If youâve ever tried to wrangle data out of Notion and into Excel, you know itâs a bit like trying to fit a square peg into a round holeâespecially when youâre in a hurry, and your boss is waiting for that âjust one moreâ report. Notion has exploded in popularity, with , and itâs become the go-to for organizing everything from project plans to sales pipelines. But when it comes time to crunch numbers, build dashboards, or share data with the finance team, Excel is still the kingâboasting a .
So, why does exporting from Notion to Excel feel like more trouble than it should be? From formatting headaches to manual rework, the process can be a real productivity killerâespecially if you need to do it regularly. Thatâs exactly why Iâve put together this practical guide. Iâll walk you through the best ways to move your data, share some pro tips, and show you how (the AI-powered web scraper my team and I built) can turn this whole process into a one-click, zero-headache workflow.
Why Export from Notion to Excel? Unlocking the Power of Data Analysis
Letâs be honest: Notion is fantastic for capturing ideas, collaborating with your team, and keeping projects organized. But when itâs time for deep analysis, advanced reporting, or sharing data with stakeholders who live and breathe spreadsheets, Excel is still the gold standard.
Hereâs why so many business users move data from Notion to Excel:
- Advanced Calculations & Pivot Tables: Notionâs formulas are handy for simple stuff, but Excelâs functions, pivot tables, and what-if analysis are on a whole different level ().
- Charts and Visualization: Need to build a dashboard or visualize trends? Excelâs charting tools are unmatched, while Notion offers only basic progress bars or third-party embeds.
- Handling Large Data Sets: Notion can get sluggish with big tables. Excel (especially with Power Query) is built for speed and scale.
- Universal Sharing: Excel files are the lingua franca of business. Whether youâre sending data to a client, importing into another system, or prepping for a board meeting, Excel is the format everyone expects ().
Letâs break it down with a quick comparison:
Use Case | Notion (Collaboration & Organization) | Excel (Analysis & Reporting) |
---|---|---|
Project Management | Excellent for Kanban, notes, team updates | Basic lists, lacks Kanban or wiki-style organization |
Data Entry & Tracking | Great for collaborative input, attachments | Good for tables, less seamless for multi-user editing |
Calculations & Analysis | Basic formulas, no pivot tables | Advanced formulas, pivot tables, deep analysis |
Charts & Visualization | Limited, no native charting | Powerful built-in charts, dashboards, conditional formatting |
Reporting & Sharing | Good for internal wikis, link sharing | Print-ready, widely compatible, easy to email or integrate |
Automation & Updates | Some via API/Zapier, no built-in scheduled export | Scripting, Power Automate, easier integration with workflows |
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In short: Notion is your teamâs digital whiteboard, while Excel is your number-crunching powerhouse. The magic happens when you can move data between themâquickly and cleanly.
Step-by-Step Guide: Exporting Notion Data to Excel
Letâs get practical. Hereâs how to get your data from Notion to Excel the old-fashioned wayâplus some tips to make it less painful.
Preparing Your Notion Database for Export
Before you hit âExport,â take a minute to tidy up your Notion database:
- Open the Right View: Notion exports only whatâs visible in your current view. Make sure youâre showing all the data you wantâno hidden filters or missing columns ().
- Remove Unneeded Columns: Hide or delete columns you donât need in Excel (like attachments or images).
- Check Data Types: Make sure dates are set as Date properties, numbers as Number, etc. This helps Excel interpret your data correctly.
- Filter Large Data Sets: If your database is huge, create a filtered view to export just what you need ().
A little prep in Notion saves a lot of cleanup in Excel.
Exporting as CSV from Notion
Hereâs the step-by-step:
- Open your Notion database as a full page.
- Click the three-dot menu (âŽâŽâŽ) in the top-right and select Export.
- Choose âMarkdown & CSVâ as the export format.
- Decide if you want to include subpages (usually not needed for a simple table).
- Choose whether to include files and images (Excel wonât import images, so you might skip this).
- Click Export. Notion will generate a ZIP file.
- Unzip the fileâyouâll find a CSV file with your database data.
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Importing CSV into Excel
Now, letâs get that CSV into Excel:
- Double-click the CSV fileâExcel should open it automatically.
- If you see weird characters or everything in one column, use Data > Get Data > From Text/CSV and make sure to select UTF-8 encoding ().
- Check that columns align correctly, dates look right, and multi-select fields (like tags) are in one cell (e.g., âMarketing, Urgentâ).
- Fix any formatting issues: use Excelâs âText to Columnsâ for misaligned data, and format dates or numbers as needed.
Common pitfalls:
- Notion exports formulas as their result, not the formula logic.
- Relation properties show only the linked page name, not the related data.
- Large exports (over 5MB) may failâexport in smaller chunks if needed ().
Thunderbit: The Fastest Way to Export Notion to Excel
Now for the fun part. What if you could skip all those steps and go straight from Notion to Excel with a single click? Thatâs exactly what was built for.
Thunderbit is an designed to help business users extract data from Notion (and any web app) directly into Excel, Google Sheets, Airtable, or Notion itself. No coding, no templates, no CSV headaches.
What makes Thunderbit different?
- AI Suggest Fields: Thunderbitâs AI scans your Notion page and automatically suggests the best columns and data types to exportâno manual setup required.
- 1-Click Export: Once you confirm the fields, just hit âScrapeâ and Thunderbit pulls all your data, even handling pagination and subpages if needed.
- Auto-Formatting: Dates, numbers, multi-selectsâThunderbitâs AI keeps everything clean and ready for Excel, so you donât waste time fixing formats.
- Automation: Need to update your Excel report every week? Thunderbit can schedule exports, so your data is always freshâno more manual work.
Users rave about how Thunderbit âfeels like having an intern do the copy-pasting for you,â and itâs .
How Thunderbitâs AI Suggest Fields Works
Hereâs how Thunderbitâs AI makes exporting painless:
- Open your Notion database in Chrome.
- Click the Thunderbit extension and hit âAI Suggest Fields.â
- The AI reads your table, suggests columns (like âName,â âStatus,â âDue Dateâ), and picks the right data types (text, date, number).
- You can tweak the suggestions, rename columns, or add custom instructions (like âsplit tags into separate columnsâ).
- Click ScrapeâThunderbit grabs all the data, ready for export.
No more fiddling with CSVs or wondering if you missed a column. The AI does the heavy lifting.
1-Click Export: From Notion to Excel in Seconds
Once Thunderbit has your fields, exporting is as easy as:
- Click Export and choose Excel (or Google Sheets, Airtable, Notion, CSV, or JSON).
- Download your fileâno need to unzip or import, just open in Excel and go.
Thunderbit even supports subpage scraping. If each row in your Notion table links to a detailed page, Thunderbit can follow those links and pull extra info (like notes, images, or emails) into your spreadsheetâsomething Notionâs native export canât do.
And yes, you can export for free (up to 6 pages per month, or 10 with a trial), with paid plans for heavier use ().
Automate Regular Notion to Excel Updates with Thunderbit
If youâre updating Excel reports from Notion every week (or every day), manual exports get old fast. Thunderbitâs Scheduled Scraper feature is a lifesaver:
- Describe your schedule in plain English (âevery Monday at 9amâ).
- Enter your Notion URL(s).
- Thunderbit handles the restâscraping your data and delivering it to Excel (or Google Sheets, etc.) on autopilot.
You can even run scheduled scrapes in the cloud, so your computer doesnât need to be on. This is a huge win for teams that need always-fresh data for dashboards or recurring reports.
Solving Common Data Format Issues When Importing to Excel
One of the biggest headaches with Notion exports is cleaning up data in Excelâdates as text, numbers with currency symbols, multi-select tags in one cell, and so on.
Thunderbitâs AI-driven approach solves most of these problems before you ever open Excel:
- Dates: Exported as true date values, not random text strings.
- Numbers: Stripped of currency symbols if you want, so Excel recognizes them as numbers.
- Multi-selects: Kept as a single cell (e.g., âTagA, TagBâ), or split into columns with a custom AI prompt.
- Text encoding: Handles special characters, emojis, and non-English text with no drama.
- Custom formatting: Want âYes/Noâ instead of âTRUE/FALSEâ for checkboxes? Just tell the AI.
If you do run into a weird edge case, Thunderbit lets you add custom instructions per fieldâso you can clean, split, or transform data as itâs being scraped.
Comparing Notionâs Native Export vs. Thunderbit for Excel Workflows
Letâs put the two methods side by side:
Factor | Notion Native Export (CSV) | Thunderbit Export to Excel |
---|---|---|
Setup Effort | Manual steps: export, unzip, import, format | One-time setup, then 1-2 clicks for each export |
Speed | Slow for frequent use, manual each time | Fast, automated, seconds per export |
Automation | Noneâmust export manually every time | Full automationâschedule exports as often as you need |
Accuracy & Formatting | Requires manual cleanup (dates, numbers, text issues) | AI detects and formats fields correctly, ready for analysis |
Data Completeness | Only exports visible columns; subpages and attachments are separate | Can extract subpage data, images, emails, and moreâall in one dataset |
Ease of Use | Easy for basics, but non-technical users may struggle with CSV quirks | Designed for non-technical usersâAI handles complexity |
Cost | Free (just your time) | Free for small jobs, affordable paid plans for heavy use (Thunderbit Pricing) |
Best For | One-off or simple exports | Frequent, complex, or automated exports; richer data; less manual work |
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Key Takeaways: Making Notion to Excel Work for Your Team
Hereâs the bottom line:
- Notion and Excel are better together: Use Notion for collaboration and organization, Excel for analysis and reporting.
- Manual exports work, but get tedious fast: Be ready for some cleanup if you go the CSV route.
- Thunderbit streamlines the whole process: With AI-powered field detection, 1-click export, and automation, you can move data from Notion to Excel in secondsâand keep it updated with zero manual effort.
- Business users love it: Teams save hours every week, reduce errors, and spend more time analyzing data instead of wrestling with exports.
If youâre tired of copy-paste marathons and want to see how easy Notion-to-Excel can be, and give it a spin. Youâll never look at exporting data the same way again.
Want more productivity tips and AI-powered workflow hacks? Check out the for deep dives, tutorials, and real-world stories from teams like yours.
FAQs
1. Why would I export data from Notion to Excel instead of just using Notion?
Notion is great for organizing and collaborating on data, but Excel offers advanced analysis, charting, and reporting tools that Notion canât match. Exporting lets you leverage both platformsâ strengths.
2. Whatâs the easiest way to export Notion data to Excel?
The manual way is to export your Notion database as a CSV and open it in Excel. The fastest way is to use , which lets you export directly from Notion to Excel in one clickâno CSV cleanup required.
3. How does Thunderbit handle data formatting issues like dates and tags?
Thunderbitâs AI detects data types (dates, numbers, multi-selects) and formats them correctly for Excel. You can also add custom instructions to split, clean, or transform data as needed.
4. Can I automate regular Notion-to-Excel exports with Thunderbit?
Yes! Thunderbit lets you schedule exports (daily, weekly, etc.), so your Excel reports are always up to dateâno manual work required.
5. Is Thunderbit free to use for Notion to Excel exports?
Thunderbit offers a free tier (up to 6 pages per month, or 10 with a trial). Paid plans are available for higher volumes and advanced features. Exporting to Excel is always free once youâve scraped the data.
Ready to supercharge your Notion-to-Excel workflow? and see how much time you can save.