How to Export WordPress Form Entries — Any Plugin, Free (2026)

Every WordPress form is a lead, a support request, or a sale waiting to happen — but only if you can find it later. Too many sites rely on a notification email that gets buried, filtered, or accidentally deleted, and the submission is gone for good.

This guide shows how to store WordPress form entries reliably, manage submissions from several form plugins in one place, and export them to CSV — using the free EntryVault plugin.

Do WordPress form plugins store entries by default?

It depends entirely on the plugin:

• Contact Form 7 — no. It emails submissions and keeps nothing unless you add a separate plugin. (More on capturing CF7 below — it’s new in EntryVault.)
• WPForms, Gravity Forms, Fluent Forms, Formidable, Ninja Forms, Everest Forms — yes, but each stores entries in its own tables, behind its own screen.
• Trinity Forms — stores natively and exports to CSV out of the box.

So storage isn’t always the problem. The friction shows up when you run more than one form plugin, or when you need to actually work the submissions — tag them, follow up, assign them to teammates, or hand a clean CSV to someone else. Each plugin silos its entries, and none of them were built to be a lightweight CRM.

The fix: one inbox for every form’s entries

Instead of checking three different plugin dashboards, route every submission into a single, searchable board. That’s what EntryVault does — it captures entries from 11 form builders (Contact Form 7, WPForms, Gravity Forms, Fluent Forms, Forminator, SureForms, Ninja Forms, Formidable Forms, WS Form, Everest Forms, and Trinity Forms) and puts them on one Kanban-style board you can filter, tag, and export.

How to store and export form entries with EntryVault

Step 1 — Install EntryVault

From your dashboard go to Plugins → Add New, search for EntryVault, and install and activate the free build. It runs alongside your existing form plugins — you don’t replace anything.

Step 2 — There’s no step 2 (it auto-detects your forms)

This is the part people expect to be fiddly, and isn’t. EntryVault auto-detects which form plugins are active and only loads the matching adapters — no API keys, no per-form mapping, no configuration. Submit a test entry on any supported form and it appears in EntryVault immediately.

Step 3 — See every submission in one place

Open EntryVault → Submissions. Every entry — regardless of which plugin created it — is listed with its fields, the source form plugin, and timestamps. Filter by pipeline, stage, source, or date, or search by name/email.

Step 4 — Tag and organize

Add colour-coded tags (for example lead, support, spam) so you can triage the board at a glance, and open any card to see its full field values, an activity timeline, and notes.

Step 5 — Export to CSV

Need the data elsewhere — a spreadsheet, your email tool, an accountant? Hit Export CSV on the Submissions screen to download everything (or a filtered view) as a clean, portable file — no wrestling with each form plugin’s separate exporter.

Step 6 — Work submissions like a mini CRM (Pro)

When simple storage isn’t enough, EntryVault Pro adds the workflow layer:

• Pipelines — move cards through stages (New → Contacted → Won) on the board.
• Owners — assign submissions to specific team members, with round-robin.
• Automations — trigger actions when an entry arrives or changes stage.
• IMAP reply sync — connect a mailbox so email replies attach to the right entry, keeping the whole conversation in one place.

Special case: storing Contact Form 7 submissions

Contact Form 7 is the classic example of a form that keeps nothing — it just emails you. As of EntryVault 1.1, CF7 is fully supported, so your existing CF7 forms get a real database and CSV export with zero changes to the forms themselves.

One detail that matters: EntryVault captures CF7 submissions on the before-send-mail step (the same hook CF7’s own storage add-on uses), so a lead is recorded even if the notification email fails to send — which is exactly when you’d otherwise lose it. If you’re weighing CF7 against a builder that stores natively, see our Contact Form 7 alternative guide.

Why storing entries properly matters

• You never lose a lead to a bounced or filtered notification email.
• You have a record for follow-up, disputes, and data-retention requirements.
• You can collaborate — a shared board beats forwarding emails around.
• You can report and export — analyze what’s actually coming through your forms.

Pricing

EntryVault has a free-forever core that stores entries and gives you the unified board and CSV export. Pro unlocks the CRM workflow — automations, IMAP reply sync, multiple pipelines, owners, and round-robin — starting at $79/year for a single site, with a $319 lifetime option. See the pricing page for all tiers.

The bottom line

If your form entries live only in your inbox, you’re one spam filter away from losing a customer. Store them properly, keep them in one place, and export whenever you need to. EntryVault makes that a five-minute setup — and it’s free to start.

Ready to try it? Explore EntryVault or check the pricing and tiers.

Plugin-specific guides: we’ve written dedicated walkthroughs for exporting Gravity Forms entries and exporting Fluent Forms entries, plus a comparison of the best form entry management plugins.

Frequently asked questions

Does Contact Form 7 store form entries?

No — Contact Form 7 emails each submission and keeps no database record by default. To store CF7 entries you need a companion plugin such as Flamingo or EntryVault, which capture submissions on CF7’s own hook so nothing is lost even if the email fails.

How do I export WordPress form entries to CSV?

Install EntryVault, open EntryVault → Submissions, optionally filter the list, and click Export CSV to download every entry as a clean spreadsheet file — from all your form plugins at once, with no per-form exporter to wrestle.

Can I manage entries from several form plugins in one place?

Yes. EntryVault auto-detects your active builders and captures entries from 11 of them — Contact Form 7, WPForms, Gravity Forms, Fluent Forms and more — into a single searchable board, so you stop checking a separate screen per plugin.

Related reading

• How to export Contact Form 7 entries to CSV — the CF7-specific route, including very large archives
• Exporting WordPress posts to CSV — the same job for your content instead of your form entries
• Migrating form entries between plugins — moving stored entries when you switch form builders