How long does switching from Airtable actually take?

An evening for most accounts. The export from Airtable is the slow step - the import side runs in minutes once the field mapping is settled. Larger teams (50+ seats with custom field schemas) sometimes split it across two sessions: import first, reorganise the next day.

Will I lose data when I switch?

Nothing structural. The CSV/JSON export from Airtable preserves the data: records, fields, history, and attachments come over intact. What doesn't transfer is anything tied to Airtable-specific UI metadata (custom views, saved searches, in-app annotations) - those don't sit in the export, they sit in the source product's UI. Plan an evening to rebuild your most-used views once you're in.

What about my existing Airtable subscription?

Run both side-by-side until you're confident, then cancel Airtable from their side. We don't lock you in - export from Contact Book is one click in account settings, same as import.

Is the import path free?

The import button is open on every plan, including the free tier - we don't paywall the way out of a competitor. The data going in still has to fit your plan's per-type quotas (the free-tier caps are listed on /sales); paid plans raise those caps. If you're moving a large set, check the caps first or write to /support and we can advise.

Can I get help with the switch?

Yes. Write to /support - both founders see those threads directly. Reply within a working day. For the field-mapping itself we typically resolve things in one or two exchanges; if your dataset is unusually large or Airtable's export shape is unfamiliar, we'll say so up front.

Contact Book

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Contact Book: the alternative to Airtable

What moving from Airtable to Contact Book actually looks like in 2026.

Switching

Personal CRM

Airtable

Finn GlasCo-Founder + Engineering

·March 31, 2026·

1 min read

Contact Book is what people use when Airtable stops fitting. Below is the honest side-by-side - same product surface, different posture: hosted in Germany, no third-party trackers, one honest price - plus the migration mechanics that decide whether the switch lands in an evening or in a quarter.

At a glance

Airtable is the most flexible CRM you can build - because it's not a CRM, it's a database. The flexibility is its strength and its trap. Past 500 rows the UI gets sluggish, custom views proliferate, and what was a tidy template becomes a junk drawer. Contact Book is purpose-built and stays fast at scale; the trade-off is you can't add a totally custom field type whenever you want.

Switching

What moving from Airtable actually looks like

The switch goes in three rough phases: export from Airtable, import into Contact Book, and reorganise what came over. Most people allocate an evening for it. The export side is where the time goes - Airtable hands you a CSV/JSON dump and the field mapping isn't always obvious; once that's resolved the import is a couple of minutes. We don't paywall the import path or pretend it's a pro-only feature, and you can run both side-by-side while you decide.

Contact Book vs Airtable: feature comparison

	Ours Contact Book	Theirs Airtable
Custom fields	Constrained
Speed past 500 rows
Live multi-tab
Mobile UX (contact-shaped)
Cadence reminders		DIY
Hosted in Germany
Free tier

When to pick which

Pick Contact Book when

You've already built an Airtable contact base and watched it slow down.

Reminders that fire on time matter more than infinite custom fields.

Pick Airtable when

You enjoy building your own database and the building is part of the value.

Total field freedom is non-negotiable for your use case.

Step by step

Export from Airtable

Find the export option in Airtable's account settings. Most tools provide a CSV or JSON download. Save the dump locally - that's the source of truth for the next step.

Account settings → Export / Download data

Pick the broadest format the tool offers (usually JSON)

Map fields in Contact Book

Open the import tool in Contact Book. Airtable's field names rarely match Contact Book' 1:1; the import flags any unmapped columns so you can pair them up before anything commits.

Account settings → Import

Resolve the mapping prompts the tool surfaces

Run the import

Run the import. Contact Book shows a preview of the first parsed rows in the import dialog so you can sanity-check the column mapping + a sample of records before anything commits. If you're nervous about a large dump, import a small subset first, verify it landed the way you expected, then run the full file.

Re-create your views, tags, saved searches

Airtable-specific UI metadata (custom views, saved filters, in-app annotations) doesn't transfer with the data export. Spend an evening rebuilding the views you used most - usually a 30-minute job once you've done it once.

Cancel Airtable when you're confident

Run both side-by-side for a couple of weeks if you want to be sure. When you're confident, cancel the Airtable subscription from their side. Contact Book keeps your export option self-serve in account settings - no lock-in either direction.

Switching from Airtable

The five questions we get most often before someone moves their data over.

Start with Contact Book

Free plan, no credit card. We host in Germany. Export + delete are self-serve.

Written by

Finn Glas

Co-Founder + Engineering

Finn is one of the Co-Founders. He owns the engineering side, the infrastructure, and most of the late-night fixes that ship before anyone notices.

finn.glas at aicuflow dot comLinkedIn Website