How to Import Historical Attendance into CountTrue
If you already have previous attendance totals in a spreadsheet, you can import them into CountTrue so trend charts and comparisons become useful straight away.
Before you begin
Start with a two-week test. Check the imported Events and Location Stats carefully, then import the remaining history in files of up to 110 service events.
- Each CSV can contain up to 110 service-event rows, plus the header row. That is approximately two years of one weekly service, or one year of two weekly services, with some room for special services.
- CountTrue does not currently provide a bulk rollback for historical CSV imports.
- Duplicate rows with the same Service Date, Service Time and Service Name are blocked.
- Imported events won’t overwrite events that were created manually.
Choose the right template
Download the template that matches the attendance categories you actually recorded. The templates are intentionally minimal so you do not have to maintain redundant subtotal columns.
People template. Use this when you recorded one main attendance figure for the service.
Adults / Kids template. Use this when your spreadsheet already separates the main or in-service adults and kids counts.
Adults / Kids + Additional Group template. Use this when you also recorded another attendance group, such as Kids Church or another area that is counted separately from the main service.
You can still upload your own existing CSV if the headings differ. CountTrue lets you map the columns manually during import.
Import fields
Service Date. Recommended format is YYYY-MM-DD. Other common date formats are supported and can be selected after upload.
Service Time. Preferred format is HH:mm.
Service Name. Optional, but recommended when you have more than one service on the same date.
People. The main or in-service attendance. If you also import Additional Groups, CountTrue adds them to People to calculate the overall event attendance.
Adults and Kids. In Adults / Kids mode, these are the main or in-service counts.
Overall Total. Optional in Adults / Kids mode. CountTrue calculates the overall attendance from Adults, Kids and Additional Groups. If supplied, the Overall Total is used only to check that those values add up correctly.
Additional Groups. These are separate attendance groups such as Kids Church, overflow rooms, or a second service group.
Additional Count Groups
Additional Count Groups are stored separately from the main service attendance. CountTrue adds them on top to calculate the overall event attendance.
In the first example row, Adults 95 and Kids 25 remain the main in-service figures. Kids Church Adults 6 and Kids Church Kids 25 remain a separate Additional Group. CountTrue calculates the overall attendance as 151.
95 + 25 + 6 + 25 = 151
Do I need a total column?
Usually, no. If you already have Adults, Kids, and any Additional Group values, CountTrue calculates the overall attendance for you. A total column is useful only as an optional cross-check.
In People mode, the People column is the main or in-service attendance, not the final overall attendance when Additional Groups are also included.
Set up Additional Groups
- Upload your CSV.
- Review any Additional Group names CountTrue detects from your column headings.
- Choose the detected name, select an existing group used by this service type, or enter a new group name.
- Add the group, then check that its CSV columns are mapped correctly.
- Review the totals check after all attendance columns are mapped.
Recommended test workflow
- Download the matching template.
- Add two representative weeks of historical attendance.
- Upload the CSV in CountTrue.
- Add or select any Additional Groups.
- Choose Map automatically, then review each mapped column.
- Correct any unmapped columns or validation issues.
- Import the sample.
- Check the imported Service Date, Service Time, Service Name, main attendance, Additional Groups, overall total, and Location Stats.
- Import the remaining history in files of up to 110 service events. That is approximately two years of one weekly service, or one year of two weekly services.
You can find the importer from Service Type management inside the app. If you are preparing a location first, our guide on counting attendance across multiple services is also helpful for keeping service names and timings consistent.
If your test import is wrong
Stop before importing the rest of your history. Correct the CSV first so the same problem is not repeated across a larger import.
Review the imported test events from the Events tab. To remove a test event, open the service event, choose Edit, and use the event deletion option. Repeat this for each test event you need to remove.
CountTrue does not currently provide a bulk undo for historical CSV imports, which is why a two-week test is strongly recommended. If you are unsure before continuing, contact CountTrue support.
Common issues
The supplied overall total does not match the category sum
Check the row before importing. If the CSV includes Adults, Kids, and Additional Groups, CountTrue compares any supplied overall total against the calculated sum.
The file contains duplicate date, time, and event name rows
Duplicate rows with the same Service Date, Service Time and Service Name are blocked. Keep only one row for each unique combination.
Some numeric values are malformed or negative
Non-empty numeric cells must contain whole numbers. Blank optional numeric cells can stay blank, but malformed or negative values need correction before import.
My file is bigger than 110 service events
Split it into smaller batches. The current importer does not automatically chunk a larger historical CSV into separate imports.
Related articles
See all articlesHow to Count Attendance Across Multiple Services
When one Sunday includes several services, rooms, or campuses, the challenge is keeping each count clear without creating extra admin later.
What Actually Works for Counting Church Attendance
Not every attendance method holds up once Sunday gets busy. Here’s what churches with reliable counts usually have in common.
Bring your attendance history into CountTrue
Use a small test import first, then build your historical trends in files of up to 110 service events.