How to export your data from Clio

Clio Manage lets admins bulk-export CSV files for contacts, matters, calendar entries, communications, notes, expenses, tasks, and time entries from an Exports page, plus separate CSV/PDF/QuickBooks exports for transactions and an Accounts Receivable report. There is no single one-click full-account export or JSON/ZIP archive — each data type is downloaded as its own CSV file.

Formats: CSV, PDF, QuickBooks (for bank transactions)Plan: Any Clio Manage plan (feature is not plan-gated in the docs, but is permission-gated)Role: Administrator permissions for bulk data export; users with relevant permissions for transaction export (see Roles and Permissions)

✓ Verified against Clio's official documentation, September 2026

Step by step

1Log in to Clio Manage and go to the Exports page: app.clio.com/export (North America) or ca.app.clio.com/export (Canada).
2Click 'Excel ready CSV' next to each data type you want: Calendar entries, Communications, Contact notes, Contact related matters, Contacts, Expense entries, Matter notes, Matters, Tasks, Time entries.
3For outstanding client balances, go to Reports > Reports > Accounts receivable, set the output format to CSV, and click Generate Report.
4For trust balances, generate the trust management report before exporting.
5For bank transaction history, go to Accounts, click 'Export transactions' (top right), select the bank account, date range, and export format (CSV or QuickBooks), then click Export Transactions.
6For transactions tied to one client/matter, open the matter or contact, click the Transactions tab, select the operating or trust account, optionally set a date range, scroll down and click Export, then choose CSV or PDF.
7Download and save each CSV file locally — Clio does not bundle everything into a single archive.

What the export includes

✓Contacts and related-contact records
✓Matters and contact-related matters
✓Calendar entries
✓Communications logs
✓Contact notes and matter notes
✓Expense entries
✓Tasks
✓Time entries
✓Bank account transactions (CSV or QuickBooks format)
✓Matter/contact-level transactions (CSV or PDF)
✓Accounts receivable (outstanding balances) via a separate CSV report
✓Trust management/trust balance data via a dedicated report generated before export

What it doesn't include

✗Documents/files stored in Clio (not part of this export flow)
✗A single combined export of the whole account — each data type is a separate CSV
✗Native JSON export — everything documented here is CSV (plus PDF or QuickBooks for transactions)
✗Custom field data, related contacts, or notes formatted for re-import elsewhere without manual remapping into Clio's own migration templates

Before you start

⚠Bulk data export from the Exports page requires administrator permissions; standard users cannot pull these CSVs.
⚠Trust balances require generating the trust management report before exporting, not a direct CSV pull.
⚠Bank account transaction exports support QuickBooks format for accounting software, while matter/contact transaction exports only offer PDF or CSV — the formats are not interchangeable across export types.
⚠The exported CSVs are formatted for Clio's own migration templates (used to move data into another Clio Manage account), so mapping them into a non-Clio tool means manually matching columns yourself.
⚠If migrating into a new Clio account, Clio's own guidance says to import contacts before matters so matters link to the correct contact — the same order dependency applies if you're rebuilding this data anywhere else.

Where to take your data

Free and cheaper tools that can take a Clio export. See all Clio alternatives →

Airtable

Alternatives Clio vs Airtable

Import each Clio CSV (Contacts, Matters, Tasks, Time entries, etc.) as a separate Airtable table via 'Add or import table > CSV file', then link tables (e.g. Matters to Contacts) using Airtable's linked-record fields to rebuild the relationships Clio's migration templates expect.

Trello

Alternatives

Use Trello's CSV/Power-Up importers (or a board-per-data-type approach) to bring in Tasks and Matter notes as cards, mapping Clio's Matters CSV to lists/boards and Tasks CSV to cards with due dates.

Toggl Track

Reformat the exported Time entries CSV to Toggl's import template (description, start/end time, project, tags) and upload it via Toggl Track's CSV import in Workspace Settings.

Exporting from Clio: common questions

Can I export all my Clio data in one click?+

No. Clio's Exports page requires clicking 'Excel ready CSV' separately for each data type (Calendar entries, Communications, Contact notes, Contacts, Matters, Tasks, Time entries, etc.), plus separate report exports for Accounts receivable and trust balances.

Does Clio support JSON export?+

No. Clio's documented export options are CSV for bulk data, plus CSV, PDF, or QuickBooks format specifically for transaction exports — there is no documented JSON export.

Who can export data in Clio Manage?+

Bulk data export from the Exports page requires administrator permissions. Recording and exporting transactions requires relevant permissions as defined under Roles and Permissions in Clio Manage.

Can I export just my document/matter transactions instead of the whole firm's?+

Yes. Open a specific matter or contact, go to its Transactions tab, select the operating or trust account, optionally filter by date range, then export as CSV or PDF — separate from the firm-wide Exports page.

Are attachments or uploaded documents included in the export?+

Clio's export documentation covers structured data (contacts, matters, calendar, notes, tasks, time/expense entries, transactions) via CSV/PDF/QuickBooks — it does not describe exporting stored documents/files through this flow.

What's the fastest way to move my Clio data into another Clio Manage account?+

Export your data from the Exports page, generate the trust management report first if you have trust balances, transfer the CSV contents into Clio's migration templates, and upload the completed templates via the Imports page (app.clio.com/imports), importing contacts before matters.