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# Export issues to CSV **(FREE)**

> Moved to GitLab Free in 12.10.

You can export issues as CSV files from GitLab, which are sent to your default
notification email address as an attachment.

**Export Issues to CSV** enables you and your team to export all the data
collected from issues into a **[comma-separated values](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Comma-separated_values)** (CSV)
file, which stores tabular data in plain text.

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CSV files can be used with any plotter or spreadsheet-based program, such as
Microsoft Excel, Open Office Calc, or Google Sheets.

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Here are some of the uses of exporting issues as CSV files:

- Make a snapshot of issues for offline analysis or to communicate with other
  teams who may not be in GitLab.
- Create diagrams, graphs, and charts from the CSV data.
- Present the data in any other format for auditing or sharing reasons.
- Import the issues elsewhere to a system outside of GitLab.
- Long-term issues' data analysis with multiple snapshots created along the
  time.
- Use the long-term data to gather relevant feedback given in the issues, and
  improve your product based on real metrics.

## Choosing which issues to include

After selecting a project, from the issues page you can narrow down which
issues to export using the search bar, along with the All/Open/Closed tabs. All
issues returned are exported, including those not shown on the first page.

![CSV export button](img/csv_export_button_v12_9.png)

GitLab asks you to confirm the number of issues and email address for the
export, after which the email is prepared.

![CSV export modal dialog](img/csv_export_modal.png)

## Sorting

Exported issues are always sorted by `Title`.

## Format

Data is encoded with a comma as the column delimiter, with `"` used to quote
fields if needed, and newlines to separate rows. The first row contains the
headers, which are listed in the following table along with a description of
the values:

| Column                                   | Description                                               |
|------------------------------------------|-----------------------------------------------------------|
| Title                                    | Issue `title`                                             |
| Description                              | Issue `description`                                       |
| Issue ID                                 | Issue `iid`                                               |
| URL                                      | A link to the issue on GitLab                             |
| State                                    | `Open` or `Closed`                                        |
| Author                                   | Full name of the issue author                             |
| Author Username                          | Username of the author, with the `@` symbol omitted       |
| Assignee                                 | Full name of the issue assignee                           |
| Assignee Username                        | Username of the author, with the `@` symbol omitted       |
| Confidential                             | `Yes` or `No`                                             |
| Locked                                   | `Yes` or `No`                                             |
| Due Date                                 | Formatted as `YYYY-MM-DD`                                 |
| Created At (UTC)                         | Formatted as `YYYY-MM-DD HH:MM:SS`                        |
| Updated At (UTC)                         | Formatted as `YYYY-MM-DD HH:MM:SS`                        |
| Milestone                                | Title of the issue milestone                              |
| Weight                                   | Issue weight                                              |
| Labels                                   | Title of any labels joined with a `,`                     |
| Time Estimate                            | [Time estimate](../time_tracking.md#estimates) in seconds |
| Time Spent                               | [Time spent](../time_tracking.md#time-spent) in seconds   |
| [Epic](../../group/epics/index.md) ID    | ID of the parent epic, introduced in 12.7                 |
| [Epic](../../group/epics/index.md) Title | Title of the parent epic, introduced in 12.7              |

In GitLab 14.7 and earlier, the first two columns were `Issue ID` and `URL`,
which [caused an issue](https://gitlab.com/gitlab-org/gitlab/-/issues/34769)
when importing back into GitLab.

## Limitations

- Export Issues to CSV is not available at the Group's Issues List.
- Issues are sent as an email attachment, with a 15 MB export limit to ensure
  successful delivery across a range of email providers. If you reach the limit,
  we suggest narrowing the search before export, perhaps by exporting open and
  closed issues separately.
- CSV files are plain text files. This means that the exported CSV file doesn't
  contain any issue attachments.