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How to load data from Salesforce to Excel File

How to Export Salesforce Report to Excel: Step-by-Step Guide

Learn how to use Airbyte to synchronize your Salesforce data into Excel File within minutes.

TL;DR

This can be done by building a data pipeline manually, usually a Python script (you can leverage a tool as Apache Airflow for this). This process can take more than a full week of development. Or it can be done in minutes on Airbyte in three easy steps:

  1. set up Salesforce as a source connector (using Auth, or usually an API key)
  2. set up Excel File as a destination connector
  3. define which data you want to transfer and how frequently

You can choose to self-host the pipeline using Airbyte Open Source or have it managed for you with Airbyte Cloud.

This tutorial’s purpose is to show you how.

What is Salesforce

Salesforce is a cloud-based customer relationship management (CRM) platform providing business solutions software on a subscription basis. Salesforce is a huge force in the ecommerce world, helping businesses with marketing, commerce, service and sales, and enabling enterprises’ IT teams to collaborate easily from anywhere. Salesforces is the force behind many industries, offering healthcare, automotive, finance, media, communications, and manufacturing multichannel support. Its services are wide-ranging, with access to customer, partner, and developer communities as well as an app exchange marketplace.

What is Excel File

Excel File is a software application developed by Microsoft that allows users to create, edit, and analyze spreadsheets. It is widely used in businesses, schools, and personal finance to organize and manipulate data. Excel File offers a range of features including formulas, charts, graphs, and pivot tables that enable users to perform complex calculations and data analysis. It also allows users to collaborate on spreadsheets in real-time and share them with others. Excel File is available on multiple platforms including Windows, Mac, and mobile devices, making it a versatile tool for data management and analysis.

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Prerequisites

  1. A Salesforce account to transfer your customer data automatically from.
  2. A Excel File account.
  3. An active Airbyte Cloud account, or you can also choose to use Airbyte Open Source locally. You can follow the instructions to set up Airbyte on your system using docker-compose.

Airbyte is an open-source data integration platform that consolidates and streamlines the process of extracting and loading data from multiple data sources to data warehouses. It offers pre-built connectors, including Salesforce and Excel File, for seamless data migration.

When using Airbyte to move data from Salesforce to Excel File, it extracts data from Salesforce using the source connector, converts it into a format Excel File can ingest using the provided schema, and then loads it into Excel File via the destination connector. This allows businesses to leverage their Salesforce data for advanced analytics and insights within Excel File, simplifying the ETL process and saving significant time and resources.

Step 1: Set up Salesforce as a source connector

1. Open the Airbyte platform and navigate to the "Sources" tab on the left-hand side of the screen.

2. Click on the "Salesforce" source connector and select "Create new connection."

3. Enter a name for your connection and click "Next."

4. Enter your Salesforce credentials, including your username, password, and security token.

5. Click "Test connection" to ensure that your credentials are correct and that Airbyte can connect to your Salesforce account.

6. Once the connection is successful, select the objects you want to replicate from Salesforce.

7. Choose the replication frequency and any other settings you want to apply to your connection.

8. Click "Create connection" to save your settings and start replicating data from Salesforce to Airbyte.

9. You can monitor the progress of your replication in the "Connections" tab and view the data in the "Dashboard" tab.

Step 2: Set up Excel File as a destination connector

1. Open the Airbyte platform and navigate to the "Sources" tab on the left-hand side of the screen.
2. Click on the "Excel File" source connector and select "Create new connection."
3. In the "Connection Configuration" page, enter a name for your connection and select the version of Excel you are using.
4. Click on "Add Credential" and enter the path to your Excel file in the "File Path" field.
5. If your Excel file is password-protected, enter the password in the "Password" field.
6. Click on "Test" to ensure that the connection is successful.
7. Once the connection is successful, click on "Create Connection" to save your settings.
8. You can now use this connection to extract data from your Excel file and integrate it with other data sources on Airbyte.

Step 3: Set up a connection to sync your Salesforce data to Excel File

Once you've successfully connected Salesforce as a data source and Excel File as a destination in Airbyte, you can set up a data pipeline between them with the following steps:

  1. Create a new connection: On the Airbyte dashboard, navigate to the 'Connections' tab and click the '+ New Connection' button.
  2. Choose your source: Select Salesforce from the dropdown list of your configured sources.
  3. Select your destination: Choose Excel File from the dropdown list of your configured destinations.
  4. Configure your sync: Define the frequency of your data syncs based on your business needs. Airbyte allows both manual and automatic scheduling for your data refreshes.
  5. Select the data to sync: Choose the specific Salesforce objects you want to import data from towards Excel File. You can sync all data or select specific tables and fields.
  6. Select the sync mode for your streams: Choose between full refreshes or incremental syncs (with deduplication if you want), and this for all streams or at the stream level. Incremental is only available for streams that have a primary cursor.
  7. Test your connection: Click the 'Test Connection' button to make sure that your setup works. If the connection test is successful, save your configuration.
  8. Start the sync: If the test passes, click 'Set Up Connection'. Airbyte will start moving data from Salesforce to Excel File according to your settings.

Remember, Airbyte keeps your data in sync at the frequency you determine, ensuring your Excel File data warehouse is always up-to-date with your Salesforce data.

Use Cases to transfer your Salesforce data to Excel File

Integrating data from Salesforce to Excel File provides several benefits. Here are a few use cases:

  1. Advanced Analytics: Excel File’s powerful data processing capabilities enable you to perform complex queries and data analysis on your Salesforce data, extracting insights that wouldn't be possible within Salesforce alone.
  2. Data Consolidation: If you're using multiple other sources along with Salesforce, syncing to Excel File allows you to centralize your data for a holistic view of your operations, and to set up a change data capture process so you never have any discrepancies in your data again.
  3. Historical Data Analysis: Salesforce has limits on historical data. Syncing data to Excel File allows for long-term data retention and analysis of historical trends over time.
  4. Data Security and Compliance: Excel File provides robust data security features. Syncing Salesforce data to Excel File ensures your data is secured and allows for advanced data governance and compliance management.
  5. Scalability: Excel File can handle large volumes of data without affecting performance, providing an ideal solution for growing businesses with expanding Salesforce data.
  6. Data Science and Machine Learning: By having Salesforce data in Excel File, you can apply machine learning models to your data for predictive analytics, customer segmentation, and more.
  7. Reporting and Visualization: While Salesforce provides reporting tools, data visualization tools like Tableau, PowerBI, Looker (Google Data Studio) can connect to Excel File, providing more advanced business intelligence options. If you have a Salesforce table that needs to be converted to a Excel File table, Airbyte can do that automatically.

Wrapping Up

To summarize, this tutorial has shown you how to:

  1. Configure a Salesforce account as an Airbyte data source connector.
  2. Configure Excel File as a data destination connector.
  3. Create an Airbyte data pipeline that will automatically be moving data directly from Salesforce to Excel File after you set a schedule

With Airbyte, creating data pipelines take minutes, and the data integration possibilities are endless. Airbyte supports the largest catalog of API tools, databases, and files, among other sources. Airbyte's connectors are open-source, so you can add any custom objects to the connector, or even build a new connector from scratch without any local dev environment or any data engineer within 10 minutes with the no-code connector builder.

We look forward to seeing you make use of it! We invite you to join the conversation on our community Slack Channel, or sign up for our newsletter. You should also check out other Airbyte tutorials, and Airbyte’s content hub!

What should you do next?

Hope you enjoyed the reading. Here are the 3 ways we can help you in your data journey:

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Integrating diverse data sources is crucial for organizations aiming to maximize their data potential. This article explores the process of exporting data from Salesforce Report to Excel, offering insights into configuration, benefits, and best practices.

By leveraging this Salesforce Report to Excel integration, organizations can streamline data transfer, enhance data management capabilities, and facilitate informed decision-making through access to accurate, up-to-date information.

We'll explore two methods: manual data export, which typically requires significant time and effort, and an automated approach of connecting Salesforce Report with Excel using Airbyte that can be set up in minutes. This guide aims to walk you through both processes effectively, helping you choose the method that best suits your needs.

About Salesforce

Salesforce is a cloud-based customer relationship management (CRM) platform. It provides a suite of applications focused on sales, customer service, marketing automation, analytics, and application development.

About Excel

Excel, a versatile spreadsheet tool within the Microsoft Office suite, has become an indispensable asset for data engineers and analysts worldwide. Its user-friendly interface, combined with powerful data manipulation and visualization capabilities, makes it a go-to solution for various data-related tasks. Excel's popularity stems from its ability to handle large datasets, perform complex calculations, and create insightful charts and pivot tables. For data engineers, Excel often serves as a familiar starting point for data exploration and preliminary analysis before moving to more specialized tools.

How to export Salesforce Report data to Excel?

Let's explore two methods to export your Salesforce Report data to Excel: 

  • An automated solution of connecting Salesforce Report to Excel using Airbyte
  • A manual approach of connecting Salesforce Report to Excel

Method 1: Automate or Schedule the export of Salesforce Report data to Excel using Airbyte

Airbyte offers a more efficient and reliable way to export your Salesforce Report data for use in Excel, with the added benefit of automation and scheduling. This means you can set up your data exports to run at specified intervals - be it hourly, daily, weekly, or any custom frequency you need - eliminating the need for manual effort and ensuring your Excel data is always up-to-date. While Airbyte doesn't directly support Excel as a destination, we can use alternative methods that allow for easy Excel integration.

1. Set up Salesforce Report as a source connector in Airbyte

  • Log in to your Airbyte account or set up Airbyte Open Source locally.
  • Navigate to the 'Sources' tab and click 'New Source'.
  • Select Salesforce from the list of available connectors.
  • Follow the prompts to enter your Salesforce Report credentials and configure the connection.
  • Test the connection to ensure it's working correctly.

2. Set up a destination connector in Airbyte

Local CSV Destination (for direct Excel compatibility)

  • In the 'Destinations' tab, click 'New Destination'.
  • Select 'Local CSV' as your destination.
  • Configure the local path where you want to save the CSV files.
  • These CSV files can be directly opened in Excel.

3. Create a connection in Airbyte

  • Navigate to the 'Connections' tab and click 'New Connection'.
  • Select Salesforce Report as the source and your chosen destination (Local CSV).
  • In the 'Streams' section, choose which data you want to export from Salesforce.
  • Set your sync frequency based on how often you need updated data.
  • Configure any necessary transformations or mappings.
  • Save and run your connection to start the initial sync.

4. Accessing your data in Excel

  • Navigate to the local directory you specified.
  • Open the CSV files directly in Excel.

Airbyte keeps your Salesforce Report data in sync at the frequency you specify in step #3, ensuring your Excel data warehouse is always up-to-date with your Salesforce Report data. ‍This method eliminates manual export processes from Salesforce, reduces the risk of human error, and saves considerable time, especially when dealing with large datasets or frequent updates.

Remember, while this method of exporting Salesforce Report data to Excel requires initial setup, it provides long-term benefits in terms of efficiency and data accuracy. You'll spend less time on data preparation and more time on valuable analysis and decision-making.

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Method 2: Manually exporting Salesforce Report data to Excel

Here's a step-by-step process to export a Salesforce report to Excel without using any third-party data integration tools:

1. Log in to Salesforce

Open your web browser and log in to your Salesforce account using your credentials.

2. Navigate to Reports

Click on the "Reports" tab in the top navigation menu. If you don't see it, click on the App Launcher (nine dots) and search for "Reports".

3. Find the Report

Locate the report you want to export. You can use the search function or navigate through your folders to find the specific report.

4. Run the Report

Click on the report name to run it. This will display the report results on your screen.

5. Export the Report

Look for the "Export" button, usually located near the top right corner of the report. Click on it to open the export options.

6. Choose Export Format

In the export options, select "Formatted Report" if you want to preserve the formatting of your Salesforce report. If you prefer raw data, choose "Details Only".

7. Select File Type

Choose ".xlsx" (Excel) as the file type for your export.

8. Set Export Details

   - Specify the number of rows you want to export (up to 65,536 rows for .xls or 1,000,000 rows for .xlsx).

   - Choose whether to include details of grouped rows.

   - Decide if you want to save the export settings for future use.

9. Export

Click the "Export" button to start the export process.

10. Download the File

Depending on your browser settings, the file may automatically download, or you may need to choose a location to save it.

11. Open in Excel

Once the download is complete, locate the file and open it using Microsoft Excel.

Important Notes:

  • The exact steps might vary slightly depending on your Salesforce edition and user interface settings.
  • Ensure you have the necessary permissions in Salesforce to export reports.
  • Large reports may take some time to export, depending on the amount of data.
  • Be aware of any data sensitivity and comply with your organization's data handling policies when exporting Salesforce data.

Use cases for exporting Salesforce Report data to Excel

1. Data Analysis and Reporting

Exporting Salesforce data to Excel allows users to perform more advanced data analysis and create custom reports that may not be easily achievable within Salesforce's native reporting tools. Excel's powerful features, such as pivot tables, charts, and formulas, enable users to slice and dice data, identify trends, and generate insights that can inform business decisions. 

This is particularly useful for:

  • Creating complex financial reports
  • Analyzing sales performance across different dimensions
  • Identifying customer behavior patterns

2. Data Cleansing and Manipulation

Exporting data to Excel provides an opportunity to clean, standardize, and manipulate large datasets outside of Salesforce. This is useful when:

  • Preparing data for import into another system
  • Correcting inconsistencies or errors in bulk
  • Merging data from multiple sources
  • Formatting data to meet specific requirements

Users can leverage Excel's data manipulation tools, such as find and replace, text-to-columns, and conditional formatting, to efficiently process large volumes of data.

3. Offline Access and Collaboration

Exporting Salesforce data to Excel allows users to access and work with the data offline or share it with stakeholders who may not have access to Salesforce. 

This is particularly useful for:

  • Presenting data to external clients or partners
  • Collaborating on projects with team members who don't use Salesforce
  • Working on data during travel or in areas with limited internet connectivity
  • Creating backups of critical data for archival purposes

Why choose Airbyte for connecting Salesforce to Excel?

Airbyte offers several advantages for your data integration needs:

1. Easy setup: Airbyte's user-friendly interface makes it simple to create connections between Salesforce and Excel.

2. Automation: Schedule your data syncs to run automatically, saving time and ensuring data consistency.

3. Customization: Choose exactly which data to export and how often to update it.

4. Scalability: Airbyte can handle large datasets, making it suitable for businesses of all sizes.

5. Open-source: Benefit from community-driven development and the ability to customize connectors if needed.

Conclusion

Exporting data from Salesforce reports to Excel is crucial for many businesses to leverage their data effectively. While manual export is possible, using a tool like Airbyte can significantly streamline this process, saving time and reducing errors. By automating your data exports with Airbyte, you can ensure that your Excel files are always up-to-date, allowing you to focus on analyzing and deriving insights from your data rather than managing exports.

Ready to simplify your Salesforce to Excel exports? Try Airbyte for free.

What should you do next?

Hope you enjoyed the reading. Here are the 3 ways we can help you in your data journey:

flag icon
Easily address your data movement needs with Airbyte Cloud
Take the first step towards extensible data movement infrastructure that will give a ton of time back to your data team. 
Get started with Airbyte for free
high five icon
Talk to a data infrastructure expert
Get a free consultation with an Airbyte expert to significantly improve your data movement infrastructure. 
Talk to sales
stars sparkling
Improve your data infrastructure knowledge
Subscribe to our monthly newsletter and get the community’s new enlightening content along with Airbyte’s progress in their mission to solve data integration once and for all.
Subscribe to newsletter

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Frequently Asked Questions

What data can you extract from Salesforce?

Salesforce's API provides access to a wide range of data types, including:  

1. Accounts: Information about customer accounts, including contact details, billing information, and purchase history.  

2. Leads: Data on potential customers, including contact information, lead source, and lead status.  

3. Opportunities: Information on potential sales deals, including deal size, stage, and probability of closing.  

4. Contacts: Details on individual contacts associated with customer accounts, including contact information and activity history.  

5. Cases: Information on customer service cases, including case details, status, and resolution.  

6. Products: Data on products and services offered by the company, including pricing, availability, and product descriptions.  

7. Campaigns: Information on marketing campaigns, including campaign details, status, and results.  

8. Reports and Dashboards: Access to pre-built and custom reports and dashboards that provide insights into sales, marketing, and customer service performance.  

9. Custom Objects: Ability to access and manipulate custom objects created by the organization to store specific types of data.  

Overall, Salesforce's API provides access to a comprehensive set of data types that enable organizations to manage and analyze their customer relationships, sales processes, and marketing campaigns.

What data can you transfer to Excel File?

You can transfer a wide variety of data to Excel File. This usually includes structured, semi-structured, and unstructured data like transaction records, log files, JSON data, CSV files, and more, allowing robust, scalable data integration and analysis.

What are top ETL tools to transfer data from Salesforce to Excel File?

The most prominent ETL tools to transfer data from Salesforce to Excel File include:

  • Airbyte
  • Fivetran
  • Stitch
  • Matillion
  • Talend Data Integration

These tools help in extracting data from Salesforce and various sources (APIs, databases, and more), transforming it efficiently, and loading it into Excel File and other databases, data warehouses and data lakes, enhancing data management capabilities.