Creating and Configuring Smart Lists

This article walks through creating a smart list, configuring its columns, sorting and permissions, and setting up scheduled exports. For what smart lists are and where they appear, see Smart Lists Overview.

Two ways to create a smart list

From a list page (recommended)

This is the quickest way, because you can see the results as you build them.

1. Open the list for the content type you want, for example People → Profiles.
2. Click Show Filters and build your filters (see Using the Filter Builder). Add a search, sort by a column and set a date range if you need one.
3. Click Save as Smart List below the filters.
4. Give the smart list a title, such as "Active Members" or "Overdue Onboarding Cards", and save.

The new smart list keeps your filters, search keywords, visible columns, sort order, page size and date range.

From the Content section

1. Go to Content and find the Smartlists panel.
2. Click New Smartlist.
3. Fill in the fields described below and save.

Basic Info

• Title — a clear, descriptive name.
• Data type — the content type the list returns.
• Filter Keywords — an optional search that results must match.
• If matches rules — the filter rules, using the same builder as the list page.
• Sorting — the Sort Key (the field to sort on), Sort Data Type (the kind of data in that field, such as text or date) and Sort Order (Ascending or Descending).
• Page Configuration — Page Size (50 by default) and Starting Page.
• Date Filter — switch on Enable date filter and set a Start Date and End Date to limit results to that range.

Under Meta Data (click More) you'll find the list's scopes and its Security setting:

• Secure (the default) — only signed-in people can open the list, and each person only sees the records they're allowed to see.
• Public — anyone with the link can open the list's results without signing in, and results are not limited by the viewer's permissions. Only use this for data that is safe to publish, such as a public schedule shown on a website.

Columns

The Columns tab lists the fields shown in the results and included in exports. Add, remove and drag columns into the order you want. Each column maps to a field on the content type, including your custom fields.

Permissions

The Permissions tab holds permission sets attached to the smart list. Most smart lists don't need any; this is an advanced setting used when a list is served to an app or website.

Results

The Results tab runs the list so you can check it returns what you expect, with a search box for searching within the results.

Scheduled exports

The Automation tab lets you deliver the list on a schedule. Each Scheduled Export exports the list and emails a download link to the people you choose. You can add several, for example a weekly one for managers and a monthly one for the finance team.

1. On the Automation tab, add a Scheduled Export.
2. Choose how often it runs: a Unit (Minute, Hour, Day, Week, Month or Year) and Every (for example every 1 week). Depending on the unit you can also pick a Time of Day, a Weekday, On the (such as the first Monday of the month) and a Timezone.
3. Choose the Recipients: the people who should be emailed a link to each export.
4. Choose the Format: CSV or Excel (XLSX).
5. Make sure Enabled is on. You can switch a delivery off later without deleting it. Next Delivery shows when it will next run.

Every delivery is kept under Delivered snapshots on the Automation tab (and Past Exports when viewing the list), so you can go back to an earlier copy.

Using a smart list

Open a smart list to see its Results and Past Exports. The Quick actions panel offers:

• Download CSV — exports every matching record, not just the first page.
• Download JSON — opens the current results as JSON (useful for developers).
• Print results — prepares the results for printing.
• Open in List view — opens the list page with the smart list applied, so you can adjust filters or select records for bulk actions.

To change a smart list's filters, either edit it directly, or open it in List view, adjust the filters and save a new smart list.

Tips

• Results always reflect the data at the moment the list is opened or exported; they are not updated live while you are looking at them.
• Build a dedicated smart list for each regular report, with exactly the columns you need.
• Smart lists can be used as the audience for an email campaign. See Email Campaigns.

FAQs