An Airtable migration backup checklist

Inventory what needs to survive

Record the tables, fields, relationships, attachments, formulas and automations that matter. Include ownership and access requirements as well as row data.

Export using current official guidance

Read Airtable’s current documentation for your plan and export method. Note exactly what is included and what must be collected or recreated separately.

Validate in a separate destination

Compare record counts and important values, open attachments, inspect relationships and test key formulas. Write down every unsupported feature and manual change.

Keep a rollback decision

Preserve the original until the rehearsal and recovery plan satisfy your requirements. A successful import alone is not proof that your complete workflow has been preserved.

Distinguish a migration snapshot from a complete backup

A migration snapshot preserves a defined set of source data for conversion and comparison. A recovery plan also needs the information required to restore the working application. Do not label a CSV file a complete backup unless the documented scope and a recovery exercise support that claim.

Build a small evidence packet

For a hypothetical two-table sales workspace, preserve a field map, source identifiers, record totals, important calculated outputs, a file inventory and an access policy. Keep this packet with the snapshot date and the conversion rules. It makes a discrepancy explainable later without relying on screenshots or someone’s memory.

• Record source snapshot time and who owns later edits.
• List customer/order IDs and the expected relationship between tables.
• Record calculation inputs and their expected outputs.
• Check that attached files remain retrievable by an authorized user.
• Keep a separate list of automations and integrations to recreate.

Set a cutover and rollback decision

Choose the conditions that permit the team to switch to the destination. If identity, relationship or access checks fail, keep the source available and repair the rehearsal. If the transition proceeds, record when writes change over and how to handle any work entered during the transition. A rollback decision must consider those new writes; simply reopening an old export can discard later work.