How to Export Facebook Friends as a CSV File

If you’ve been wanting to export your Facebook friends list to a CSV file, either for backup, contact organization, or marketing purposes, you’re not alone. Unfortunately, Facebook doesn’t provide a built-in feature to export your friends list directly. However, there are workarounds that allow you to download your Facebook data, including your friends list, and convert it to a CSV file. Here’s a guide on how to do it.

1. Why Export Your Facebook Friends List?

Exporting your Facebook friends list can be beneficial for various reasons:

• Backing Up Your Contacts: Having a backup can be useful if you want to reconnect with people or maintain contact information outside of Facebook.

• Organizing Contacts: CSV files allow you to organize and categorize contacts more efficiently.

• Business and Marketing: Some users may want to export their friends list for networking or marketing purposes.

While Facebook doesn’t officially support exporting contacts, you can download your friends list as part of your Facebook data and manually convert it to CSV.

2. How to Download Your Facebook Data

Before exporting your friends list as a CSV file, you’ll need to download your Facebook data.

Step 1: Log into Facebook

Start by logging into your Facebook account on a web browser, as some features may not be available on the mobile app.

Step 2: Go to Settings & Privacy

• Click the downward arrow at the top right of Facebook.

• Select Settings & Privacy and then Settings.

Step 3: Access Your Facebook Information

In the left-hand sidebar, select Your Facebook Information. Here, you’ll see a list of options related to your Facebook data.

Step 4: Download Your Information

• Click on Download Your Information.

• You’ll see a variety of options for what data you’d like to download, including posts, photos, comments, and, importantly, Friends.

Step 5: Customize Your Data Download

• Select Friends to ensure only your friends list is included in the download.

• Under Date Range, select All Time to capture your complete friends list.

• Choose Format: JSON (as CSV is not an available format) and Media Quality: Low (media quality is irrelevant since we’re only downloading text data).

Step 6: Create File and Download

Click Create File and wait for Facebook to process your request. Once it’s ready, you’ll receive a notification, and you can download the data as a ZIP file.

3. Converting Your Friends List to CSV Format

Once you’ve downloaded your Facebook data, it’s time to convert it to a CSV file.

Step 1: Unzip the Downloaded File

After downloading, locate the ZIP file in your downloads folder, right-click, and choose Extract All. This will create a new folder with your downloaded data.

Step 2: Open the Friends List in JSON Format

In the extracted folder, go to Friends and find a file named friends.json. This file contains your friends list in JSON format, which you can open with a text editor (such as Notepad or VSCode).

Step 3: Convert JSON to CSV

You’ll need to use a converter tool or software to turn your JSON data into CSV format. There are a couple of ways to do this:

1. Online JSON to CSV Converters: Upload the friends.json file to an online converter tool like ConvertCSV or JSON to CSV, which will convert it into CSV format.

2. Spreadsheet Software (Excel/Google Sheets):

   • Open Google Sheets, select File > Import > Upload, and choose your friends.json file.

   • Use the import settings to parse the data correctly and convert it to CSV by selecting File > Download > Comma-separated values (.csv).

Once the conversion is complete, save the file in your preferred location.

4. How to Use Your Exported Friends List in CSV Format

After exporting your Facebook friends list to a CSV file, you can now use it in several ways:

• Import Contacts: Add your Facebook contacts to an email service or CRM (Customer Relationship Management) software to keep in touch.

• Organize by Category: Use spreadsheet tools to categorize your contacts based on various criteria, such as location or mutual friends.

• Update Contact Information: If you have additional details for these contacts, you can merge or update fields within your CSV file.

5. Privacy Considerations When Exporting Facebook Friends

While exporting your friends list can be helpful, it’s essential to handle this information responsibly. Only use your contacts for legitimate, personal reasons, and avoid sharing personal details without consent. Facebook’s terms prohibit unauthorized data extraction for commercial purposes, so make sure your actions comply with their policies.

Final Thoughts

Exporting your Facebook friends list to a CSV file isn’t straightforward, but it’s possible with a few extra steps. By downloading your Facebook data and converting it, you’ll have a CSV file that can serve various purposes, from backing up your contacts to organizing and managing connections. Just remember to respect privacy guidelines and use this information responsibly.