How to Export Clients from Square Appointments (Without Losing Your Data)

Square won't hand you your client list and your appointment history in one file. They're two separate exports, in two separate places, and one of them only exists on the web dashboard. If you're moving to a new booking app, you need both. This guide walks through exactly where each file lives, what's inside it, and what quietly gets left behind, so you can rebuild your book somewhere else without losing anyone.

The short version: export clients from Customers → Directory → Import/Export → Export Customers, export appointments from Appointments → Settings → History → Export, and handle saved payment cards as a separate job entirely. Here's how each step actually works.

Two Exports, Not One: Getting the Full Picture

Client records and appointment history don't live together in Square. They're stored in different parts of the system and exported from different menus.

That trips people up. You pull the customer CSV, feel done, then realize you have no idea who has a standing appointment next month.

• Client records come from the Directory in the web dashboard.
• Appointment history comes from Appointments settings, under History.

The client export is a CSV, and it's generated only in the web dashboard. Not the Square Appointments app, not the POS mobile app. If you're standing in your suite trying to export from your phone, you won't find the button. Sit down at a laptop.

One more detail that matters more than it sounds: when you export customers, the default behavior lets you pick a group. Choose All Customers for a complete list. Pick a group and you get only that group. If you have clients sorted into tags or segments, a group export will silently leave everyone else out.

The appointment-history CSV is different. It includes both past and upcoming appointments. That makes it useful for more than record-keeping. You can use it to plan the migration itself and reconcile which future bookings need to survive the switch.

You need both files. Clients alone give you names and numbers with no context. Appointments alone give you dates attached to people you can't contact.

Step-by-Step: Exporting Your Client List

This takes about two minutes once you're logged into the web dashboard.

1. Open Square Dashboard and go to Customers → Directory.
2. Click Import/Export, then Export Customers.
3. Select All Customers unless you deliberately want one segment.
4. Download the CSV.

The file gives you names, contact info, and notes. That's the core of what you need to rebuild your book.

What it does not give you is saved payment cards. Card details are held under payment-processing controls, not in your customer records. They will not appear in the CSV, and they can't be moved by importing a file. Transferring saved cards between processors is a separate process you handle directly, not something a CSV import touches.

Worth saying plainly: nobody's card numbers are sitting in a spreadsheet waiting to be exported. That's by design, and it's a good thing.

If you're still deciding whether to move at all, it helps to know what a booking app should actually do before you commit to one. Our breakdown of what a salon booking app actually needs covers the difference between features that matter and features that just look good on a pricing page.

Exporting Appointment History for Migration

Appointments live behind a different menu, and the path has a couple of forks depending on how your account is set up.

1. Go to Appointments (or Payments → Appointments on some accounts).
2. Open Settings, then History.
3. Click Export.

You'll get a CSV with past and upcoming appointments together.

That combination is the useful part. Most people think of appointment history as a rearview mirror, something for taxes or client notes. But the upcoming appointments in that file are your forward plan. They tell you who's already booked and who'll need a reminder once you've moved.

Use the file to reconcile future bookings after migration. Cross-check it against your new calendar. Anyone with an upcoming appointment in Square should have one in the new system too, or should get a heads-up that they need to rebook.

Remember that appointment history is separate from client records. Neither file is complete on its own. A full migration means both.

What Else to Export and Check Before You Switch

Two files get you most of the way. A few more things need checking before you pull the plug on your old setup.

The Item Library

If you need to recreate your services in a new system, export your Item Library separately. But go in with realistic expectations. The Item Library is not a dedicated appointments-service export, so service names alone may not capture everything.

It can miss:

• Duration for each service
• Variants (like length or add-on options)
• Prices as they're actually configured
• Staff rules tied to specific services

Verify service details against your live Square setup before you migrate. Open your services in Square, read the actual durations and prices, and compare them to what landed in the export. CSVs can drop nuances that only exist in the live configuration.

This matters more than it sounds for anyone who books long appointments. If your color service is really 3 hours but the export says 2, your new calendar will start handing out slots that don't exist. That's the same problem that causes short bookings to fragment a long block, and it's worth getting the durations right at the source.

Saved payment cards

Already covered, but it belongs on the pre-switch checklist. Cards don't move via CSV. Sort that out directly with your new processor before you take your first payment.

A quick comparison

Here's what each export actually contains, so you know what you're working with.

Export	Where it lives	What's inside	What's missing
Client list	Customers → Directory → Import/Export	Names, contact info, notes	Saved payment cards
Appointment history	Appointments → Settings → History	Past and upcoming appointments	Client contact details
Item Library	Item Library export	Service and item names	Duration, variants, prices, staff rules (verify manually)

Bringing clients in

Once you have the CSVs, the next job is getting them into your new system. Chairwarden's import wizard accepts client lists from Vagaro, Square, GlossGenius, or Schedulicity, and it shows you a preview before anything moves. You see what's about to land before it lands.

If you're weighing the move more broadly, our guide to salon booking software costs and what to skip lays out what you're actually paying for. And if calendar protection is the reason you're switching, the setup is simple: during a two-minute setup, you tell Chairwarden how long a quick service takes and how long a long one takes. Strict mode never allows fragmentation. Relaxed mode allows a short service at the edges of a block when it wouldn't meaningfully split it.

The free tier runs up to 15 bookings a month with calendar protection from the first booking, no credit card needed. That's enough to test the import and see how your book looks on the other side before you commit to anything.

The Part People Skip

Most migration headaches come from assuming one export covers everything. It doesn't. Clients, appointments, and service setup are three separate jobs, and payment cards are a fourth that no file touches.

Pull all the files. Check the durations against your live setup. Reconcile the upcoming appointments. Then import with your eyes open.

If you want to see how your client list lands before you switch, the import wizard's preview will show you. Start on the free tier and let the calendar do the rest.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I export clients from the Square Appointments mobile app?

No. The client export is a CSV generated only in the Square web dashboard. You'll need to log in to your Square Dashboard on a browser to access the export option under Customers → Directory → Import/Export.

Does the client CSV include saved payment cards?

No. Saved payment-card details are held under payment-processing controls and are not included in the client CSV. Transferring payment methods requires a separate process directly with your new processor.

What's the difference between exporting clients and exporting appointments?

Client records and appointment history are separate exports. Clients come from the Directory, while appointment history is exported from Appointments settings. The appointment CSV includes both past and upcoming appointments, which is useful for migration planning.

Can I import my Square client list into Chairwarden?

Yes. Chairwarden's import wizard brings your client list from Square (as well as Vagaro, GlossGenius, and Schedulicity) with a preview before anything moves. You can start on the free tier with up to 15 bookings per month.