Switch from Attio

Bring your Attio workspace along for the ride

Tonic Desk imports your Attio People, Companies, and Deals from straightforward CSV exports. Your custom lists become segments, your notes become activity entries, and your pipeline structure stays intact.

Most teams finish in under 15 minutes

What transfers

People records with name, email, phone, and job title
Company records with domain, industry, and standard attributes
Deals with name, value, stage, and expected close date
Person-to-company associations
Custom attributes that have matching custom fields in Tonic Desk
Owner assignments (matched by email address)
Notes imported as Activity entries on the corresponding contact

Step by step

1. Export People from your Attio workspace

Open your Attio workspace and navigate to People. Click the ... menu near the top of the table and choose Export to CSV. Attio generates one CSV file containing every person record with all visible attributes, including any custom attributes you have added.

2. Export Companies

Switch to the Companies object in the left sidebar. Open the ... menu and select Export to CSV. The export includes company name, domain, industry, team size, and any custom attributes. Save the file alongside your People export.

3. Export Deals

Open the Deals object. Use the ... menu and choose Export to CSV. The file contains deal name, value, stage, expected close date, and the linked People and Companies for each deal.

4. Upload your files to Tonic Desk

In Tonic Desk, open Settings > Import. Upload Companies first, then People, then Deals. Tonic Desk reads each CSV header row and maps Attio's attribute names to Tonic Desk fields automatically. Review the field-mapping preview before confirming.

5. Recreate your lists as segments

Attio's custom Lists are filter-based views, not separate records. Note down the filter criteria for each list you rely on (for example, "People where lifecycle = customer and city contains Berlin"), then rebuild them as segments inside Tonic Desk after the import finishes.

Field mapping reference

Source Field	Tonic Desk Field	Notes
First name	first_name	Direct match
Last name	last_name	Direct match
Email addresses	email	Primary email is extracted; additional emails saved to a custom field
Phone numbers	phone	Primary phone is extracted
Job title	job_title	Direct match
Company	company	Auto-linked to the matching Tonic Desk company record
Description	notes	Imported as the first Activity entry on the contact
Created at	created_at	Original creation timestamp preserved
Record owner	owner	Resolved by matching the owner's email address
Deal stage	stage	Custom stage names imported as-is — create matching stages in Tonic Desk first

What doesn't transfer (and workarounds)

Lists (custom views) — Attio Lists are filter definitions, not stored records. Workaround: write down each list's filter criteria before exporting, then rebuild them as Tonic Desk segments after import.
Enrichment data sources — Attio's built-in enrichment connectors stay with Attio. Workaround: the enriched values themselves come across in the CSV; only the live refresh connection is left behind.
Workflow automations — Attio's automation builder uses its own action types. Workaround: document active automations and recreate them with Tonic Desk's automation rules.
Comments and reactions on records — Internal collaboration threads do not export. Workaround: copy any critical decision threads into a final note before exporting.
Email tracking history — Open and click data from Attio's email integration is proprietary. Tonic Desk begins tracking fresh once you connect your inbox.

Tips for a smooth switch

Export Companies before People. When Tonic Desk imports People and sees a company that already exists, it links them automatically.
Attio supports multiple emails and phones per record. Tonic Desk pulls the primary one; if you need the rest, add them as custom fields before importing.
If you use Attio's currency attribute on deals, confirm your default currency in Tonic Desk matches before importing so values do not get reinterpreted.
Audit your lists before you leave — only rebuild the ones you actively use. Most teams discover half their Attio lists are stale.
For workspaces with more than 50,000 records per object, filter your exports by created date and import in batches. It keeps the field-mapping preview responsive.

Do I need an Attio paid plan to export my data?

No. CSV export of People, Companies, and Deals is available on every Attio plan, including the free workspace. You do not need to upgrade to take your data with you.

What happens to my Attio Lists during the migration?

Lists are Attio's filter-based views and are not part of the CSV export. The underlying records come across fine — you rebuild the views as Tonic Desk segments after import. Most teams find this a good moment to consolidate; the average Attio workspace has roughly twice as many lists as anyone actively uses.

Will my Attio notes come across?

Yes, with a small caveat. Tonic Desk imports the contents of the "Description" attribute as the first Activity entry on each contact. If you need the full timeline of notes Attio attaches to records, export them via the Attio API into a separate CSV and import as Activity entries.

How are custom objects handled?

Custom objects you have defined in Attio export as their own CSVs. Tonic Desk can import them as custom records if you create the matching object first under Settings > Custom Objects. Direct mapping is supported for standard field types: text, number, date, select, and reference.