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Importing members

Upload a CSV file to add many members at once. Useful when you’re migrating from a spreadsheet or another tool.

For adding one person at a time, see Members.

Import members from a CSV

Before you upload, your file needs a header row with at least name and email. Here’s the full format:

name,email,phone,role,status
John Doe,[email protected],555-1234,member,active
Jane Smith,[email protected],555-5678,manager,active

Columns:

Column Required Accepted values Default if blank
name Yes Any text “Imported User”
email Yes Valid email address (row will fail)
phone No Any format Blank
role No admin, manager, member, guest member
status No active, inactive, suspended inactive

Note: The file must be UTF-8 encoded and no larger than 10MB.

Once your file is ready:

  1. Go to Members in the sidebar.
  2. Click Import Members.
  3. Click Choose File and select your CSV.
  4. Click Import Members.

Somiti reads the file and shows you a summary of what was imported, what was skipped, and what failed.

Note: Files over 1MB are processed in the background. You’ll get an email when the import finishes. The email shows how many members were added and lists any rows that failed.

Imported members get a temporary password. They’ll need to reset it the first time they log in.

Handle duplicates

If an email address already exists in your community, that row is skipped. The existing member isn’t changed.

To update an existing member’s details, open their profile in Members and edit it directly.

Fix import errors

After an import, any rows that failed appear in a red panel on the page. Each error shows the member’s name or email and a reason.

Common errors and what to do:

Error Fix
“Email is required” Add an email address to that row in your CSV
“Invalid CSV format” Open the file in a text editor and check for missing commas or stray characters; save as plain CSV, not Excel format
“Invalid file encoding” Re-save the file with UTF-8 encoding (in Excel: File > Save As > CSV UTF-8)
“File is too large” Split your CSV into smaller files under 10MB each and import them one at a time

Fix the rows in your CSV file and import again. Rows that already succeeded won’t be duplicated because the emails now exist in your community and will be skipped.

  • Members - Add and manage individual members, change roles and statuses
  • Memberships - Assign membership tiers after importing