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Importing Data

The B1 Transfer tool makes it easy to bring your existing data into B1, whether you are starting fresh from a spreadsheet, migrating from another church management platform, or importing giving records. It can also be used to export or back up your data at any time.

Training Video​

Importing Your People Database in B1 · Watch on YouTubeNext video: Searching People and Building Lists in B1

Before You Begin

  • You need an active B1 Admin account with access to Settings.
  • Have your data exported and ready from your previous system before starting.
  • This tool is intended for initial data migration. If you have already been using B1 for a while, importing again may create duplicate records.

Accessing the Transfer Tool​

  1. Log in to B1 Admin.
  2. Open the Jump menu (the search bar at the top-left), expand Settings, and click Settings.
  3. Click the Import/Export link under your church's name at the top of the left-hand settings menu.
  4. This will open the B1 Transfer tool in a new tab at transfer.b1.church.

The transfer tool walks you through four steps: Source, Preview, Destination, and Run.

Step 1 - Choose Your Source​

Select where your data is coming from. There are seven options:

  • B1 Database — Pulls data directly from your existing B1 church. Useful for making a backup or converting your data to another format. You must be logged in to use this option.
  • B1 Import Zip — A zip file in B1's own format. This is primarily used to restore a previous B1 export. Loading a B1 Export Zip back into the B1 Database restores everything the export carries (see Exporting Data). If the file can't be read, the tool shows the error instead of starting over.
  • Breeze Import Zip — A zip file containing exported files from Breeze ChMS.
  • Planning Center Zip — A zip or CSV file exported from Planning Center.
  • Custom CSV / Excel — Any CSV or Excel file containing people data. After uploading, you will map your columns to B1 fields before the import proceeds.
  • Tithe.ly CSV — A people or giving export file from Tithe.ly (CSV or Excel format accepted).
  • CCB / Pushpay CSV — A people or giving export CSV from Church Community Builder or Pushpay.

You can drag and drop your file onto the upload area, or click to browse for it.

Step 1b - Map Your Fields (Custom CSV / Excel only)​

If you selected Custom CSV / Excel, after uploading your file the tool will show a field mapping screen before moving to the preview.

Each column from your file is listed alongside a sample value. For each column, use the dropdown to choose the matching B1 field. The tool will auto-detect common column names like "First Name," "Email," or "Zip Code," but you should review every row and correct anything it missed.

Available B1 fields include:

  • First Name, Last Name, Middle Name, Nickname, Display Name, Title/Prefix, Suffix
  • Email, Home Phone, Mobile Phone, Work Phone
  • Address Line 1, Address Line 2, City, State, Zip Code
  • Birth Date, Anniversary, Gender, Marital Status, Membership Status
  • Household/Family Name
  • Group Name — assigns the person to a group by name
  • Custom Field (match by name) — saves the column into one of your church's custom person fields. A B1 field name box appears, filled in with the column header. Change it to the field's name exactly as it appears in B1 (capitalization doesn't matter).
  • Form Answer (custom field) — saves that column's value as a custom field attached to the person's record. If you use this option, you will be asked to give the form a name.

Dates can be in common formats such as 9/17/1994 and are converted automatically. For custom fields, Yes/No fields accept values like Yes, No, Y, N, True, False, 1, and 0, and multiple-choice fields accept either the choice text or its value.

informacja

Create your custom person fields in B1 Admin before you import. When the import finishes, the Custom Fields step lists any column names that don't match a B1 field and counts any values that don't fit the field's type. Those values are skipped, and the rest of the import still completes.

Columns you do not want to import can be set to (Skip). At least one name field (First Name or Last Name) must be mapped before you can continue.

Click Confirm Mapping & Import to proceed to the preview.

Step 2 - Preview Your Data​

After uploading, the tool displays a preview of everything that will be imported. Use the tabs to review each data type:

  • People — Listed by household, with photos if included.
  • Groups — Organized by campus, service, time, and category.
  • Attendance — Session dates, groups, and visit counts.
  • Donations — Batches, funds, donors, and amounts.
  • Forms — Form names and content types.

Review this carefully before proceeding. If something looks wrong, click Start Over and correct your source file.

Step 3 - Choose Your Destination​

Select where you want the data to go:

  • B1 Database — Imports directly into your church's B1 database. After selecting this, the tool will show a final count of records to be added. Click Start Transfer to confirm.
  • B1 Export Zip — Downloads your data as a B1-format zip file that can be restored later with B1 Import Zip. Good for backups.
  • Breeze Export Zip — Converts your data to Breeze format.
  • Planning Center Zip — Converts your data to Planning Center format.
ostrzeżenie

The source and destination cannot be the same format. If they match, the tool will warn you to prevent accidental duplication.

Step 4 - Run​

The tool processes the transfer and shows progress for each step:

  • Campuses, Services, and Times
  • People
  • Photos
  • Groups and Group Members
  • Donations
  • Attendance
  • Forms, Questions, Answers, and Form Submissions
  • Custom Fields (when you mapped any Custom Field columns)
  • Compressing (for zip file destinations only)

When the destination is B1 Database, the progress card is titled Import Progress and finishes with Import Complete! (or Import Completed with Errors). For zip file destinations, the same messages say Export.

informacja

When restoring a B1 Import Zip, records that point at something no longer in the file are skipped rather than stopping the import: group memberships for people or groups that aren't in the zip, attendance for deleted groups or people, and links between groups and deleted service times. Attendance sessions that were never tied to a service time are still restored. Likewise, when exporting, a photo that can't be downloaded or read is left out so the Photos step keeps going.

ostrzeżenie

Do not close your browser while the transfer is running. Wait until all steps show as complete.

Preparing a Breeze Import Zip​

  1. In Breeze, go to Settings and click Export in the left sidebar.
  2. Export three separate files: People, Tags, and Contributions.
  3. Select all three files, right-click, and compress them into a single zip file.
    • On a Mac: select the files, right-click, and choose Compress.
    • On a PC: select the files, right-click, choose Send to, then Compressed (zipped) folder.
  4. Upload the zip file using the Breeze Import Zip option in Step 1.

The Breeze import transfers people, groups (tags), and donation records automatically.

Preparing a Planning Center Export​

  1. Log in to Planning Center and open the People product.
  2. In the left sidebar, click Lists and create a list that includes everyone you want to bring over. (If you already have a list of your whole congregation, use that one.)
  3. Open the list and use its export option to download your people as a CSV file. Include the fields you want to keep — name, email, phone, address, birthdate, gender, and membership status all map over to B1.
  4. If Planning Center gives you more than one file, select them all, right-click, and compress them into a single zip.
    • On a Mac: select the files, right-click, and choose Compress.
    • On a PC: select the files, right-click, choose Send to, then Compressed (zipped) folder.
  5. Upload the CSV or zip using the Planning Center Zip option in Step 1.

After uploading, continue to the preview and confirm your people and households look right before running the import.

Preparing a Tithe.ly Export​

  1. In Tithe.ly, export your People data as a CSV or Excel file. You can also export a separate Giving file if you want to bring in donation records.
  2. The tool will automatically detect whether the file contains people or giving data based on the column names.
  3. Upload the file using the Tithe.ly CSV option in Step 1.
informacja

Tithe.ly exports can be imported one file at a time. Run the process twice if you need to import both people and giving records separately.

Preparing a CCB or Pushpay Export​

  1. In Church Community Builder or Pushpay, export your People data as a CSV file. You can also export a separate giving/contributions file.
  2. The tool will automatically detect whether the file contains people or giving data based on the column names.
  3. Upload the file using the CCB / Pushpay CSV option in Step 1.

After Importing​

Once the transfer is complete, take a few minutes to verify your data:

  1. Browse the People page and spot-check a few profiles.
  2. Confirm that names, emails, phone numbers, and addresses came through correctly.
  3. Check that household connections are intact. Each person's household role (Head, Spouse, Child, or Other) is carried over when the source has one: the householdRole column in a B1 Import Zip, Family Role in Breeze or Tithe.ly, and Family Position in CCB / Pushpay. Roles such as "Head of Household", "Primary", "Wife", or "Son" are converted to the matching B1 role. Planning Center and Custom CSV / Excel imports have no role column, so those people are set to Other; you can change a role from the person's household on the People page.
  4. Review any imported groups and giving records.

If you notice issues, you can edit individual profiles from the People page. You can also run the transfer tool again to export your data as a backup.