick the file.

When it’s done, OpenATS sums up: how many people were created, how many were already in OpenATS and filled in, and how many were already there with nothing new.

## People already in OpenATS

Each row is matched by the same email, LinkedIn or phone. A match keeps everything it has, fills in its empty fields, and gains any new emails, phones, links and tags. A row that adds nothing is skipped.

> **Note:** A CSV import adds people to your contacts, not to a role. To consider them for a role, open them from **Contacts** and add them to it from their profile. A Juicebox export can go straight onto a role: see [Import from Juicebox](https://openats.ai/docs/imports/import-from-juicebox).

---

Still need help? Write to the OpenATS team at https://openats.ai/support (or support@b150.ai). We reply by email.

Source: https://openats.ai/docs/imports/import-a-csv
OpenATS help center: https://openats.ai/docs