How to Extract Emails from Formstack Submissions
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Export and import options vary by plan, permissions and product version. Check the platform’s current help documentation if a menu or format differs. Use only contact data you are authorized to process; an extracted address is not proof of marketing consent.
Why Extract from Formstack Submissions?
Formstack is a form builder and workflow automation platform used by businesses, nonprofits, healthcare organisations, educational institutions and government agencies. It handles contact forms, intake forms, registration forms, application forms, surveys, consent forms and payment forms. Submissions are stored in the Formstack platform.
Extracting email addresses from Formstack submissions is useful in several scenarios.
Building a contact list from multiple forms. If you run several Formstack forms across different departments or purposes, email addresses are spread across separate forms. Extracting from all of them produces a single deduplicated list.
Recovering contacts not captured by integrations. Formstack integrates with many CRMs and email platforms, but integrations may not have been active for every form from the start. Exporting and extracting captures every email address regardless of integration status.
Migrating from Formstack. Before switching form builders or consolidating platforms, you may want to extract all email addresses from historical submissions.
Combining with other sources. If contacts arrive through Formstack, another form builder, email correspondence and CRM entry, extracting from all sources and deduplicating produces one complete list.
How to Export from Formstack
Formstack allows you to export submissions from each form.
- Log in to Formstack.
- Go to the form whose submissions you want to export.
- Click the Submissions tab.
- Click Export (or the download/export option).
- Choose your export format. Formstack offers CSV and Excel options.
- Select any filters (date range, submission status) if you want a subset.
- Download the file.
Repeat for each form you want to extract from.
The exported file contains one row per submission and one column per form field. Email addresses appear in the column for the email field in your form.
Formstack Documents
Formstack also has a document generation product (Formstack Documents, formerly WebMerge). If you use Formstack Documents to generate contracts or letters that contain email addresses, those are separate from form submissions and would need to be exported differently (as PDF or DOCX files) and processed separately.
How to Extract the Email Addresses
- Go to bulkemailextractor.com.
- Select "Text and files."
- Upload the CSV or Excel file (or files, if you exported from multiple forms). Up to 25 MB per file, 100 MB per batch.
- Click "Extract emails."
- Review the results. Duplicates are removed automatically.
- Download as TXT for a plain list, CSV for a single-column spreadsheet, or CSV with sources to see which form export each address came from.
Working with the Results
Track which form each contact came from
If you export each Formstack form separately and upload all the files in one extraction, downloading as CSV with sources shows which form each address appeared in. This helps you distinguish leads from different intake channels.
Combine with other form builders
If you use Formstack alongside other form tools (Google Forms, Typeform, JotForm, Gravity Forms), export from each and upload all files in a single extraction. Deduplication handles contacts who submitted forms on multiple platforms.
Recover missed integrations
If a Formstack-to-CRM integration was added after a form started collecting submissions, earlier responses may not have synced. Exporting all submissions and extracting ensures you have every email address, including those from before the integration.
Feed into an email marketing platform
After extraction, import the list into your email marketing platform for campaigns. Verify the list first if submissions span a long period, as some addresses may no longer be active. See Best email verification services.
Things to Know
Column headers are not extracted
CSV column headers from Formstack (which use your field labels) are text, not email addresses, so they do not appear in the extracted results.
Other submission data is not preserved
Email Extractor outputs email addresses only. Names, addresses, form answers, file uploads, payment data, signatures and other fields from the Formstack export are not carried over. If you need those fields, work with the original export file.
HIPAA-compliant forms
Formstack is popular in healthcare because it offers HIPAA-compliant form handling. If you use Formstack for patient intake or health-related forms, the submissions may contain protected health information. Email Extractor processes files entirely in the browser on your device, so file contents are not sent to a server during extraction. However, handle the extracted email list according to your organisation's HIPAA policies and applicable regulations.
Workflow submissions
If you use Formstack's workflow feature (multi-step approval or review processes), the exported submissions reflect the final state of each workflow. Email addresses from any step in the workflow will appear in the export.
Consent considerations
As with all form builders, the consent given by respondents is specific to the purpose described by the form. An intake form does not grant marketing consent. Review each form's purpose and privacy notice before using extracted addresses for communications beyond the original purpose. See Email consent types explained.
