Cognito-forms – How to export a form in the format I need

cognito-forms

I am trying to have a pricing request form that exports to Excel in the proper formatting. When it does export to Excel it creates four tabs with information in each tab. I need to have the request export in the proper formatting so I can automate the proposal.

Best Answer

Cognito Forms exports repeating sections (aka, lists of repeating form fields) into separate sheets in Excel that are linked back to the parent sheet using IDs. Given that this data is hierarchical and there is not a limit on the number of items, it is not possible to consolidate data into a single sheet without losing information.

We are currently working on cross section calculations, which will allow you to pull data from other sections, the main form, etc., which may help you improve the export structure for complex forms by consolidating information or replicating information from the main form into these repeating section sheets.

Separate from this, we are also working on custom document generation using Word-based templates, which will allow you to create very sophisticated documents using your form data, including support for repeating section data. This may prove to be a better route for proposals, as you will have complete formatting control and can produce documents that are read-only (PDF) for your customers.