Data-driven Magento 2: How to export exactly what you need

Magento 2 is a powerful eCommerce platform, but its real strength lies in how well you can manage and manipulate your data. Whether you’re exporting data for analytics, migration, or integration with third-party systems, understanding the right approach ensures efficiency and accuracy.
This guide walks you through all the export options in Magento 2—what’s available by default, when you’ll need extra tools or APIs, and how to fine-tune your data exports to match your business needs.
What you should know before exporting data in Magento 2
What data can you export via the Magento 2 admin panel
Magento 2 allows exporting several default data sets directly from the Admin Panel. Here’s what you can get without custom tools:
Advanced pricing: Includes tier prices, special prices, and group prices.
Products: All core product information like SKU, name, price, description, attributes.
Customer main file: Contains customer account details like name, email, and account status.
Customer addresses: Billing and shipping addresses tied to customer accounts.
Stock sources: Inventory quantity and source information.
Basic order data: While not as detailed as needed for full reporting, you can extract some order-related information.
This built-in method is great for basic exports and one-time data pulls, but it has its limits, especially if you need automation, customization, or advanced data types.
When you need extensions or API for exporting data
While Magento 2’s default export functionality is quite capable, there are specific scenarios where you’ll need the power of third-party extensions or Magento’s Application Programming Interface (API) to achieve your data export goals:
Advanced customization and control: When you need to customize data fields, the output file format (beyond just CSV to XML, XLSX, or JSON), or require complex data transformation rules before exporting.
Integration with external systems: To synchronize your Magento data with other systems like ERP, CRM, marketing automation platforms, or external sales channels (marketplaces). APIs or integration extensions automate this process, ensuring your data is always up-to-date.
Automated and scheduled exports: If you need to export data regularly (e.g., daily, hourly) without manual intervention. This is crucial for maintaining current data for routine reports or continuous synchronization between systems.
Exporting specific or custom data entities: When you need to export data types not natively supported by Magento (e.g., wishlist data, custom order fields, gift card data, product reviews, or data entities created by custom modules/other extensions) or require more granular information from existing entities.
Handling large volumes of data: For stores with hundreds of thousands of products, customers, or orders, default data export can lead to timeouts or poor performance. Specialized extensions are optimized to handle large datasets more efficiently.
Enhanced security and data validation: Some extensions offer stronger security features, like encrypting exported data or providing more rigorous checks to ensure data integrity during export and import processes, minimizing the risk of data errors.
Analytical reports: Reporting extensions often provide the ability to export data in custom report formats.
3 Proven ways to export data from your Magento 2 store
Method 1: Configure in the Magento 2 admin panel (Default export)
This is the most straightforward method for common data exports like products, customers, and their addresses.
Navigate to Export: Log in to your Magento 2 admin panel and go to System > Data Transfer > Export.
Select Entity Type: In the “Export Settings” section, choose the type of data you want to export from the “Entity Type” dropdown. Common options include:
Products: To export product information.
Advanced pricing: For product pricing data.
Customers main file: For general customer details (email, name, account status).
Customer addresses: For associated billing and shipping addresses.
Stock sources: For inventory data.
Choose export file format: The default format is CSV.
Configure filters and exclusions (optional):
Scroll down to the “Entity Attributes” section. Here, you’ll see a list of all available attributes for the selected entity.
Filter data: To export only records with specific attribute values, enter the required value in the “Filter” column next to the attribute. For example, to export only products from a specific category, you might filter by the “Category” attribute.
Exclude attributes: To omit certain attributes (columns) from your export file, select the “Exclude” checkbox at the beginning of the row for that attribute. This helps you get only the data you truly need, reducing file size and complexity.
Start exporting: Scroll to the end of the page and click Continue. The export process will be scheduled as an asynchronous operation, and you’ll receive a message when it’s complete. The exported CSV file will typically be saved in the var/export/ folder of your Magento installation.
Method 2: Using Magento 2 extensions for advanced needs
While the default Magento export covers basic needs, extensions give you far more power and flexibility. Depending on what type of data you need to export, there are specialized extensions that help streamline the process, support automation, allow deep customization, and handle large or complex datasets more efficiently.
Order export extension
Magento’s built-in tools provide limited access to order data, but with a specialized extension, you can export every aspect of an order—including custom fields, line items, shipping, and billing details—for advanced reporting, accounting, or system integration.
Common features:
Export full order details: items, payment/shipping method, invoice, credit memo, order status, customer info.
Support for exporting orders based on status, date range, or customer group.
Ability to schedule exports and send files via email, FTP, or cloud storage.
Support for custom fields created by third-party extensions.
Multiple file formats: CSV, Excel, XML, JSON.
Product attribute export extension
This extension provides the flexibility to export product attributes, including custom ones that are not included in the default export file. This is particularly useful for bulk updating product information.
Common features:
Export all product attributes (default and custom).
Support for different input types: dropdowns, swatches, multiselect, and boolean.
Filter by attribute set or product type.
Option to export attribute labels, options, and assigned products.
Clean, structured CSV/Excel output for editing or importing elsewhere.


Product review export extension
This extension helps you extract valuable product review data, a data type that Magento’s default export functionality does not support. The exported information can be highly beneficial for analysis and reporting.
Common features:
Export all customer reviews, including reviewer name, title, rating, and comment.
Include metadata like product SKU, submission date, store view, and status.
Filter reviews by product, status (approved/pending), or date range.
Export in CSV or Excel format for easy sharing or analysis.


Category import export extension
This extension assists in managing your store’s product category structure, enabling you to efficiently export and import category data. It is a powerful tool for maintaining an organized and up-to-date catalog.
Common features:
Export category name, URL key, meta information, path, and position.
Include category-product relationships in the export.
Enable import/export of category images and descriptions.
Support for bulk editing categories via CSV files.
Compatible with multi-store and multi-language setups.


For custom customer data
Custom customer attributes extension
Magento stores often use custom customer attributes to collect specific business-related information (e.g., customer type, industry, birthday, tax ID). A custom customer attributes export module allows you to extract these fields for use in marketing, segmentation, or CRM synchronization.
This gives you access to all data captured during customer registration or updated via the customer dashboard/admin.
Common features:
Export all custom fields associated with customer accounts.
Filter by attribute values, customer groups, or registration date.
Export in structured CSV or Excel format.
Supports integration with CRM or email automation platforms.


Wishlist data export extension
Wishlist data gives you insight into what customers want but haven’t yet purchased. Exporting this data is useful for restocking decisions, personalized marketing, abandoned wishlist campaigns, or product demand analysis. This extension allows you to extract detailed wishlist records per customer, including specific product references and creation dates.
Common features:
Export customer ID, email, and associated wishlist items.
Include product name, SKU, and date added to the wishlist.
Filter by customer, product, or date range.
Export in CSV or Excel format for segmentation or reporting.


Newsletter subscription status export extension
Staying on top of your newsletter subscription list is vital for GDPR compliance, marketing strategy, and email automation. This extension provides a detailed export of subscriber status across your store. Magento stores with high volumes of customer subscriptions benefit from being able to audit and track this data externally.
Common features:
Export customer email, name, and subscription status.
Filter by subscription date, status (active/inactive), or customer group.
Include store view or website for multi-store segmentation.
Support CSV or Excel export for import into email marketing tools.


Gift card redemption export extension
If you use gift cards in your Magento store, this extension helps you track issuance and redemption activity. It’s useful for finance teams, promotions tracking, and understanding customer purchase behavior. Magento does not offer built-in reporting for gift card redemption, making this extension essential for stores running gift card programs.
Common features:
Export gift card code, balance, status, issue date, and expiration date.
Include usage history with order references and customer data.
Filter by redemption status, customer, or date range.
Export in a structured format suitable for reconciliation or reporting.
Need better control over your gift card data?
Use our Magento 2 Gift Card to easily export issued and used gift card records., perfect for accurate financial tracking, reconciliation, and performance analysis.
6. For custom reports and any database data: SQL report builder extension
This extension offers a robust tool for creating custom reports and exporting any data from the Magento database using SQL queries. It empowers you to perform in-depth analysis beyond the standard reporting options.
Common features:
Write custom SQL queries via the admin interface.
Export query results in CSV, Excel, or XML.
Schedule recurring reports via cron jobs.
Secure access with user roles and permission controls.
Compatible with any Magento entity or custom table.
7. For comprehensive data export: Improved import export extension
This is a comprehensive solution for handling complex data import and export needs. These extensions are optimized to handle large datasets efficiently and can offer enhanced security features, such as data encryption.
Common features:
Support for exporting and importing all major Magento entities.
Advanced field mapping for compatibility with external systems (e.g., ERP, PIM, CRM).
Schedule exports with cron jobs.
Export formats: CSV, XML, Excel, JSON.
8. Quote request export feature
While there’s no dedicated “quote export” extension, many advanced Quote Request for Magento 2 modules include export functionality as part of their broader feature set. This allows you to pull complete quote details into spreadsheets or external systems for follow-up, reporting, or integration with ERP/CRM platforms.
Common capabilities you might find in such extensions:
Export full quote request data, including customer details, requested items, quantities, pricing (if provided), and any custom form fields.
Filter exports by request date range, customer group, quote status, or sales representative.
Support multiple file formats such as CSV, Excel, XML, or JSON.
By choosing a Magento 2 quote extension by BSS Commerce with robust export options, you ensure that your sales and operations teams can work with exactly the data they need, without manually re-entering or piecing together information from the Magento admin.
=> Looking for more helpful extensions for your Magento 2 store? Check out for BSS Commerce – The trusted Magento 2 Extension Provider.
Method 3: Using the Magento 2 API for automated or integrated export
Magento 2 offers a robust REST and GraphQL API framework that allows you to export nearly any data from your store programmatically. This method is ideal for stores that require automation, custom workflows, or integration with external systems such as ERPs, CRMs, BI tools, or third-party platforms.
Steps to export data via API
Create an integration to get API access:
You’ll need an access token to authenticate API requests.
Go to: Admin Panel > System > Integrations.
Click “Add New Integration”.
Fill in basic info: Name, Email, Callback URL (optional).
Go to the API tab and choose the resources (e.g., Products, Orders) you want to access.
Click Save and Activate.
Then, Magento will generate a set of credentials, including an access token, which you can use to authenticate your API requests.
Make an API Request
These requests allow you to retrieve specific types of data—such as orders, customers, products, or invoices—directly from your store.
You’ll use an API endpoint (URL) that corresponds to the data type you want to export. Here are some common REST API endpoints for exporting data:
Data Type
Endpoint
Products
GET /V1/products
Orders
GET /V1/orders
Customers
GET /V1/customers
Categories
GET /V1/categories
Stock Items
GET /V1/stockItems/{sku}
Invoices
GET /V1/invoices
Credit Memos
GET /V1/creditmemos
Shipments
GET /V1/shipments
You can also apply filters to narrow down the data by date, status, or specific conditions.
These API requests can be sent using tools like:
Postman (for testing and retrieving data manually)
Third-party integration platforms (for connecting with CRM or ERP systems).
Use a Script or an external tool to automate exports
To automate data retrieval, you can use scripts or connect Magento to other systems through APIs. This is especially useful for regular tasks like exporting daily orders, syncing customer records, or pushing data into analytics dashboards.
Set up:
Scheduled exports that run automatically (e.g., every night)
Automated syncs with third-party platforms like ERPs or marketing tools
Custom workflows that export and format the data exactly how your business needs it
Many businesses use scripting languages like Python or PHP to build these workflows, or rely on integration tools like Zapier, Make (Integromat), or custom middleware.
Sum up
Exporting data in Magento 2 isn’t a one-size-fits-all process. Whether you’re managing a simple product list or integrating your store with external systems, Magento gives you multiple ways to access and extract your data efficiently.
The Admin Panel works well for basic, one-time exports.
Extensions offer advanced features, customization, and support for exporting specific data types like custom attributes, wishlists, or gift cards.
The Magento 2 API is ideal for automated, real-time, or large-scale exports—especially when syncing with ERP, CRM, or analytics tools.
By choosing the method that best fits your technical level and business needs, you can streamline operations, improve reporting, and make more data-informed decisions.