Switching to Famly from Another Provider
Moving from another nursery management or childcare software provider? We've made it simple. Export your child and family data from your previous system as a CSV or XLSX file, drop it into Famly's import wizard, and we'll guide you through mapping your columns to the right fields. No manual re-keying, no messy spreadsheets, no fuss.
Whether you're migrating from a competitor, consolidating data from another integration, or moving on from paper records, you can have your children, parents, and bill payers in Famly in just a few clicks. And if anything looks off along the way, your Onboarding Specialist is on hand to help.
Finding Child Import
To begin importing children:
Go to Children in your sidebar
Click on Import
Preparing Your File
To help us process your data quickly and accurately, follow these formatting guidelines before uploading:
Only include children who are not already in Famly
Enter just the requested information in each column, with no extra details
Use only first name and surname for parent and child names, with no titles or special characters
Add one child per row
For twins or siblings, repeat parent contact details across two separate rows
Every contact must have a unique email address. Contacts cannot share an email across different profiles. If only one email is available for two contacts, add it to one and leave the other blank
Do not include special characters around email addresses (for example, use contact@famly.co.uk, not <contact@famly.co.uk>)
Only include one email address per cell
Use one date format throughout your file and configure it during the import. Famly will try to use your country's standard date format by default
Start Your Import
Step 1: Upload Your File
You can either use our template or map your own existing CSV or XLSX file from another system.
Go to the Children overview and click Import
Drag in or select your CSV or XLSX file
Choose the File language so dropdown values such as gender and room names match correctly
Under What does your file include?, tick any additional data you want to import: parent contacts (up to 2), bill payers (1), and family contacts (up to 7)
Click Next
💡 You can import up to 2 parents, 7 family members, and 1 bill payer per child
Step 2: Map Your Fields
Famly will automatically try to detect your column headers, but it's worth double-checking that all the columns you want to import have a matched Famly field.
Required fields for each child:
First name
Last name
Room
Date of birth
Start date
Optional fields you can also include:
Gender
Nationality
Language
Birthplace
Leaving date
Religion
Doctor information
Allergies
Health notes
Dietary requirements
Parent(s) and their information
Family members and their information
Bill payer and their information
Anything left unmapped will be skipped. The counter at the bottom of the screen shows how many fields are currently mapped.
Step 3: Review Your Data
Each row shows a status so you can see what's ready to import:
Ready → all required fields are filled, and the child will be imported
Missing → one or more required fields are blank, and the row will be skipped unless fixed
To fix a row, click on it and edit the relevant fields in the side panel, then click Save. You can also use Add row to enter a child manually. Tick the rows you want to include in the import.
Step 4: Import
Check the summary, which shows the number of new children, contacts, and bill payers to be added, as well as any duplicates or errors that will be skipped. When you're ready, click Start import.
💡 Don't close the window while the import is running
After Importing
Once the import is complete, a great next step is to invite the children's contacts to set up their Famly accounts.
Need a Hand?
Using the sample import file is the best way to make sure your data is added correctly and without delays. If you run into any trouble or are unsure about something, send what you have to your Onboarding Specialist or email support@famly.co, and we'll be happy to help.