Email Extraction for Recruiters: Building Candidate Contact Lists
On this page
Extract addresses without losing candidate context
Recruiting files can contain candidate emails, reference contacts, agency staff and internal interviewers. Extracting every pattern produces an address list, not a list of confirmed applicants for a particular role.
Use extraction to help locate contact fields in records you are authorized to process. Keep the original resume or applicant-system record so each result can be reviewed in context.
Prepare resumes and permitted exports
Choose a relevant role or search rather than combining every historical file. Supported inputs include text-based PDF, DOCX, CSV and spreadsheets. An export's availability and fields depend on the recruiting system, your permissions and its configured export options.
Image-only resumes need text recognition before extraction. A displayed address in an image is not made readable simply by placing that image inside a DOCX or PDF.
Run a file extraction
- Open Email Extractor and choose Text and files.
- Click Upload files and select the supported records.
- Keep each file within 25 MB and the batch within 100 MB.
- Click Extract emails and inspect file errors or missing text.
- Review sources and download CSV with sources when filenames or locations are needed.
A resume might contain the candidate's address and a referee's address. Both can appear. The app does not infer which person each address represents or join it to the candidate's name, job history or application status.
Return to the original record before importing
Confirm the candidate's address against the original record. Add only verified names and role context, and preserve records of objections or contact preferences. Use your applicant system's identifiers when updating existing records rather than assuming that one address always identifies one person.
Extraction does not assess suitability for a job or make hiring decisions. An address appearing in multiple documents does not establish qualifications, engagement or current interest.
Review retained data before re-engagement
An old application is not blanket permission for indefinite retention or every future contact. Check the applicable purpose, lawful basis, notice and retention rules for your organization and jurisdiction. The ICO's recruitment and selection guidance explains UK candidate-data obligations.
Local processing avoids uploading those resume files to our extraction server, but saved results and downloaded CSVs still need appropriate access and retention controls. See client-side and server-side processing.
Keep a traceable result
A practical reviewed worksheet includes the original record reference, confirmed address, relevant role, last review date and contact status. If required details are missing, resolve them from the source rather than inventing them during import.
For import preparation, follow the CRM formatting guide. Do not treat an extracted list as a replacement for the applicant system's full records.
