---
title: "Removing Contacts from a Group with File Import"
slug: "remove-group-members-with-file-import"
updated: 2025-10-02T12:50:41Z
published: 2025-10-02T12:50:41Z
canonical: "docs.mapp.com/remove-group-members-with-file-import"
---

> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.mapp.com/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Removing Contacts from a Group with File Import

## Goal

Remove members from a group by importing a file that lists the contacts to be removed.

---

## Background Information

- Use the **Remove** import mode to delete contacts from a single Mapp Engage group. Other group memberships for those contacts are not affected.
- Removed members are not contacted for confirmation and are not counted as unsubscribes in statistics.
- When a contact is removed from a group, group-specific data, such as member attributes and group membership statistics, is deleted. All other profile data remains unchanged.

---

## Prerequisites

- A correctly formatted import file in CSV, XML, or text format, up to 50 MB.
- Each contact must be uniquely identified in the file by email address, mobile number, mobile app alias, or an external identifier. If using an external identifier, follow the dedicated procedure in [Updating Contacts with an External Identifier](/v1/docs/update-contacts-with-external-identifier).

---

## Procedure

1. Go to *Audience > Group Management > Groups*.
2. From the context menu next to the target group, select **Members**.
3. Click **Import**.
4. Click **Choose File** and upload your file.
5. Select the **File Type**. For CSV files, enter a separator in the **Separator** field if you use something other than the default comma.
6. Choose the encoding.
7. Select one of the following import modes:
  - **Add**: Add contacts as members.
  - **Update Current Members**: Update existing members.
  - **Add and Update All**: Add new contacts and update existing ones.
  - **Add and Update (Exclude Current Members)**: Add new contacts only, without modifying current members.
  - **Replace All**: Replace all existing group members with the new list.
  - **Remove from Group**: Remove contacts from the group.
  - **Add Contact (With Notification and Invite)**: Add contacts with a notification or invitation, even if they are already members.
8. (Optional) Apply **Synchronization Qualifiers** to refine the process. Some qualifiers are applied automatically, depending on the selected mode.
9. (Optional) Expand **Advanced Options** and configure as needed:
  - **Time Zone**: Sets the time zone for date attributes, used only if the file’s date values lack a time zone.
  - **Use External Identifier**: Matches contacts by unique ID instead of email or mobile number. Requires the external-identifier import procedure.
  - **Set Read Mode System-wide**: Applies the file’s read mode to all contacts, overwriting per-contact read mode in all groups. Available only with the add modes: "Replace," "Update Members Only," "Add and Update Non-members Only," and "Add and Update All."

> [!NOTE]
> **Note:**
> 
> Mapp Engage requires ISO-8601 date formats (`YYYY-MM-DDThh:mm:ss+/-GMT`). Example: `2012-12-25T15:15:15-05:00`. Deprecated formats are not fully supported.
10. Click **Import** to start the process.

## Related

- [XML Format for Contact Imports](/xml-format-for-contact-imports.md)
- [CSV Format for Contact Imports](/csv-format-for-contact-imports.md)