Import Elements from a CSV or Excel File

We support CSV, TSV, XLS, or XLSX file types

Zach Soflin avatar
Written by Zach Soflin
Updated over a week ago

Not sure where to start? Download our spreadsheet template which you can use to format your data.


Set up the file:

  • The import file should be structured like Table View in a Layer category.
    Line 1 will contain the names of your Fields.

  • Line 2 and on will contain element data that will be created with their corresponding field values filled in.

Import Excel Into Layer

Start the Import Process:

  1. Log in to Layer or create a new account. Start a new Project or select an existing Project. 

  2. There are two places to find the Import option.

    1. Click the gear button next to your project name to find your Project Settings menu. Under Project Data, click Import Elements.

      Import Excel Into Layer

    2. Or you can click the blue plus button to Create a new category, and then select Import from Spreadsheet on the following menu.


1. Upload the file

First to Upload, select a file to import and click Next in the lower right hand corner.


2. Select Location of the Import

  • By default, the import will be set to create a new category with the name of the sheet (Sheet1).

  • To select an existing category to add the imported data to, click the arrow button to show a list of Existing Categories. Click the one you want to select.


3. Map the imported columns to fields

There is also a ←Back button at the bottom left hand of the page if you need to adjust previous settings.


Here are some tips to help with the mapping:

  • The new fields created from the import will be shown in white.
    Existing fields that will have data mapped to them are shown in grey.

  • Clicking the icon to the right of the name opens more options.

  • Create New Field will create create a new field in the category.


    Clicking the black arrow to the right of the text gives you the following options for field types:

    💡 We recommend doing a smaller test import to check which fields you want to map to and which types to use, as this can't be changed after they are created.

  • Do Not Import Column lets you ignore the column and its values. This can be helpful so you don't have to clean up your original import and remove columns beforehand.

  • Name refers to the Element Name for each element in the category.

  • Under Existing Fields, you will see a list of fields to map to. Once an existing field has been selected, it will be greyed out as an option for other Column Names.

This preview on the right of the screen will update as changes are made to the mapping on the left.

Check this to see if everything looks correct, and then click Continue on the bottom right hand corner of the screen.


4. Confirm Import

​There will be a summary in the middle of the page showing the changes.

Click ←Back in the bottom left hand corner of the screen to make changes.
Click Import Elements in the bottom right hand corner to complete the import.

Congrats! Your data has been imported.
You can now press Close in the bottom right hand corner.


Need more help? Contact us at help@layer.team or find us in the support chat.


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