Articles on: Product Roadmap Pro

Import & Export

Import & Export


Time to read: 7 minutes


Bulk manage roadmap data with CSV import and export.


What You'll Learn


  • Exporting roadmap data to CSV
  • Importing items from CSV
  • Preparing import files
  • Updating existing items
  • Best practices for data management


Why Import/Export?


Export Use Cases


Backup:

  • Regular data backups
  • Disaster recovery
  • Version control


Analysis:

  • Spreadsheet analysis
  • Custom reports
  • Data visualization


Sharing:

  • Send to stakeholders
  • Team collaboration
  • Client reports


Import Use Cases


Bulk Creation:

  • Add many items at once
  • Migrate from other tools
  • Initial setup


Updates:

  • Bulk status changes
  • Mass priority updates
  • Batch editing


Migration:

  • From spreadsheets
  • From other roadmap tools
  • Between installations


Accessing Import/Export


Location


  1. Go to Roadmap > Settings
  2. Click Import/Export tab
  3. See two sections:
  • Export (top)
  • Import (bottom)


Exporting Data


Basic Export


Quick export:

  1. Roadmap > Settings > Import/Export
  2. Click Export to CSV button
  3. File downloads automatically


Filename: roadmap-export-YYYY-MM-DD.csv


Export with Filters


Customize what to export:


Product Filter:

  1. Select product from dropdown
  2. Or choose "All Products"
  3. Only selected product(s) export


Status Filter:

  1. Select status from dropdown
  2. Or choose "All Statuses"
  3. Only items in that status


Date Range:

  1. Set From date (optional)
  2. Set To date (optional)
  3. Only items in date range export


Example: Export all "In Progress" items for "Mobile App"

  1. Product: Mobile App
  2. Status: In Progress
  3. Click Export


What Gets Exported


CSV file includes these columns:


Basic Fields:

  • ID (internal ID)
  • Title
  • Description (full content)
  • Excerpt


Taxonomy:

  • Status
  • Category
  • Priority
  • Product


Dates:

  • Target Date
  • Start Date (if set)
  • End Date (if set)
  • Published Date


Engagement:

  • Votes (count)
  • Comments (count)


Progress:

  • Progress (percentage)
  • Assignee (if set)


All data you need to recreate roadmap!


Export Tips


For backup:

  • Export "All Products"
  • Export "All Statuses"
  • Include all dates
  • Do monthly


For reporting:

  • Filter by product
  • Filter by status
  • Use date range
  • Export to analyze


For migration:

  • Export all data
  • Keep original file
  • Test import first


Importing Data


Preparing Your CSV


Required column:

  • Title - Must have this


Optional columns:

  • Description
  • Status
  • Category
  • Priority (low, medium, high, critical)
  • Target Date (YYYY-MM-DD format)
  • Product (product slug)
  • Progress (0-100)
  • Start Date (YYYY-MM-DD)
  • End Date (YYYY-MM-DD)


Column names:

  • Case-insensitive
  • Match exactly
  • Use headers in first row


CSV Format Example


Title,Description,Status,Category,Priority,Target Date,Product
"Dark Mode","Add dark color scheme","planned","feature","high","2024-03-15","mobile-app"
"API Optimization","Improve API performance","in-progress","performance","high","2024-02-28","api"
"Bug Fix #123","Fix login issue","testing","bug-fix","critical","2024-01-30","web-app"


Download Sample CSV


Get template:

  1. Roadmap > Settings > Import/Export
  2. Click Download Sample CSV
  3. Opens example file
  4. Use as template


Sample includes:

  • All column headers
  • Example data rows
  • Proper formatting
  • Date formats


Importing Items


Step 1: Choose File

  1. Click Choose File button
  2. Select your CSV file
  3. Maximum size: 5MB


Step 2: Set Default Product

  • Select from dropdown
  • Used for items without Product column
  • Or if Product column empty


Step 3: Choose Import Mode


Create new items only:

  • Adds new items
  • Skips existing
  • Safe option
  • No overwrites


Update existing items:

  • Updates items with matching IDs
  • Creates new if no match
  • Use for bulk updates
  • Requires ID column


Step 4: Import

  1. Click Import CSV
  2. Process runs
  3. Shows progress
  4. Displays results


After Import


Success message shows:

  • Items created: X
  • Items updated: Y
  • Errors: Z (if any)


Check results:

  1. Roadmap > All Items
  2. Filter by product
  3. Verify imported items
  4. Check all fields


Import Modes Explained


Create New Items


What it does:

  • Creates items from CSV
  • Ignores ID column
  • All items are new
  • No existing items modified


When to use:

  • First-time import
  • Adding bulk items
  • Migration from other tools
  • Safe testing


Example:

Import 50 features from spreadsheet → All created as new


Update Existing


What it does:

  • Looks for matching IDs
  • Updates matched items
  • Creates items without ID
  • Modifies existing data


When to use:

  • Bulk status updates
  • Mass priority changes
  • Progress updates
  • Synchronizing data


Example:

Update progress on 20 items → Finds by ID, updates progress


Requires:

  • ID column in CSV
  • Matching IDs in database
  • Be careful - overwrites data!


Data Formatting


Dates


Format: YYYY-MM-DD


Valid:

  • 2024-01-15
  • 2024-12-31
  • 2024-03-01


Invalid:

  • 01/15/2024 (US format)
  • 15-01-2024 (DD-MM-YYYY)
  • Jan 15, 2024 (written)


Priority


Valid values:

  • low
  • medium
  • high
  • critical


Case-insensitive: "High" = "high" = "HIGH"


Progress


Format: Number 0-100


Valid:

  • 0 (not started)
  • 50 (half done)
  • 100 (completed)


Invalid:

  • 50% (no % symbol)
  • half (use numbers)


Product


Format: Product slug (not name)


Valid:

  • mobile-app
  • web-platform
  • api


Invalid:

  • Mobile App (use slug)
  • mobile_app (use hyphens)


Find slug:

  • Roadmap > Products
  • See shortcode column
  • Use slug from there


Status/Category


Format: Term slug


Examples:

  • planned (not "Planned")
  • in-progress (not "In Progress")
  • feature (not "Feature")


Find slugs:

  • Edit status/category
  • See slug field
  • Use exact slug


Text Fields


Quotes:

  • Use quotes if text has commas
  • Example: "Title, with comma"


Line breaks:

  • Avoid in CSV
  • Use <br> if needed
  • Or remove from import


Special characters:

  • UTF-8 encoding
  • Most characters work
  • Test with small import


Common Workflows


Bulk Item Creation


Scenario: Add 100 planned features


  1. Create CSV:
   Title,Status,Category,Product
   "Feature 1","planned","feature","mobile-app"
   "Feature 2","planned","feature","mobile-app"
   ...


  1. Import:
  • Choose file
  • Default product: mobile-app
  • Mode: Create new
  • Import


  1. Verify:
  • Check All Items
  • Filter by product
  • 100 new items!


Status Update


Scenario: Move 20 items from "Planned" to "In Progress"


  1. Export current data
  2. Open in Excel/Sheets
  3. Find items to update
  4. Change Status column to "in-progress"
  5. Keep ID column
  6. Save as CSV
  7. Import with "Update existing"
  8. Items updated!


Migration


Scenario: Move from Trello to Roadmap


  1. Export from Trello
  2. Open export file
  3. Map columns:
  • Trello "Card" → Roadmap "Title"
  • Trello "List" → Roadmap "Status"
  • Trello "Label" → Roadmap "Category"
  1. Save as CSV with correct headers
  2. Import as new items
  3. Verify in Roadmap


Backup & Restore


Backup (weekly):

  1. Export all products
  2. All statuses
  3. Save file: backup-2024-01-15.csv
  4. Store safely


Restore (if needed):

  1. Find backup file
  2. Import with "Update existing"
  3. Overwrites current data
  4. Returns to backup state


Best Practices


Before Import


Test first:

  • Import 2-3 items
  • Verify fields map correctly
  • Check formatting
  • Then import all


Backup:

  • Export current data
  • Save backup
  • Can restore if issues


Clean data:

  • Remove empty rows
  • Fix formatting
  • Verify dates
  • Check spellings


During Import


Watch file size:

  • Maximum 5MB
  • Split large files
  • Import in batches
  • 500-1000 items per file


Monitor progress:

  • Don't close browser
  • Wait for completion
  • Note any errors


After Import


Verify data:

  • Check item count
  • Review imported items
  • Test one item fully
  • Fix any issues


Clean up:

  • Delete duplicates
  • Fix incorrect data
  • Update as needed


Troubleshooting


Import Failed


Common causes:


File too large:

  • Maximum 5MB
  • Split into smaller files
  • Remove unnecessary columns


Wrong format:

  • Must be CSV
  • Not Excel (.xlsx)
  • Not Google Sheets (export to CSV)


Encoding issues:

  • Use UTF-8 encoding
  • Save as CSV UTF-8
  • Not ANSI or other


Missing required:

  • Title column required
  • Check spelling
  • Case-insensitive but must match


Dates Not Importing


Check format:

  • Must be YYYY-MM-DD
  • Not MM/DD/YYYY
  • Not DD-MM-YYYY


Fix in spreadsheet:

  • Format cells as text
  • Type dates manually
  • Or use formula: =TEXT(A1,"YYYY-MM-DD")


Items Creating Duplicates


Check import mode:

  • "Create new" always creates
  • Use "Update existing" instead
  • Need ID column to update


Merge duplicates:

  • Keep best version
  • Delete others
  • Or use bulk edit


Status/Category Not Importing


Check slug:

  • Must use slug, not name
  • "in-progress" not "In Progress"
  • "feature" not "Feature"


Check existence:

  • Status must exist
  • Category must exist
  • Create first if needed


Special Characters Broken


Encoding issue:

  • Save CSV as UTF-8
  • In Excel: CSV UTF-8
  • In Google Sheets: Download > CSV


Test characters:

  • Import small file
  • Check result
  • Adjust encoding


Data Management Tips


Regular Exports


Schedule:

  • Weekly backups
  • Before major changes
  • End of month
  • After big imports


Storage:

  • Cloud storage
  • Version control
  • Multiple backups
  • Organized folders


Spreadsheet Tips


Use Excel/Sheets for:

  • Bulk editing
  • Formulas
  • Data validation
  • Filtering


Common formulas:

  • =TODAY() for current date
  • =IF(...) for conditional status
  • =CONCATENATE(...) for combining


Template Files


Create templates:

  • Standard columns
  • Example rows
  • Instructions
  • Save for reuse


Types:

  • New features template
  • Bug report template
  • Quarterly planning template


Next Steps




← Timeline View | Drag & Drop →

Updated on: 25/09/2025

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