Migrate from Airtable to NocoDB

Take it out

1. 1

   Step 1

   Make a read-only token

   On Airtable's create-token page, create a token. The smallest scope NocoDB asks for is data.records:read. Limit the token to the base you are moving. Copy it and treat it like a password.

2. 2

   Step 2

   Share the whole base

   In Airtable, open the Share menu, then Share Publicly, and turn on access for the whole base. Copy that link. A link to one view works without a token, but it imports only that table, and links to other tables become plain text.

3. 3

   Step 3

   Keep a spreadsheet copy

   Download a CSV of each table you cannot afford to lose. NocoDB skips some fields and keeps going. The CSV is how you see what was left out.

Put it in

1. 1

   Step 1

   Open the Airtable import

   In NocoDB, click the project name in the sidebar and choose Import data, then Airtable Base. You can also open Import Data on the project dashboard and choose Airtable.

2. 2

   Step 2

   Paste the token and the link

   Put the token in Personal Access Token. Leave it empty if you only have a view link. Paste the Airtable link. Pick a data source. Default is fine unless you already connected your own database. Then start the import.

3. 3

   Step 3

   Read the report

   When it finishes, open Show Details. NocoDB marks items as skipped, approximated, or failed, and you can download that list. A table it cannot create stops the import. A field it cannot copy usually does not.

What you lose

• Formulas

  NocoDB does not import formula fields. That switch is turned off and cannot be turned on. Rollup, lookup, and attachment fields can be turned off under Advanced settings. Leave them on unless a first try fails.

• A view link is a thin copy

  A view link imports the rows that view shows, in that order, as a grid. Gallery, kanban, and calendar views come in as a grid too. On that path, links, lookups, rollups, and formulas become fixed text or numbers, not live fields.

• Automations and interfaces

  NocoDB's import guide covers tables, views, and fields. It does not describe moving Airtable automations or interfaces. Plan to rebuild the ones that send mail or create records. Check the report before you trust a lookup.