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Lead lists and spreadsheet imports

The Power Dialer lead-list import accepts CSV and common Excel workbooks. Open the lead-list screen in the application, choose a file, review the parsed rows, map the standard fields, and import only after the preview is correct.

Supported files and limits​

You can select:

  • CSV
  • XLSX
  • XLS
  • XLSM
  • XLSB

The portal reads the file locally and enforces these limits:

  • 10 MB per file
  • 100,000 data rows
  • 256 columns
  • 2,000,000 cells

An Excel workbook can contain several visible worksheets. The first visible worksheet with data is selected initially. The portal never combines sheets; choose another visible worksheet explicitly when needed. Hidden worksheets are not selected automatically.

Macros are not run and external workbook content is not fetched. Formula cells use their cached displayed value. Recalculate and save the workbook, or replace the formula with a value, before import when no cached value is available. Blank or duplicate headers, malformed or password-protected workbooks, and unsafe numeric values are rejected with a review message.

The browser converts the reviewed result into the existing lead-list upload format. Excel files are not sent as a new native API or SDK format, and the original workbook bytes are not used as the import payload.

Review the lead data​

After parsing, choose the phone column and any first name, last name, email, timezone, or external ID columns. Select the columns that should be sent as Retell dynamic variables and edit their exact names. Names are case-sensitive, so customerName and customername are different variables.

Correct invalid phone or timezone values and resolve duplicate rows. You can exclude a row when it should not be imported. The existing validation, DNC, deduplication, and background processing rules still apply after spreadsheet parsing.

Let AI map the fields​

Choose Let AI map the fields, then select an outbound workspace and the agent version whose configuration should guide the mapping. The helper reads the selected version's dynamic-variable configuration, including its backing LLM or Conversation Flow, and suggests standard and dynamic field mappings.

The AI receives column headers, inferred data types, and bounded redacted context from the selected agent prompts. It does not receive lead cell values, credentials, or the full provider configuration. Review every suggestion:

  1. Check the selected workspace and exact agent version.
  2. Review the proposed standard fields and case-sensitive dynamic-variable names.
  3. Edit a name, choose a different source column, or leave a column unmapped.
  4. Confirm the preview and import the reviewed rows.

The helper only proposes mappings. It does not edit the Retell agent, publish a new agent version, or change the workbook. Platform-owned call variables remain reserved. If the AI helper is unavailable or a suggestion is not useful, use the manual column selectors and dynamic-variable fields instead.

Import safely​

Use a dedicated test list first when changing a campaign's field mapping. Check the phone preview, excluded rows, dynamic-variable names, and timezone before starting a campaign. A reviewed import creates an immutable lead-list version; changing the spreadsheet later does not change an existing version.

To open the application, use Power Dialer in sipsandwich.