How do I import existing customers into Shopify?

You can import existing customers into Shopify by uploading a properly formatted CSV file. This approach lets you migrate customer profiles in bulk while keeping your store organized for communication, segmentation, and marketing.

Steps to Import Customers into Shopify

1. From your Shopify admin dashboard, go to Customers.
2. Click the Import button.
3. Click Add file and select your customer CSV file from your computer.
4. (Optional) Enable Overwrite existing customers that have the same email or phone number if you want to update existing customer profiles.
5. (Optional) Enable Add tags to customers in this CSV to apply tags that can be used later to create customer segments.
6. Click Import customers to start the import process.

CSV File Requirements

• The Email column must exist in the CSV file, although individual email values can be blank.
• The first row must include valid Shopify column headers such as First Name, Last Name, Email, Phone, and supported default address fields.
• The CSV file size must be 15 MB or smaller. Use multiple files if your customer list exceeds this limit.
• If duplicate email addresses or phone numbers exist, Shopify imports only the last customer record and skips the others.

Common Import Issue: CSV Headers Not Accepted

A frequent issue during customer imports is an error stating that some headers weren’t accepted. This happens when CSV column names don’t exactly match Shopify’s supported headers.

• Use Accepts Email Marketing instead of generic headers like Accepts Marketing.
• Replace Province with Default Address Province Code and use ISO state or province codes.
• Replace Country with Default Address Country Code and use ISO Alpha-2 country codes (for example, IN or US).

To avoid import failures, always follow Shopify’s official customer CSV template and ensure headers match exactly.

Important Notes Before Importing

• Customer passwords can’t be migrated from another platform using a CSV file. After importing, customers must be invited to create new passwords.
• The Total Spent and Total Orders columns aren’t imported with customer profiles.
• You can import custom metafields only if they’re already created and configured in your Shopify admin.