[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":93},["ShallowReactive",2],{"post-how-to-import-excel-guest-list":3},{"slug":4,"title":5,"description":6,"date":7,"image":8,"imageAlt":9,"category":10,"tags":11,"author":17,"readingMinutes":18,"featured":19,"legacy":19,"html":20,"headings":21,"related":60},"how-to-import-excel-guest-list","How to Import an Excel or CSV Guest List into Eventor (and Fix the 5 Things That Break It)","Drag-and-drop import, automatic column matching, the two mandatory columns, adding guests later, replacing a whole list, and the five spreadsheet mistakes that cause failed imports.","2026-09-17","\u002Fwp-content\u002Fuploads\u002F2018\u002F10\u002FLaptop-eventor.app_-1.png","Eventor web dashboard on a laptop","Guides",[12,13,14,15,16],"excel","csv","import","guest list","how-to","Eventor team",4,false,"\u003Cp>Importing the guest list is the step where most of the work happens, and the step where a messy spreadsheet turns into a messy door. This guide shows the import flow in Eventor and, more usefully, the handful of spreadsheet problems behind almost every “my import did not work” message we get.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Ch2 id=\"before-you-start\">Before you start\u003C\u002Fh2>\n\u003Cul>\n\u003Cli>Create your event at \u003Ca href=\"https:\u002F\u002Fevents.eventor.app\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">events.eventor.app\u003C\u002Fa>. Imports happen in the web dashboard, not in the iOS or Android app.\u003C\u002Fli>\n\u003Cli>Have your list as \u003Ccode>.xlsx\u003C\u002Fcode>, \u003Ccode>.xls\u003C\u002Fcode>, \u003Ccode>.xlsb\u003C\u002Fcode> or \u003Ccode>.csv\u003C\u002Fcode>. No list yet? Use the \u003Ca href=\"\u002Fblog\u002Ffree-excel-guest-list-template\">free Excel template\u003C\u002Fa>.\u003C\u002Fli>\n\u003Cli>Know your limit: 30 guests on a free event, 300 \u002F 800 \u002F unlimited on Bronze \u002F Silver \u002F Gold. Upgrade first if the list is bigger; the import stops at the limit.\u003C\u002Fli>\n\u003C\u002Ful>\n\u003Ch2 id=\"importing-into-an-empty-event\">Importing into an empty event\u003C\u002Fh2>\n\u003Col class=\"steps\">\n\u003Cli>Open the event and \u003Cstrong>drag your file onto the page\u003C\u002Fstrong> (or press \u003Cem>Import Excel\u002FCSV\u003C\u002Fem>).\u003C\u002Fli>\n\u003Cli>Eventor shows a \u003Cstrong>preview of the first rows\u003C\u002Fstrong> with a dropdown above every column. Headers such as \u003Cem>first\u003C\u002Fem>, \u003Cem>last\u002Fsurname\u003C\u002Fem>, \u003Cem>e-mail\u003C\u002Fem>, \u003Cem>phone\u003C\u002Fem>, \u003Cem>company\u002Forganization\u003C\u002Fem>, \u003Cem>VIP\u003C\u002Fem>, \u003Cem>note\u003C\u002Fem>, \u003Cem>total extras\u003C\u002Fem> and \u003Cem>barcode\u003C\u002Fem> are matched automatically.\u003C\u002Fli>\n\u003Cli>Fix any column that was not recognised by picking the target field, or choose \u003Cstrong>Skip column\u003C\u002Fstrong>.\u003C\u002Fli>\n\u003Cli>Make sure \u003Cstrong>First name\u003C\u002Fstrong> and \u003Cstrong>Last name\u003C\u002Fstrong> are both matched. Until they are, the Import button stays disabled. These two are the only mandatory fields.\u003C\u002Fli>\n\u003Cli>Optionally open \u003Cstrong>Advanced options\u003C\u002Fstrong> to set the status of all imported guests (default: \u003Cem>Attending\u003C\u002Fem>).\u003C\u002Fli>\n\u003Cli>Press \u003Cstrong>Import\u003C\u002Fstrong>. Guests appear on every device that opens the event.\u003C\u002Fli>\n\u003C\u002Fol>\n\u003Ch2 id=\"adding-guests-to-an-event-that-already-has-guests\">Adding guests to an event that already has guests\u003C\u002Fh2>\n\u003Cp>Imports are incremental. Press the arrow next to \u003Cstrong>Add guest\u003C\u002Fstrong> and choose \u003Cstrong>Import Excel\u002FCSV\u003C\u002Fstrong>; the flow is identical. Late RSVPs, a second promoter’s list, press accreditations: import them as separate files whenever they arrive.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cdiv class=\"callout\">\n\u003Cp>\u003Cstrong>Eventor does not merge duplicates.\u003C\u002Fstrong> If the same person is in two files, they end up in the list twice. Deduplicate in Excel before importing (sort by e-mail, or \u003Cem>Conditional Formatting → Highlight Duplicates\u003C\u002Fem>), or delete the extra row in Eventor afterwards.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003C\u002Fdiv>\n\u003Ch2 id=\"replacing-the-whole-list\">Replacing the whole list\u003C\u002Fh2>\n\u003Cp>Got a final version from the client? During an import open \u003Cstrong>Advanced options\u003C\u002Fstrong> and tick \u003Cstrong>Delete the existing guests\u003C\u002Fstrong>. Eventor tells you how many guests will be removed, then imports the new file. This is also the fastest way to clear an event.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Do not replace the list after you have sent QR codes: guests get new IDs and therefore new codes. Import only the new rows instead.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Ch2 id=\"the-five-things-that-break-imports\">The five things that break imports\u003C\u002Fh2>\n\u003Ch3 id=\"1-full-name-in-one-column\">1. Full name in one column\u003C\u002Fh3>\n\u003Cp>The two mandatory fields are first name and last name. Split a “Name” column in Excel with \u003Cstrong>Data → Text to Columns\u003C\u002Fstrong>, delimiter \u003Cem>space\u003C\u002Fem>, or with formulas:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cpre>\u003Ccode>=LEFT(A2, FIND(" ", A2) - 1)          → first name\n=MID(A2, FIND(" ", A2) + 1, 99)       → last name\n\u003C\u002Fcode>\u003C\u002Fpre>\n\u003Cp>Double-barrelled names need a quick manual check afterwards.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Ch3 id=\"2-the-header-is-not-in-row-1\">2. The header is not in row 1\u003C\u002Fh3>\n\u003Cp>Titles, logos or empty rows above the header confuse the preview. Delete everything above the header row so row 1 contains the column names.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Ch3 id=\"3-merged-cells-and-multiple-sheets\">3. Merged cells and multiple sheets\u003C\u002Fh3>\n\u003Cp>Unmerge all cells (\u003Cem>Home → Merge & Center → Unmerge\u003C\u002Fem>) and make sure the guests are on the \u003Cstrong>first sheet\u003C\u002Fstrong> of the workbook, or copy them to a fresh file.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Ch3 id=\"4-numbers-that-are-not-numbers\">4. Numbers that are not numbers\u003C\u002Fh3>\n\u003Cp>\u003Ccode>Total extras\u003C\u002Fcode> must be a plain number (0 to 10). “+1” or “two” is ignored. Phone numbers are normalised automatically; values with fewer than 4 digits are treated as labels and dropped.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Ch3 id=\"5-wrong-file-encoding-in-csv\">5. Wrong file encoding in CSV\u003C\u002Fh3>\n\u003Cp>If accents come out as \u003Ccode>é\u003C\u002Fcode>, save the CSV as \u003Cstrong>UTF-8\u003C\u002Fstrong> (in Excel: \u003Cem>Save As → CSV UTF-8\u003C\u002Fem>). Or just save as \u003Ccode>.xlsx\u003C\u002Fcode>, which has no encoding problem.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Ch2 id=\"column-reference\">Column reference\u003C\u002Fh2>\n\u003Ctable>\n\u003Cthead>\n\u003Ctr>\n\u003Cth>Target field\u003C\u002Fth>\n\u003Cth>Typical headers that auto-match\u003C\u002Fth>\n\u003Cth>Notes\u003C\u002Fth>\n\u003C\u002Ftr>\n\u003C\u002Fthead>\n\u003Ctbody>\n\u003Ctr>\n\u003Ctd>First name\u003C\u002Ftd>\n\u003Ctd>first, first name, given name\u003C\u002Ftd>\n\u003Ctd>mandatory\u003C\u002Ftd>\n\u003C\u002Ftr>\n\u003Ctr>\n\u003Ctd>Last name\u003C\u002Ftd>\n\u003Ctd>last, last name, surname\u003C\u002Ftd>\n\u003Ctd>mandatory\u003C\u002Ftd>\n\u003C\u002Ftr>\n\u003Ctr>\n\u003Ctd>E-mail\u003C\u002Ftd>\n\u003Ctd>email, e-mail, @\u003C\u002Ftd>\n\u003Ctd>needed for QR e-mails\u003C\u002Ftd>\n\u003C\u002Ftr>\n\u003Ctr>\n\u003Ctd>Phone\u003C\u002Ftd>\n\u003Ctd>phone, mobile, tel\u003C\u002Ftd>\n\u003Ctd>normalised to international format\u003C\u002Ftd>\n\u003C\u002Ftr>\n\u003Ctr>\n\u003Ctd>Company\u003C\u002Ftd>\n\u003Ctd>company, organization, organisation, firm\u003C\u002Ftd>\n\u003Ctd>shown under the name\u003C\u002Ftd>\n\u003C\u002Ftr>\n\u003Ctr>\n\u003Ctd>Job title\u003C\u002Ftd>\n\u003Ctd>title, position, job\u003C\u002Ftd>\n\u003Ctd>searchable\u003C\u002Ftd>\n\u003C\u002Ftr>\n\u003Ctr>\n\u003Ctd>Notes\u003C\u002Ftd>\n\u003Ctd>note, notes, description, comment\u003C\u002Ftd>\n\u003Ctd>table numbers, dietary needs\u003C\u002Ftd>\n\u003C\u002Ftr>\n\u003Ctr>\n\u003Ctd>VIP\u003C\u002Ftd>\n\u003Ctd>vip\u003C\u002Ftd>\n\u003Ctd>TRUE \u002F FALSE, yes \u002F no, 1 \u002F 0\u003C\u002Ftd>\n\u003C\u002Ftr>\n\u003Ctr>\n\u003Ctd>Total extras\u003C\u002Ftd>\n\u003Ctd>total extras, extras, plus one\u003C\u002Ftd>\n\u003Ctd>0 to 10\u003C\u002Ftd>\n\u003C\u002Ftr>\n\u003Ctr>\n\u003Ctd>Status\u003C\u002Ftd>\n\u003Ctd>status\u003C\u002Ftd>\n\u003Ctd>Attending, Invited, Declined\u003C\u002Ftd>\n\u003C\u002Ftr>\n\u003Ctr>\n\u003Ctd>Barcode value\u003C\u002Ftd>\n\u003Ctd>barcode, qr code, ticket id\u003C\u002Ftd>\n\u003Ctd>for scanning tickets from another system\u003C\u002Ftd>\n\u003C\u002Ftr>\n\u003C\u002Ftbody>\n\u003C\u002Ftable>\n\u003Ch2 id=\"after-the-import\">After the import\u003C\u002Fh2>\n\u003Cul>\n\u003Cli>Open the event on a phone and search for a few names to see the data as the hostess will.\u003C\u002Fli>\n\u003Cli>Mark or check VIPs and plus-ones.\u003C\u002Fli>\n\u003Cli>Invite the door team and, if you want scanning, \u003Ca href=\"\u002Fblog\u002Fsending-eventor-qr-codes-with-mailchimp\">send the QR codes\u003C\u002Fa>.\u003C\u002Fli>\n\u003C\u002Ful>\n\u003Cp>Importing is free to try: \u003Ca href=\"https:\u002F\u002Fevents.eventor.app\u002Fauth\u002Fsignin\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">create an event\u003C\u002Fa> with up to 30 guests and drop your file in.\u003C\u002Fp>\n",[22,26,29,32,35,38,42,45,48,51,54,57],{"id":23,"text":24,"level":25},"before-you-start","Before you start",2,{"id":27,"text":28,"level":25},"importing-into-an-empty-event","Importing into an empty event",{"id":30,"text":31,"level":25},"adding-guests-to-an-event-that-already-has-guests","Adding guests to an event that already has guests",{"id":33,"text":34,"level":25},"replacing-the-whole-list","Replacing the whole list",{"id":36,"text":37,"level":25},"the-five-things-that-break-imports","The five things that break imports",{"id":39,"text":40,"level":41},"1-full-name-in-one-column","1. Full name in one column",3,{"id":43,"text":44,"level":41},"2-the-header-is-not-in-row-1","2. The header is not in row 1",{"id":46,"text":47,"level":41},"3-merged-cells-and-multiple-sheets","3. Merged cells and multiple sheets",{"id":49,"text":50,"level":41},"4-numbers-that-are-not-numbers","4. Numbers that are not numbers",{"id":52,"text":53,"level":41},"5-wrong-file-encoding-in-csv","5. Wrong file encoding in CSV",{"id":55,"text":56,"level":25},"column-reference","Column reference",{"id":58,"text":59,"level":25},"after-the-import","After the import",[61,70,83],{"slug":62,"title":63,"description":64,"date":7,"category":65,"tags":66,"author":17,"readingMinutes":41,"featured":19,"legacy":19},"import-eventbrite-attendees-into-eventor","Import Eventbrite Attendees into Eventor and Scan Their Tickets at the Door","Sell tickets on Eventbrite, run the door with Eventor: export the attendee report, import it with the ticket barcode as the scan value, and check guests in with the Eventor app on several devices, offline if needed.","Integrations",[67,68,14,69,16],"eventbrite","ticketing","barcode",{"slug":71,"title":72,"description":73,"date":7,"image":74,"imageAlt":75,"category":10,"tags":76,"author":17,"readingMinutes":18,"featured":82,"legacy":19},"how-to-check-in-guests-with-your-phone","How to Check In Guests with Your Phone or iPad (Complete Guide)","Replace the printed guest list: set up the Eventor app on iPhone, iPad or Android, search or scan guests at the door, handle plus-ones and walk-ins, and export who actually came.","\u002Fwp-content\u002Fuploads\u002F2018\u002F10\u002F02-iPad-Air-Landscape-1.png","Eventor check-in app on an iPad",[77,78,79,80,16,81],"check-in","iphone","ipad","android","door management",true,{"slug":84,"title":85,"description":86,"date":7,"category":87,"tags":88,"author":17,"readingMinutes":41,"featured":82,"legacy":19},"free-excel-guest-list-template","Free Excel Guest List Template for Events, Parties and Weddings","Download a ready-made Excel guest list template with name, e-mail, company, plus-ones, VIP and RSVP status columns. Works in Excel, Google Sheets and Numbers, and imports into Eventor in one drag-and-drop.","Templates",[12,89,15,90,91,92],"template","download","weddings","parties",1789764910755]