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Use the Quickbase Excel Add-in

Note

This feature will be available by September 5, 2025.

The Quickbase Excel Add-in lets you connect your Quickbase app to Excel. Use it to easily import reports as sheets, so you can analyze your Quickbase data in Excel.

In this article

Note

This Add-in uses the runReport API to import Quickbase reports into Excel. Each time it imports 1,500 records, it uses 1 integration read. Learn more about integration reads.

Install the Add-in

  1. In Excel, navigate to Add-ins.
  2. In the Add-ins store, search for Quickbase.
  3. Select Add to install.

Learn more about installing Add-ins in Microsoft's documentation.

Connect your Quickbase application

  1. Enter the name of your realm. 
    This is everything that comes before quickbase.com in your realm’s URL.
  2. Enter your app ID. 
    Find this in Quickbase by navigating to App settings > App management > Show app statistics.
  3. Enter a user token. 
    Learn more about creating user tokens.
  4. Select Connect.

Note

Only one Quickbase app can be connected to an Excel workbook at a time. To add data from a different app, log out of the Quickbase Add-in and reconnect using the new app ID.

Import reports

  1. After you’re connected, choose Select reports to import tables reports from Quickbase.

  2. A pop-up shows you all tables and reports in your Quickbase app. Select the ones to import into Excel, and then select Import. 
    select-reports.png

    Every report is imported as a separate sheet in Excel. Refer to the data mapping table to learn how Quickbase field types map to Excel data types.

If you make changes in your Quickbase app, you can Refresh tables to update the list.

Data mapping

This section explains how Quickbase field types map to Excel data types.

Formula fields and relationship fields (summary, lookup, and reference) use the same mapping as their respective scalar field.

Note

Data imported into Excel may not be formatted in the same way as in Quickbase. For example, when importing a date field, you see 2025-08-01 in Excel, rather than 8/1/25 in Quickbase. Learn how specific values are formatted in our API documentation.

Quickbase field type

Excel data type

Text

Text

Text - multi-line

Text

Text - multiple choices

Text

Rich text

Text

Multi-select text

Text

Numeric

Number

Numeric - currency

Currency

Numeric - percent

%

Numeric - rating

Number

Date

Date

Date / time

Custom - Date + Time

Time of day

Time

Duration

Number (presented as days)

Check box

Text (true/false)

Address

Text

Phone number

Text

Email

Text

User

Text (user ID and name)

List - user

Text

File attachment

Text (file name, like picture.jpg)

Report link/db link

URL

vCard

 Not supported

iCalendar

 Not supported

Predecessor

 Not supported

Work date

 Not supported

Refresh data

Select Refresh sheet to automatically update the data in the current Excel sheet with the data in Quickbase.

refresh-sheet.png

Important

Refreshing data deletes any changes made in Excel.

Manage account

Select the more menu to manage your account.

menu.png
  • Select Profile to go to the Profile page in Quickbase.
  • Select Sign out to log out of the Quickbase plugin in Excel. Signing out does not delete any data in the Excel spreadsheet.

Limits

  • Only table reports are supported at this time.
  • Reports that prompt users for selection criteria are not supported. Learn more about these reports.
  • All Excel limits and specifications apply. Learn more in Microsoft’s documentation.

Performance constraints

  • Performance varies between the Desktop and Web version, with the Web version of the Add-in performing significantly slower. Use the Desktop version for the fastest and most reliable experience when importing more than 20,000 records.
  • Importing large tables, like tables with a significant number of records or fields, can take several minutes. In some cases, large imports may cause Excel to freeze or crash. For large datasets with more that 60,000 records, import one report at a time or break them into smaller chunks.
  • Import times increase as more tables are added to the same workbook. Avoid importing multiple large reports simultaneously.

Authentication and session behavior

You would need to reconnect your Quickbase app in these cases:

  • When the workbook is closed and reopened.
  • When you open the workbook on a different device or platform, such as switching from desktop to web.
  • When the Add-in cache is cleared or you've signed out.
  • When you share the workbook with others—they need to connect the application themselves.

After it is connected, you can refresh data from any Quickbase apps assigned to your user token. That means if you have multiple Excel workbooks connected to different apps, you can refresh data in any of them, as long as the same token is used. If apps use different tokens, refreshes will only work for apps associated with the active token.

Best Practices

  • Use one session at a time (Web or Desktop) per workbook.
  • Avoid sharing workbooks across users when using the Add-in.
  • Limit the number of imported sheets and avoid importing very large datasets in a single session.
  • Use separate tokens per app to maintain clear access boundaries.

Troubleshooting

Quickbase app won’t connect

If your Quickbase app does not connect to the Excel plugin, clear the Web Cache in Excel, then try again:

  • Select the information icon on the Quickbase plugin
  • Select Clear Web Cache

Slow performance when using the web version

The web version of the Quickbase Add-in performs slower than the desktop version, especially when importing large tables. For better performance with large tables, use the desktop version of Excel.

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