Import & Export#

Move events between sites, back up your data, and connect calendar apps.

Export options#

CSV export (events)#

Export every event to a spreadsheet.

How to export

1. Go to Events > All Events
2. Click Export CSV next to Add New
3. The file events-export-YYYY-MM-DD.csv downloads

The export includes events of every post status, sorted by start date.

Export columns

Column	Description
ID	Event post ID
Title	Event name
Status	Post status (publish, draft, and so on)
Event Status	scheduled, postponed, cancelled, sold-out
Start Date	YYYY-MM-DD
Start Time	HH:MM
End Date	YYYY-MM-DD
End Time	HH:MM
All Day	Yes or No
Event Type	in-person, virtual, hybrid
Venue	Venue name
Venue Address	Address, city, state, postal code, country
Organizer	Organizer name
Categories	Category names, comma separated
Capacity	Maximum attendees
Registered	Current registrations
Checked In	Attendance count
Virtual Event URL	Online event link
Description	Event content, tags stripped
URL	Event permalink
Created	Post creation date

CSV export (attendees)#

1. Go to Events > Attendees
2. Pick an event in the All Events filter to limit the export, or leave it on all events
3. Click Export CSV

See Attendee Management for the columns.

iCal/ICS export#

Single event

On an event page, click the calendar icon under Add to Calendar to download an .ics file. The file works with Apple Calendar, Thunderbird, and other apps.

Calendar feed

Subscribe to all upcoming events from one URL:

1. Go to Events > Settings > Advanced
2. Under Calendar Export, copy the Calendar Feed URL shown when Enable iCal/ICS export for events is ticked
3. Add it to your calendar app

Feed URL format

https://yoursite.com/feed/emwc-calendar/

Add to calendar#

Visitors can add an event to Google Calendar, Outlook, Yahoo Calendar, or download the .ics file. The links show on single event pages when Show “Add to Calendar” buttons is ticked in Events > Settings > Display and iCal export is enabled on the Advanced tab.

Import options#

Both importers live at Events > Import. The page has two tabs: CSV Import and iCal/ICS Import. Imported events are published right away.

CSV import (events)#

Steps

1. Go to Events > Import
2. On the CSV Import tab, choose your file (CSV or TXT, max 2MB)
3. Click Upload and Continue
4. Match each event field to a CSV column. Columns with a recognised header are matched for you
5. Review the Data Preview
6. Click Import Events

The Import Complete! screen shows how many events were imported, how many rows were skipped, and the error details.

Required fields

• Event Title
• Start Date

Supported fields

Event field	Notes
Event Title	Required
Description	Event content
Start Date	Required, YYYY-MM-DD
Start Time	HH:MM, 24 hour
End Date	YYYY-MM-DD
End Time	HH:MM, 24 hour
All Day Event	yes/no or 1/0
Venue Name	Creates the venue if not found
Venue Address	Stored on the venue
Venue City	Stored on the venue
Organizer Name	Creates the organizer if not found
Category	Creates the category if not found
Capacity	Number
Event Type	in-person, virtual, or hybrid
Virtual Event URL	Online event link
Featured Image URL	Image is downloaded into the library

Automatic column matching

Headers such as Title, Name, Date, Start Date, Venue, Location, Organizer, Category, Capacity, Image are matched without manual mapping. Set any other column by hand, or leave it on Do not import.

Date formats

The importer asks for YYYY-MM-DD. Other formats PHP can parse, such as January 15, 2026 or 01/15/2026, also work. Rows with an unreadable date are skipped.

iCal/ICS import#

Steps

1. Go to Events > Import
2. Open the iCal/ICS Import tab
3. Choose an .ics or .ical file
4. Click Upload and Preview
5. Tick the events to import
6. Click Import Selected Events

Imported data

• Title (SUMMARY)
• Description (DESCRIPTION)
• Start date and time (DTSTART)
• End date and time (DTEND)
• Location (LOCATION)

Recurrence rules (RRULE) are not read. A repeating event imports as a single event.

Location handling

The text before the first comma in LOCATION is the venue name. The importer matches an existing venue by that name or creates a new one. The rest of the string is saved as the venue’s address line.

Calendar feed (subscription)#

How it works#

1. Calendar apps fetch the feed URL
2. Events sync to the calendar
3. The app refreshes on its own schedule

Feed contents#

• Up to 100 published events with a start date of today or later
• Title, description (first 500 characters), location, event URL
• Times use the Default Timezone from Events > Settings > General, or the site timezone
• Read only. Changes in the calendar app do not reach your site

Subscribing#

Google Calendar

1. Click + next to Other calendars
2. Select From URL
3. Paste the feed URL
4. Click Add calendar

Apple Calendar

1. Go to File > New Calendar Subscription
2. Paste the feed URL
3. Click Subscribe

Outlook

1. Go to Calendar > Add Calendar
2. Select From Internet or Subscribe from web
3. Paste the feed URL

Filtering the feed#

Limit the feed to one category with the category parameter and a category slug:

https://yoursite.com/feed/emwc-calendar/?category=workshops

Tips#

Preparing CSV files#

• Save as UTF-8
• Put headers in the first row
• Use YYYY-MM-DD dates and HH:MM times
• Test with a few rows first

Large imports#

• Keep each file under 2MB
• Split large lists into batches
• Imports of many image URLs take longer because each image is downloaded

Before importing#

1. Export existing events
2. Back up the database
3. Test on a staging site

Troubleshooting#

Import fails or rows are skipped#

• Check the file is UTF-8
• Check the Start Date column is mapped and readable
• Read the Error Details list on the results screen

Feed returns a 404#

• Visit Settings > Permalinks and click Save Changes to refresh rewrite rules
• The feed stays active even when Enable iCal/ICS export for events is unticked. That setting only hides the buttons on event pages

Feed not updating#

• Check the events are published and not in the past
• Clear any page cache
• Wait for the calendar app to refresh