By Alpit Patel and the aibrevo team · October 22, 2026 · 10 min read
Migrate From Zendesk Sell to HubSpot or Pipedrive: Export, Field Mapping and Cutover
How to move from Zendesk Sell to HubSpot or Pipedrive before it retires on August 31, 2027: the export steps from Zendesk's help center, a Sell-to-HubSpot-to-Pipedrive field mapping table, the import order, the cutover sequence and the risks, with limits checked October 22, 2026.
Key takeaways
- Export from Sell at Settings > Data > Export. The result is a CSV covering leads, contacts, deals, notes, tasks and smart lists. Emails, call logs, activity history, appointments and documents are not included (Zendesk Help Center, checked October 22, 2026).
- Pipedrive recommends importing Organizations, then Persons, Deals, Leads, Activities and Notes. HubSpot's import tool requires an email for contacts, a name or domain for companies, and a deal name, pipeline and deal stage for deals.
- Pipedrive takes 200,000 rows and under 50 MB per spreadsheet import. HubSpot paid accounts take 1,048,576 rows and 512 MB per file. Neither limit should force a split for a typical Sell account.
- Keep Sell active until the new CRM is verified. Zendesk deletes Sell data when the subscription ends or on August 31, 2027, whichever comes first, so cancelling early starts deletion.
- The main risks are lost relationships (Company IDs and Parent Company fields), missing email and call history, owner names that match no user, and dropdown values that do not exist yet.
Zendesk Sell exports to a CSV from Settings > Data > Export, and that file is the whole migration: leads, contacts, deals, notes and tasks come out, while emails, call logs, activity history, appointments and documents do not. This guide takes that export into HubSpot or Pipedrive in a safe order, with a field mapping table built from the Sell API field names and each destination’s import rules, all checked on October 22, 2026. Sell retires on August 31, 2027 (see the shutdown report); if you are still choosing a destination, start with Zendesk Sell alternatives.
How do I export my data from Zendesk Sell?
Open the Settings gear in the Sell sidebar, go to Data > Export, and press Export under Account Export. Zendesk emails a link to a CSV file. Admins can always export, and other users need an admin to enable export for them under Export Options. The Export panel lists exports from the last 30 days.
Pipedrive’s migration article suggests a second route that gives you more control: open each data area (leads, contacts, companies, deals, tasks), use Smart Lists to build a view with the fields you need, click Export in the upper right, choose CSV, and repeat for each entity. Do both. The full account export is your safe copy, and the smart list exports are what you will import, because Parent Company and Parent Company ID are left out of a full export by default and only appear when you export a smart list.
Two more details from Zendesk’s export article:
- If a Company ID value differs from the contact person’s value, it is left out of the export.
- Zendesk does not state a file size or record limit for the export.
Save every export outside Zendesk before you do anything else.
What does the Zendesk Sell export not include?
Emails, call logs, activity history, appointments and documents. Zendesk’s article says you cannot export them. For a team that sells over email, that is the history reps look at before calling a lead back, and it will not be in the new CRM unless you capture it another way.
| Not exported | What it means for you | Options to decide on |
|---|---|---|
| Emails | Past conversations will not appear on records | Keep Sell readable until the deadline, or let the new CRM’s email sync rebuild new history only |
| Call logs | Call counts and outcomes are lost | Note key call outcomes in a one-time summary field before cutover |
| Activity history, appointments | Timeline on each record starts empty | Export tasks (included) and rebuild open appointments by hand |
| Documents | Attachments stay in Sell | Download the files you need while the subscription is active |
Source: Zendesk Help Center, “Exporting data from Zendesk Sell” (updated July 7, 2026), checked Oct 22, 2026. The options column is aibrevo’s suggestion, not a Zendesk feature.
The Sell API documents contact, deal and lead resources, so a developer can pull records programmatically while your subscription is active. We did not verify email or call endpoints in this run, so treat that route as something to confirm with Zendesk’s current API terms.
How do Zendesk Sell fields map to HubSpot and Pipedrive?
Match each Sell object to a destination object first, then field by field. The Sell column uses the API field names Zendesk documents, which are close to the CSV headers.
| Zendesk Sell | HubSpot | Pipedrive | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lead (first_name, last_name, organization_name, email, status, source) | Contact (First name, Last name, Company name, Email, Lead status) | Lead in the Leads inbox | Pipedrive sends unqualified prospects to the Leads inbox, not to deals |
| Contact, individual (first_name, last_name, title, email, phone, mobile) | Contact (First name, Last name, Job title, Email, Phone number, Mobile phone number) | Person | HubSpot needs an email for a new contact |
| Contact, organization (name, website, industry) | Company (Name, Company domain name, Industry) | Organization | HubSpot companies need a name or a domain; trim the domain to the top-level domain |
| Deal (name, value, currency, estimated_close_date, stage_id) | Deal (Deal name, Amount, Currency, Close date, Deal stage, Pipeline) | Deal | HubSpot needs deal name, pipeline and a stage valid for that pipeline |
| Deal owner (owner_id) and contact owner | Deal owner, Contact owner | Owner | Use the user’s email, not a name, and add users first |
| Deal source_id, loss_reason_id | Custom property, Closed lost reason | Custom field or lost reason | These are IDs in the API, so export names, not IDs |
| Task | Task | Activity | Match Sell task types to Pipedrive activity types |
| Note | Note | Note | Link by the record’s ID or email |
| Tags (array) | Custom property or list | Label | Pipedrive turns tags into labels |
| custom_fields | Custom properties | Custom fields | Create the field and its type before importing |
| customer_status, prospect_status | Lifecycle stage (map your own values) | Custom field | Decide what “current” and “lost” mean in the new CRM first |
| Smart list | Active list or saved view | Filter | Rebuild; filters are not data |
Sell field names from the Zendesk Sell API reference (contacts, deals, leads); HubSpot property labels from HubSpot’s default contact and deal property articles; Pipedrive objects from Pipedrive’s Zendesk Sell migration article. Checked Oct 22, 2026. We did not read Pipedrive’s list of default person and deal fields, so confirm each match in its import preview.
Two mapping traps are specific to Sell. A Sell contact is either an individual or an organization (is_organization), so one CSV can mix people and companies, and you need to split them before import. And a deal’s organization is set automatically from its primary contact’s company, so relink deals by contact, not by company name.
What order should I import in?
Parents before children: companies, contacts, deals, then tasks and notes. Pipedrive’s article gives the same order for its side: Organizations, Persons, Deals, Leads, Activities, then Notes as optional. Both CRMs link records by an identifier in the file, so keep an email or a Sell ID column in every file.
Into Pipedrive. Go to Tools and apps > Import data and click Get started. Upload organizations and persons first, map each column to a system or custom field, check the preview, and use a unique field such as email to link records across entities. Pipedrive says you can revert an import, and for spreadsheet imports only global admins can revert, within 48 hours. Limits: XLS, XLSX or CSV, one tab per import, a header row, no more than 200,000 rows and under 50 MB.
Into HubSpot. Go to Data Management > Data Integration, click Import data, then choose Advanced imports (all objects) to bring several objects in one run. In a single file, include a unique identifier for both records in each row, such as Email for contacts and Company domain name for companies, or use multiple files that share a common column. Without identifiers HubSpot creates duplicates. Paid accounts take 512 MB and 1,048,576 rows per file; free tools take 20 MB per file and 500,000 rows a day. The header row must match HubSpot property names, and dropdown values must already exist as options before you import.
Source: Pipedrive Knowledge Base (spreadsheet import and Zendesk Sell migration articles) and HubSpot Knowledge Base (import file setup), checked Oct 22, 2026.
For other destinations the file limits differ, and some force several batches. The CRM import limits comparison lists them for eight CRMs, and the data cleaning guide covers de-duplication before you import.
What is the safest cutover order?
Do not switch off Sell until the new CRM is checked. This sequence keeps a way back at each step.
- Decide the keep list. Which email, call and document history do you need, and how will you capture it before August 31, 2027?
- Export and archive. Full account export plus smart list exports, stored outside Zendesk. Exports older than 30 days drop off the panel, so keep your own copies.
- Prepare the destination. Create users, custom fields with the right types, pipelines and stages, and activity types. Pipedrive’s article says to use the same field names as in Zendesk so columns map automatically.
- Run a test import of 5 to 10 records per object. Check owners, dates, dropdown values and relationships.
- Run the full import in order, saving each import’s error or skip file and fixing it.
- Verify counts and relationships. Compare record counts per object with the export, open ten deals and check each has the right contact and company, and filter on labels and custom fields.
- Freeze Sell, then run a delta. On cutover day stop edits in Sell, export again, and import only records created or changed since the first export.
- Switch integrations and forms to the new CRM. Rebuild automations; they do not export.
- Keep Sell active until the team has worked in the new CRM for a period you choose. Cancelling starts Zendesk’s deletion, per its announcement.
What can go wrong in a Zendesk Sell migration?
| Symptom | Likely cause | Fix |
|---|---|---|
| Deals import without a company | Company ID was dropped because it differed from the contact’s | Relink using the contact’s email, or re-export a smart list with company fields |
| No parent companies | Parent Company and Parent Company ID are not in a full export | Export a smart list that includes them |
| HubSpot creates duplicate contacts and companies | No unique identifier mapped | Map Email and Company domain name, or Record ID, before import |
| Dropdown values missing after import | Options did not exist in the destination | Create the options first, then import |
| Owner not matched | Names used instead of emails, or the user is not added yet | Add users first and use email addresses |
| Records skipped in Pipedrive | A mandatory field was missing, such as a person or organization name | Download the skip file, fix and re-import |
| Notes attached to the wrong record | IDs changed on import | Keep the Sell ID in a custom field and relink notes by it |
| Sales team cannot see past emails | Emails are not in the export | Decide the keep list in step 1 |
Causes for rows 1 to 2 and 8 come from Zendesk’s export article; rows 3 to 6 from HubSpot’s and Pipedrive’s import articles; row 7 is a general practice, not a vendor statement. Checked Oct 22, 2026.
Should I migrate to HubSpot or Pipedrive?
Pipedrive has the shorter documented path today: its own Sell migration article, a trial, and Zendesk’s recommendation. HubSpot suits you if marketing, forms and service need to live with sales, and it is more expensive at the paid tiers: Pipedrive Growth is $39 a seat billed annually, HubSpot Professional is from $90 plus a $1,500 onboarding fee (prices at the time of writing, checked Oct 22, 2026). The full comparison is on Zendesk Sell alternatives, HubSpot vs Pipedrive and Pipedrive to HubSpot, if you later move again.
When to get help
A migration with a few thousand clean records can be done in-house with the order above. It is worth bringing in a specialist when Sell is wired to Zendesk Support or forms, when you have custom fields on every object, when parent companies and relationships matter, or when you cannot lose email history. aibrevo implements HubSpot and Pipedrive, and moving a team off a retiring CRM is a common request. Book a short call and bring your export, or read about the HubSpot service and the Pipedrive service.
Sources
All checked Oct 22, 2026.
- Zendesk Help Center, Announcing the retiring of Zendesk Sell: retirement date and deletion.
- Zendesk Help Center, Exporting data from Zendesk Sell: export steps, included and excluded data, field limitations.
- Zendesk Developer Docs, Sell API reference for contacts, deals and leads: field names.
- Pipedrive Knowledge Base, Zendesk Sell migration to Pipedrive and Importing data with spreadsheets: mapping, import order, limits, revert.
- HubSpot Knowledge Base, Set up your import file, Import multiple objects, Smart Transfer, default contact properties and default deal properties.