Read the following guide to learn how to export data from Salesforce quickly and easily.
You probably find manual Salesforce exports, especially into spreadsheets, complicated and tedious. Manual Salesforce exports slow down your team, eat into productivity, and greatly increase the chances for error.
But it doesn’t have to be this way. While manual exports make sense for some use cases, SalesOps users who live in spreadsheets can instead automate data exports to eliminate unnecessary work.
The following guide will demonstrate the best ways to export data from Salesforce, including how to send it directly to Google Sheets.
Export Data from Salesforce: Top 3 Methods
Method 1: Coefficient
Coefficient is the simplest way to export Salesforce data. The Coefficient app enables you to connect Salesforce to Google Sheets in a single click, and automatically export data into your Google spreadsheet.
You can also set up automatic data updates with Coefficient, so the Salesforce data in your spreadsheet is always up-to-date. Here’s how to export data from Salesforce into Google Sheets with Coefficient.
Step 1: Install and Launch Coefficient
First, you need to install the Coefficient Google Sheets add-on.
To do this, open a Google sheet and click Extensions on the top menu bar. Then select Add-ons and Get add-ons.
Search for Coefficient and click on the first result.
Click “Install” to install Coefficient.
Follow the prompts, including connecting your Google account and granting the necessary permissions, to install the Coefficient add-on. Watch this video on how to install Coefficient for a full walkthrough.
Once installed, navigate to Extensions on the Google Sheets top menu. Select Coefficient from the dropdown list, and launch the app.
The Coefficient sidebar will appear on the right side of the screen.
Step 2: Connect Google Sheets to Salesforce
Click Import from… on the Coefficient sidebar.
Select Salesforce as your data source.
Click Authorize to allow Coefficient to connect to your Salesforce account.
Enter your Salesforce credentials in the designated fields and follow the prompts to connect Salesforce to Google Sheets.
For a full walkthrough of this step, visit our blog: how to connect Salesforce to Google Sheets.
Step 3: Import Your Data
With Coefficient, you can export your Salesforce data to Google Sheets from an existing report, object, field, SOQL query, or pre-built dashboard.
For this example, we’ll import From Object & Fields. Select from a standard or custom Salesforce object on the list.
Next select the specific fields on the Opportunity object you want to export into Google Sheets.
You can remove fields by clicking the checkbox next to each field.
You can also enable Pivot Mode to group, organize, or summarize your Salesforce data export.
Add filters to refine your Salesforce export further. Then you’ll only export the data you want, rather than the entire dataset.
Stop exporting data manually. Sync data from your business systems into Google Sheets or Excel with Coefficient and set it on a refresh schedule.
Click Import when you’re done. Your Salesforce data will auto-populate your Google spreadsheet insantly.
Step 4: Set Up an Auto-Refresh Schedule
Set up an hourly, daily, or weekly auto-refresh schedule, and Coefficient will automatically update your data based on that time interval.
That means, going forward, Coefficient will automate all your Salesforce data exports to Google Sheets for you. You’ll never have to manually export Salesforce data into your spreadsheet ever again.
Method 2: Manual CSV Export
The Data Export Service is a built-in feature in Salesforce that lets you manually export data in CSVs or other file formats.
The feature lets you export data manually once every seven days (for weekly reports) or every 29 days (for monthly Salesforce reports).
Follow the steps below to use the Data Export Service.
- Enter data export by going to Setup and typing in Data Export in the Quick Find box. Then click Data Export and Schedule Export or Export Now.
- Selecting Schedule Export lets you schedule the export on a weekly or monthly time frame.
- The Export Now option prepares your data for immediate exporting. Note that this is only available if enough time has passed since the last export.
- Select your preferred encoding for your export file. Check the boxes to include documents, images, attachments, and more.
- Check Replace carriage returns with spaces if you want spaces instead of line breaks or carriage returns in your export file.
- Select the frequency, time of day, and start and end dates for your scheduled export.
- Choose the data types to include in your export under Exported Data. Consider selecting Include all data if you’re unfamiliar with the terminologies used for some data types.
- Click Save or Start Export. Salesforce automatically creates a zip archive of your CSV files and sends you the files when they’re ready. Salesforce breaks up large exports into multiple files.
You can combine the steps above with various Salesforce features to filter data based on priority or create specific data category exports.
Remember to download the zip file as soon as you receive it (or at least within two days) since the zip files are deleted 48 hours after the system sends you the email.
The Data Export Service has limitations depending on your export file size and subscription plan. The number of exports you can do in a week or month is also limited. The Data Export Service’s limitations include the following:
- Heavy usage of Salesforce can cause delays in data delivery. Some data exports, especially large files, can get delayed for weeks.
- The feature does not support Sandbox exports. A sandbox in Salesforce is a copy of your organization in another environment that you can use for various purposes, such as training and testing.
- Salesforce limits the number of API calls you can employ, which can be an issue if you want to add a large number of attachments to your exports.
Method 3: Dataloader.io
Dataloader.io by Mulesoft is a tool that lets you export or bulk import data. The tool allows you to update, insert, upstart, delete, or export Salesforce records for standard and custom objects.
Dataloader.io’s free edition allows for up to 10,000 records per month and a file size limit of 10MB.
You can extract your Salesforce records from Accounts using Dataloader.io with these steps:
- Go to the Setup menu, enter Datalodader.io in the Quick Find box, and select it from the results.
- Click Launch Dataloader.io and Confirm. Then choose Login with Salesforce. Make sure the Login with Salesforce window has the selections below.
- Click Login and Allow.
- Click NEW TASK and EXPORT from the dropdown list.
- Keep the Connection selection as is and choose Account from the Object list. Click Next.
- Select Account ID, Account Name, and Account Site under the Account options on the Field menu.
- Select SOQL Query to expand the menu.
- Copy and paste WHERE Type LIKE ‘%Customer%’ in the text box to complete the query.
- Your query should look like this: Select Id, Name, Site FROM Account WHERE Type LIKE ‘%Customer%’.
- Click Next, then Save & Run.
- Select successes beside the Task Run number. You should see the CSV files already downloaded. You can open the CSV file in Numbers or MS Excel.
By default, Dataloder.io allows you to obtain the export task’s output by clicking on the latest run or display in the task manager. You can also look at the task’s history and download the file via the browser.
Also, Dataloader.io lets you schedule your export task to run regularly. You can set a schedule to run an hourly, daily, monthly, or weekly data export. However, Dataloader.io cannot export Salesforce data directly to Google Sheets.
Export Data from Salesforce: What Method Works Best for Your Team?
There are a number of methods for exporting data from Salesforce, but only Coefficient can automate the process seamlessly. Try Coefficient for free now to automatically export data from Salesforce into Google Sheets.
