--- title: Bulk Import Members description: How to bulk import members --- [Skip to content](https://help.ideascale.com/bulk-import-member#main-content) English Show submenu for translations [![IdeaScale](https://help.ideascale.com/hs-fs/hubfs/ideascale-logo.png?width=223&height=31&name=ideascale-logo.png)](https://help.ideascale.com/?hsLang=en) Open main navigation Close main navigation - English Show submenu for translations - [Go to ideascale.com](https://ideascale.com/) [Go to ideascale.com](https://ideascale.com/) Hi!👋 How can we help you today? - There are no suggestions because the search field is empty. 1. [IdeaScale Support Center](https://help.ideascale.com/?hsLang=en) 2. [Member Management](https://help.ideascale.com/member-management?hsLang=en) 3. [Members](https://help.ideascale.com/member-management?hsLang=en#members) # Bulk Import Members ## How to bulk import members ***Path: Workspace Homepage >> Navigation Panel >> Members >> Workspace/Community >> Import tab >> Members*** | What is Bulk Import Members? | | --- | | Bulk Import Members is a feature that allows an Administrator to add multiple people to a workspace or community at once by uploading a completed Excel template, rather than adding members individually. | Rather than adding members one at a time, an Administrator downloads a member import template, completes it with the required details, and uploads the finished Excel file to add many members in a single action. The same import can assign members to a Group, control whether a verification email is sent, and upload answers to Member Profile Questions. --- ### Role Permissions 1. Workspace Administrator: Imports members at the workspace level from Workspace >> Member Management. Members imported at this level are added to the workspace only. 2. Community Administrator: Imports members directly at the community level from Community >> Member Management. Members imported at this level are added to both the workspace and the community. --- **TABLE OF CONTENTS** [Bulk Import Members](https://help.ideascale.com/bulk-import-member#BulkImportMembers) [Assigning Groups](https://help.ideascale.com/bulk-import-member#AssigningGroups) [Uploading Answers to Member Profile Questions](https://help.ideascale.com/bulk-import-member#UploadingAnswersMemberProfileQuestions) [Import Notifications](https://help.ideascale.com/bulk-import-member#ImportNotifications) [Workspace vs. Community Import](https://help.ideascale.com/bulk-import-member#WorkspaceCommunityImport) [Exceptions](https://help.ideascale.com/bulk-import-member#Exceptions) [Frequently Asked Questions](https://help.ideascale.com/bulk-import-member#FrequentlyAskedQuestions) --- ### Bulk Import Members To bulk import members, download the member import template, fill in the required details in each column, and upload the completed file. The file must be in .xls or .xlsx format. ![Screenshot 2026-07-29 at 7.06.35 AM](https://help.ideascale.com/hs-fs/hubfs/Screenshot%202026-07-29%20at%207.06.35%20AM.png?width=670&height=363&name=Screenshot%202026-07-29%20at%207.06.35%20AM.png) Up to 3,000 members can be uploaded per file. Attempting to add more members in a single file leads to interruptions and incomplete uploads. To add members silently, without sending a verification email, enable the Disable Verification Email switch. See Exceptions below for what this means for members added this way. In case there is malicious content, virus, or malware during the upload it will show an error and the upload will fail. ![downloads (7)](https://help.ideascale.com/hs-fs/hubfs/downloads%20(7).webp?width=670&height=129&name=downloads%20(7).webp) --- ### Assigning Groups An Administrator can assign a Group to new or existing members as part of the import. Enabling the Set Group switch displays a dropdown of available groups: at the Workspace level, this dropdown lists every group created in the workspace; at the Community level, it lists only the groups specific to that community. The Administrator selects a single Group to which all members in the file are assigned — assigning multiple groups in the same import is not possible. When an existing member is assigned to a Group during import, a verification email is resent to that member*.* **Help Article on [Groups](https://help.ideascale.com/group?hsLang=en)**   Related settings are available to bulk upload member status and to bulk upload usernames. **Help Article for [Bulk upload Members Status](https://help.ideascale.com/upload-members-status?hsLang=en)** **Help Article for [Bulk upload Username](https://help.ideascale.com/upload-username?hsLang=en)** --- ### Uploading Answers to Member Profile Questions An Administrator can upload answer values for Member Profile Questions as part of a bulk import — Community Member Profile Questions at the community level, and Workspace Member Profile Questions at the workspace level. This also allows new Member Profile Question answers to be uploaded for existing members. The following conditions apply: 1. Email Address: The first column of the file. 2. Display Name: The second column of the file. 3. Member Profile Question Columns: Each subsequent column header must correspond exactly to a Member Profile Question label or title. This is case-sensitive. 4. Answer Values: The values listed under each Member Profile Question column are the answers for that member. For Single Choice and Multiple Choice custom fields, values must correspond exactly to the field's possible answers and are case-sensitive. Checkbox fields take a value of "true" or "false." Multiple Choice answers are comma-separated. 5. Required vs. Not Required: If a Member Profile Question is set to Required, the corresponding answer must be included for the upload to complete successfully. If a Member Profile Question is set to Not Required, its column can be left blank. **Note: HTML tags and entities are not supported in this file — for example, bullets, smart quotes, ampersands, and copyright or registered trademark symbols.** **![Screenshot 2026-07-29 at 7.10.23 AM](https://help.ideascale.com/hs-fs/hubfs/Screenshot%202026-07-29%20at%207.10.23%20AM.png?width=670&height=244&name=Screenshot%202026-07-29%20at%207.10.23%20AM.png)** --- ### Import Notifications The Administrator who performs the import receives an email notification stating the number of members successfully uploaded, along with error messages describing any issues encountered for members who were not uploaded. ![245](https://help.ideascale.com/hs-fs/hubfs/245.webp?width=670&height=406&name=245.webp) The Workspace Administrator and Community Administrator also receive an email notification when a new member is added to the community. ![247](https://help.ideascale.com/hs-fs/hubfs/247.webp?width=670&height=403&name=247.webp) --- ### Workspace vs. Community Import For a workspace with a single community, the Community Administrator can import members either from Workspace >> Member Management or directly from Community >> Member Management. Importing members at the Workspace level: 1. The member is added to the workspace only. 2. The member's status is set to Member, since the import was performed by a Workspace Administrator. 3. A verification email is sent to the member. 4. Once verification is complete, the member sets a password and completes their profile. 5. After completing the profile, the member sees the Workspace Homepage and can view the community. 6. The Workspace Administrator receives an email confirming the import, along with a welcome email. Importing members at the Community level: 1. The member is added to both the workspace and the community at the same time. 2. The member's status displays as Member at the workspace level and Invited at the community level. 3. A verification email is sent to the member. 4. Once verification is complete, the member sets a password and completes their profile. 5. After completing the profile, the member sees the Workspace Homepage and the community they are part of. 6. The Community Administrator receives an email confirming the import, along with a welcome email sent to both the Workspace Administrator and the Community Administrator. --- ### Exceptions 1. Malicious Content Detected: If the uploaded file contains malicious content, a virus, or malware, the system displays an error and the upload fails. 2. Workspace Member Approval Enabled: If Workspace member approval is enabled and the import is performed at the community level, imported members appear in Community Member Management only after a Workspace Administrator approves them. 3. Verification Email Disabled: If the Disable Verification Email switch is enabled during import, a verification email is not sent automatically. The Administrator must send it manually at a later time. --- ### Frequently Asked Questions #### What happens if a file with more than 3,000 members is uploaded? Uploading more than 3,000 members in a single file leads to interruptions and incomplete uploads. Files should be kept at or under this limit. #### Can more than one Group be assigned during a single import? No. An Administrator can select only one Group per import, to which all members in the file are assigned. Assigning multiple groups in the same import is not possible. #### Are HTML tags or special characters supported when uploading Member Profile Question answers? No. HTML tags and entities — such as bullets, smart quotes, ampersands, and copyright or registered trademark symbols — are not supported in the import file. #### What file formats are accepted for bulk import? Only .xls or .xlsx files are accepted. #### Does importing an existing member into a Group resend their verification email? Yes. When an existing member is assigned to a Group during import, a verification email is resent to that member. --- **Related Articles** - Help Article on [Groups](https://help.ideascale.com/group?hsLang=en) - Help Article for [Bulk upload Members Status](https://help.ideascale.com/upload-members-status?hsLang=en) - Help Article for [Bulk upload Username](https://help.ideascale.com/upload-username?hsLang=en) Last Updated: September 13, 2026 - [Product Updates](https://help.ideascale.com/product-updates?hsLang=en#main-content) - [2026](https://help.ideascale.com/product-updates?hsLang=en#2026) - [2025](https://help.ideascale.com/product-updates?hsLang=en#2025) - [Workspace](https://help.ideascale.com/workspace?hsLang=en#main-content) - [Workspace Homepage](https://help.ideascale.com/workspace?hsLang=en#workspace-homepage) - [Manage Workspace](https://help.ideascale.com/manage-workspace?hsLang=en#main-content) - [Workspace Configuration](https://help.ideascale.com/manage-workspace?hsLang=en#workspace-configuration) - 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