# Search, filter, sort, export and bulk changes (/docs/contacts/contact-filters)
The toolbar above the contact list narrows it down: search by name or company, filter by stage, channel, agent or owner, sort, and pick the columns you want. Select rows to move their stages, assign agents and owners, export or delete them in one go.
- **Who can use it:** Everyone can search, filter, sort and choose columns. Moving stages, assigning agents and owners, and removing agents in bulk need permission to edit contacts (owners, admins and members). **Export CSV** and **Delete** are for owners and admins by default, and an owner or admin can grant them to other roles. Actions your role can't take are left out of the menu, and **Move to stage** stays disabled with the reason on hover. A Viewer has no row checkboxes. See [Roles and permissions](/docs/settings/roles).
- **Before you start:** Open [Contacts](/docs/contacts/contacts) on the **Table** view.
## Search [#search]
### Type a name or company [#type-a-name-or-company]
Click **Search contacts** in the toolbar, or press /, and type part of a name or a company. The list narrows as you type, and the footer counts the **matching contacts**.
### Clear the search [#clear-the-search]
Click **×** in the field, or press Esc while you're in it.
Search only looks at names and companies. To find someone by phone number or email, use the command palette (⌘ K, or Ctrl K on Windows and Linux); see [Search and jump](/docs/getting-started/search).
## Filter the list [#filter-the-list]
### Pick a field and its values [#pick-a-field-and-its-values]
Click **Filter**, point to a field, and tick the values you want. Each value shows how many contacts have it. Tick more than one value to see contacts that match any of them.
| Field | Values |
| --- | --- |
| **Stage** | Lead, Qualified, Discovery, Negotiation, Closed won. Not offered on the board, where the columns are the stages. |
| **Channel** | WhatsApp, Facebook and Instagram, plus the channels that are coming soon (see [Connect a channel](/docs/channels/connect-a-channel#coming-soon)). |
| **Agent** | **Has an agent**, **No agent**, then each agent by name. |
| **Owner** | **You**, then each teammate who can own deals. |
### Read the filters in force [#read-the-filters-in-force]
Each filter shows as a chip under the toolbar, such as **Stage is Negotiation, Discovery**, joined with **and**: a contact has to match every chip. With more than two values, the chip says how many are selected. **Filter** shows a count of the filters that are on.
### Change or remove a filter [#change-or-remove-a-filter]
Click a chip to switch between **is** and **is not**, or to tick other values. Click **×** on a chip to remove it, **+ Add** to filter by another field, or **Clear all** to remove every filter.
**Needs you** in the toolbar is a filter too: it shows only contacts that have something waiting on your team. See [Contacts](/docs/contacts/contacts#see-who-needs-you).
## Sort the list [#sort-the-list]
### Choose what to sort by [#choose-what-to-sort-by]
Click **Sort**, which shows the current order (**Last touch** to start with), and pick a field under **Sort by**. Then pick the direction under **Order**. You can also click a column header to sort by it.
| Sort by | Order |
| --- | --- |
| **Last touch** | **Newest first** or **Oldest first** |
| **Name**, **Company**, **Owner** | **A to Z** or **Z to A** |
| **Stage** | **Earliest stage first** or **Latest stage first** |
| **Value** | **Lowest first** or **Highest first** |
## Choose columns [#choose-columns]
### Show or hide columns [#show-or-hide-columns]
Click **Columns** and tick the columns you want to see. Name always shows. Your workspace's custom fields and relations on Contacts are listed too (here, **Orders**), and start hidden. While some columns are hidden, the button shows how many are on, such as **7/8**; click **Show all columns** to bring them all back.
Columns are your own choice: they don't change what teammates see.
## Share a view [#share-a-view]
The address bar holds the view you're looking at: table or board, search, filters, sort, page and rows per page. Bookmark it, or copy the address and send it to a teammate, and they open the same list. A link filtered to **Owner is You** shows each person their own deals.
## Change many contacts at once [#change-many-contacts-at-once]
### Select the contacts [#select-the-contacts]
Tick the box at the start of each row you want. A bar appears at the bottom of the screen with the number selected.
To select a whole page, tick the box in the header row. When more contacts match than fit on the page, the bar offers **Select all** with the total; click it to select every matching contact, or **Select this page only** to go back.
### Move them to a stage [#move-them-to-a-stage]
Click **Move to stage** and pick a stage. A stage every selected deal is already in is greyed out (**Current** or **All here**). The move happens at once, with **Undo** in the notice. Moving deals into or out of **Closed won** asks you to confirm first; see [Deals, stages and owners](/docs/contacts/deals-and-stages#mark-a-deal-closed-won).
### Use the other actions [#use-the-other-actions]
Click **⋯** next to **Move to stage** for the rest:
| Action | What it does |
| --- | --- |
| **Assign agent** | Gives every selected contact the agent you pick. Only live agents are listed; one that every selected contact already has is marked **Assigned**. |
| **Change owner** | Makes the teammate you pick the deal owner. Owners and admins also see **Manage members**, which opens Settings to invite someone. |
| **Export CSV** | Downloads the selection; see [Export contacts](#export-contacts). |
| **Remove agent…** | Takes the agent off the selected contacts after you confirm, so they have no agent assigned. Greyed out with **None assigned** when no selected contact has an agent. |
| **Delete** | Deletes the selected contacts after you confirm. |
Stage, agent and owner changes go on each contact's timeline, and every change except an export shows a notice with **Undo**.
### Delete contacts [#delete-contacts]
Choose **Delete** from the menu. The confirmation says what goes with them: their timeline, tasks and files, their deal value from the pipeline, and any approvals waiting on them. Click **Delete** with the number to confirm, or **Cancel**.
Contacts with a conversation in the inbox can't be deleted, so the thread keeps its person: they stay, and the confirmation names them. When every selected contact has one, **Delete** is greyed out with **In the inbox**. Click **Undo** in the notice that follows to bring deleted contacts back.
### Clear the selection [#clear-the-selection]
Click **Clear** in the bar. Searching or filtering also clears the selection, so an action never reaches contacts you can't see.
A deleted contact leaves every list, with their timeline, tasks and files, and the approvals waiting on them are discarded. Use **Undo** in the notice right away if you deleted the wrong people. To delete one contact from their record, where you can also restore them, see [Delete or restore a contact](/docs/contacts/contact-record#delete-or-restore-a-contact).
## Export contacts [#export-contacts]
### Select who to export [#select-who-to-export]
Select the rows you want, or tick the header box and click **Select all** with the total to take every contact that matches your search and filters.
### Download the CSV [#download-the-csv]
Click **⋯** in the bar, then **Export CSV**. The file `mokanata-contacts.csv` lands in your downloads, and a notice says how many contacts it holds.
The file has one row per contact and these columns: Name, Company, Handle, Channels, Stage, Value, Close date, Owner, Agent and Last touch.
## Troubleshooting [#troubleshooting]
Rows can only be selected when your role can edit, export or delete contacts. A Viewer can't select rows. Ask an owner or admin to change your role; see [Roles and permissions](/docs/settings/roles).
Exporting and deleting contacts are for owners and admins by default. An owner or admin can give your role **Export contacts** or **Delete contacts** in **Settings → Members & roles**.
Every contact you selected has a conversation in the inbox. A contact with an inbox conversation can't be deleted, so the conversation never loses its person. Select contacts without one, or leave these in place.
Changing the search or filters clears the selection, so a bulk action only reaches contacts you can see. Narrow the list first, then select.
Only live agents can take on contacts. Paused agents, drafts and agents in shadow mode aren't listed until they're deployed; see [Deploy, pause and set autonomy](/docs/agents/agent-autonomy).
## Next steps [#next-steps]