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Local Exports: Four Ways to Move LinkedIn Data into Google Sheets

September 2, 2026·
Local Exports: Four Ways to Move LinkedIn Data into Google Sheets

The fastest route from LinkedIn to Google Sheets depends on the job: a one-off contact list means LinkedIn's own Connections.csv export; a targeted list of profiles or Sales Navigator leads calls for a browser extension like Mastros that runs locally in your session; a handful of public pages can sometimes be pulled with spreadsheet formulas; and recurring, scheduled syncs belong to no-code automations or, for EEA and Swiss accounts, the Member Data Portability API.

TL;DR:

  • Manual exports like Connections.csv are quick and reliable but only include basic contact information; extensions offer more control for targeted lists without server uploads.
  • Browser extensions such as Mastros allow selective exporting of profiles or Sales Navigator leads by running inside your signed-in session, preserving privacy and flexibility.
  • Formulas like IMPORTXML work only for public LinkedIn pages and often break when pages require login or LinkedIn changes its structure, making them unreliable for large-scale data extraction.
  • Automation tools and the Member Data Portability API are ideal for recurring syncs and EEA/Swiss accounts but require setup time, developer access, and have limited account compatibility.
  • Official LinkedIn data exports result in incomplete, static files, while local tools risk failure if page structure changes or if website updates alter data availability.

Table of Contents

How Do You Get LinkedIn Data Into Google Sheets?

Four methods cover almost every real-world use case, and picking the wrong one usually means wasted setup time or a file that doesn't have the fields you actually need.

  • Manual export (Connections.csv or full archive): Zero setup, official data, but you get what LinkedIn gives you, not what you ask for.
  • Browser extension (Mastros): Runs in your signed-in session, lets you pick exact rows or fields from search results, profiles, or Sales Navigator, and saves locally without a server upload.
  • Spreadsheet formulas (IMPORTXML/IMPORTHTML): Free and fast for small, public pages, but breaks the moment LinkedIn requires a login or changes its page structure.
  • No-code automation or the DMA API: Best for scheduled, recurring syncs, but automations need setup time and the DMA route only works for EEA/Swiss accounts.

If you need a quick list of your own contacts, the official export wins on simplicity. If you're building a prospecting sheet from a search result or a Sales Navigator list, an extension gets you there in minutes with more control over which fields land in the file. If you're pulling data into Sheets every week for a team, automation or the API is the only method that scales without manual re-exports.

How Do I Request My LinkedIn Connections and Data Archive?

LinkedIn's own export tool is the most reliable starting point, especially if you only need your first-degree connections and want the data to come straight from the source.

  1. On LinkedIn desktop, click your profile photo, then go to Settings & Privacy.
  2. Open Data privacy, then select Get a copy of your data.
  3. Choose either Connections for a lightweight CSV or the full archive for everything, then click Request archive.
  4. Wait for the email notification. Connections.csv typically arrives within a short time, while the full archive, which bundles more than 40 CSV files covering messages, comments, and reactions, can take a day or more.
  5. Download the ZIP, unzip it, then in Google Sheets go to File → Import → Upload and select the CSV you need.

Connections.csv typically includes first name, last name, company, position, and email if the contact has shared it, which makes it usable almost as-is for a CRM import or a prospecting tracker.

Pro Tip: Once you download the file, LinkedIn's protections no longer apply to it. You're responsible for storing and securing that exported CSV yourself, so keep it out of shared public drives.

How Do You Export Sales Navigator Leads With a Browser Extension?

Official exports give you your own connections, but they can't hand you a curated list of search results or Sales Navigator leads with just the fields you want. That's where a local, privacy-first extension does the job a bulk archive never will.

"Privacy-first" here means the extension reads what your browser is already displaying in your signed-in LinkedIn session and saves it to a file, without uploading anything to a third-party server or asking for a second login. That distinction matters if you're exporting client-adjacent data and don't want it passing through someone else's infrastructure.

The workflow with the Mastros LinkedIn exporter looks like this:

  • Install the extension and open the LinkedIn view you want to capture: a search results page, a specific profile, or a Sales Navigator lead list.
  • Configure which fields you need (name, title, company, location, profile URL) and pick your output format.
  • Select the rows or pages to include, then run the export.
  • Open the resulting file directly in Google Sheets, or import it if it's XLSX or JSON.

The extension supports multiple export formats, allowing you to match the format to how you'll use the data afterward. CSV opens cleanest for a quick import, XLSX preserves multiple sheets if you're organizing by list, and JSON/JSONL suits anyone piping the export into another tool. Reviewing export format tradeoffs before you run a large batch saves a reformatting step later.

Pro Tip: Never guess at email addresses when exporting leads. The sheet you get reflects what's actually visible on the page, not an inferred guess.

Can Google Sheets Formulas Pull LinkedIn Profile Data?

Sheets formulas like IMPORTXML and IMPORTHTML can scrape structured data off a public web page directly into a cell, and some published guides show this applied to LinkedIn profile URLs pasted into a column. The pattern usually looks like referencing a cell containing a profile URL, then wrapping it in an IMPORTXML call with an XPath targeting the headline or company field.

The catch is authentication. LinkedIn profile pages require a login to show full details, and IMPORTXML can't carry your session cookie, so it often returns blank cells or an error instead of data.

  • Formulas only work reliably on public pages that don't gate content behind a login wall.
  • LinkedIn frequently changes its page structure, which breaks XPath selectors without warning.
  • Running formulas across a long list of URLs risks rate limiting and inconsistent results.

Use this method only for small batches, maybe a handful of public company pages, or when you already have a short list of profile URLs and just need one or two fields. For anything beyond a dozen rows, an extension or an official export will save you the debugging time.

When Should You Automate LinkedIn Exports or Use the DMA API?

Automation earns its setup time when you're syncing data on a schedule instead of pulling it once. No-code platforms typically work by connecting your LinkedIn account, mapping specific fields to spreadsheet columns, and running the sync on a timer, whether that's daily, weekly, or triggered by an event.

  • Connect the account and authorize the integration.
  • Map source fields (name, company, role) to destination columns in Sheets.
  • Set a schedule or trigger, then let it run unattended.

For EEA and Swiss users, there's a more direct programmatic option: the Member Data Portability API, built under the EU's Digital Markets Act. It exposes specific data domains, including CONNECTIONS, PROFILE, and INBOX, that a developer can query directly rather than waiting on a broad archive request.

Statistic Callout: DMA access is currently limited to EEA and Swiss accounts and requires developer app registration, an access token, and paginated requests through each domain, so it suits teams with engineering resources more than a solo prospector.

Choose automation or the API when a team needs recurring, hands-off syncs at scale. Choose a local extension when the job is selective, occasional, and doesn't justify building an integration.

Which Method Fits Your Situation?

Match the method to how often you need the data and how much control you need over which fields land in your sheet.

  1. One-off personal export? Use LinkedIn's Connections.csv. It's official, fast, and needs no setup.
  2. Selective list from search results or Sales Navigator? Use a browser extension. You control exactly which rows and fields export.
  3. Recurring team sync? Use automation, or the DMA API if your accounts are EEA or Swiss based and you have developer resources.
  4. Small batch from public pages you already have URLs for? Formulas can work, but expect occasional breakage.

Before committing to any method, check whether it demands your full account password (a red flag for any third-party tool) and whether it stores exported files unencrypted in a shared or public location. Those two habits cause more data exposure than the export method itself ever does.

Why Do LinkedIn Imports Break in Google Sheets?

Most import failures trace back to file structure, not the data itself. A ZIP archive from the full data request needs unzipping before Sheets will touch any file inside it, and some exports include a header row or metadata line before the actual CSV data starts, which throws off column alignment on import.

  • Unzip archives fully before importing; don't try to import a ZIP directly.
  • If a CSV looks garbled, check the character encoding. UTF-8 is the safe default for most LinkedIn exports.
  • For paginated or partial exports, use QUERY to filter and SPLIT to break combined fields like "City, State" into separate columns.
  • Run TRIM across imported columns to catch stray whitespace that causes false mismatches in VLOOKUP or filter formulas.

Pro Tip: Always keep an untouched copy of the original export file before you start cleaning it in Sheets. If a formula scrambles a column, you'll want the source to reimport from, not a half-edited version.

Spot-check a handful of rows against the original LinkedIn page, and compare your final row count to what the export summary reported, before trusting the sheet for outreach or reporting.

Where to Find Official LinkedIn Export Documentation

LinkedIn's own Settings & Privacy data export flow covers request steps and timing for Connections.csv. The Member Data Portability API notes explain DMA domain access for EEA and Swiss accounts. For safer handling of exported files generally, review guidance on reducing detection and exposure risk when moving data outside LinkedIn's platform.

The Real Tradeoff Nobody Talks About

Most advice on this topic treats "export LinkedIn data" as a single problem with a single best tool. It isn't. The research behind this article makes one thing clear: the four methods solve different problems, and the conventional wisdom of "just use an API" or "just use an extension" ignores how differently they fail.

Official exports fail quietly. You get exactly the fields LinkedIn decided to give you, no more, and if that's not what you needed, you find out after the wait, not before. Formulas fail loudly and often, breaking the moment LinkedIn tweaks its markup. Automations fail expensively when they demand credentials you shouldn't hand over. A local extension fails least often for the specific job of selective, one-time exports, precisely because it isn't trying to do everything at once.

What the reader should prioritize first isn't finding the "best" tool. It's matching the method's failure mode to a mistake you can afford to make. If you can't afford a slow, incomplete manual export, don't reach for one out of habit just because it's official.

— Elias Mahdavi

Get Selective LinkedIn Exports Without the Wait

If the methods above taught you anything, it's that speed and control rarely come from the official archive request. There are browser extensions that export exactly the profiles, search results, or Sales Navigator leads you select, in CSV, XLSX, or JSON, without uploading anything to a server or waiting hours for an email notification. Such extensions run inside your own signed-in LinkedIn session, so there's no second login and nothing gets automated on your behalf, no messages, no invites, no auto-replies.

That combination suits anyone who found the Connections.csv wait too slow or the full archive too bloated for what they actually needed. If you're building prospecting lists, tracking Sales Navigator leads, or feeding a CRM import on a regular basis, check out the Mastros LinkedIn exporter and run your first export today. And once you've got your sheet populated, a workflow like tracking job applications shows how far a clean spreadsheet can go.

FAQ

Can I Extract Data From LinkedIn?

Yes. You can request an official Connections.csv or full data archive through Settings & Privacy, use a browser extension like Mastros for selective profile or Sales Navigator exports, or query the Member Data Portability API if your account is EEA or Swiss based.

How Do I Link LinkedIn to Google Sheets?

There's no direct native integration between the two platforms. Export your LinkedIn data first, whether through the official CSV request, a browser extension, or an automation tool, then import that file into Sheets using File → Import.

How Do I Import Data From a Link Into Google Sheets?

For public, non-authenticated pages, IMPORTXML or IMPORTHTML can pull structured data from a URL directly into a cell, but this rarely works on LinkedIn since most pages require a login the formula can't provide.

How Can I Export My LinkedIn Contacts to Excel?

Request your Connections.csv through Settings & Privacy, which typically arrives within 10 to 24 minutes, then open that CSV directly in Excel or Google Sheets. For a more curated list with custom fields, a browser extension like Mastros exports directly to XLSX.

What's the Difference Between Connections.csv and the Full Data Archive?

Connections.csv is a lightweight file with your first-degree contacts and arrives quickly, while the full archive bundles over 40 CSV files covering messages, posts, and reactions and can take up to a day or more to generate.

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