How do I move a Clay list into lemlist?

Get a CSV of the list out of Clay (In Clay, open the table you want to export. Filter the view down to the rows you want and make sure the email column is visible. Click Actions > Export > Download CSV. Once processing finishes, the file downloads. Earlier exports are listed under Available Exports.), verify it, then import the valid file into lemlist: In lemlist, go to Campaigns and open the campaign. Click Leads list, then Import new leads, then CSV import, and drop in the valid file. Review the suggested field mappings, change any from its dropdown or create a custom field, and click Continue. Skip or choose AI actions and enrichment (enrichment can use credits), then pick how to handle duplicates under Manage duplicates and click Import leads.

Do I need to verify a Clay export before lemlist?

Lead databases go stale as people change jobs, and a bounced cold email counts against your sending domain the same as any other. Verifying the Clay export before it goes into a sequence keeps the bounce rate under the roughly 2% line where mailbox providers start filtering, and it catches catch-all domains you should not send to blind.

Which columns should I map in lemlist?

Email address to email; Company name to companyName; Company domain to companyDomain; LinkedIn profile URL to linkedinUrl; Anything else your copy uses to Custom variable. Set every column your copy does not use to skip or ignore.

Should risky or catch-all addresses go into the campaign?

Usually a catch-all domain, which accepts every address so no verifier can confirm the mailbox. Leave it out, or load it into its own smaller campaign at low daily volume so any bounces stay visible and away from the main one.

What does verifying the list cost?

Your first 100 checks are free after Google sign-in, once per account. Then $9 for 2,500 emails one-time, or Pro at $29.99 a month with no cap on email verification. Files up to 100,000 rows.

Cold email workflow

Clay to lemlist: verify the list before you import it

Workflow · SimpleVerifier Team · Steps checked 20 October 2026

Export your table from Clay as a CSV, upload it to SimpleVerifier as it is, and import only the valid file into lemlist, mapping the email column to email. Keep risky (usually catch-all) rows out of the main campaign and drop invalid ones.

Step 1

Get the CSV from Clay

1In Clay, open the table you want to export.
2Filter the view down to the rows you want and make sure the email column is visible.
3Click Actions > Export > Download CSV.
4Once processing finishes, the file downloads. Earlier exports are listed under Available Exports.

The CSV mirrors the current view, so hide columns you do not need before exporting. Cells where an enrichment did not run come out blank.

Source: Clay help centre · Clay export guide

Step 2

Verify every address

1Sign in and upload the CSV as it came out of the export. The email column is found by its header or its contents.
2Every row gets a live mailbox check with catch-all, disposable and role-address detection.
3Download the valid, risky and invalid files. Each keeps every original Clay column.

Check 100 emails free

Then $9 for 2,500 emails, or $29.99/mo unlimited.

Step 3

Import into lemlist

1In lemlist, go to Campaigns and open the campaign.
2Click Leads list, then Import new leads, then CSV import, and drop in the valid file.
3Review the suggested field mappings, change any from its dropdown or create a custom field, and click Continue.
4Skip or choose AI actions and enrichment (enrichment can use credits), then pick how to handle duplicates under Manage duplicates and click Import leads.

Source: lemlist: How to import leads from a CSV file · lemlist: Format custom variables correctly

Column mapping in lemlist

Column in the Clay file	lemlist field	Note
Email address	email	Required on every row; lemlist uses it as the lead's unique ID.
Company name	companyName
Company domain	companyDomain
LinkedIn profile URL	linkedinUrl
Anything else your copy uses	Custom variable	Header names are case-sensitive and become variables. Avoid spaces.

Column names in your Clay file depend on your export settings, so match them by what they hold. Field names on the right are as lemlist’s help article writes them.

Row 1 is column names; a lead whose address sits in row 1 is read as a header and skipped.
Pure .csv in UTF-8 (in Excel, CSV (Comma delimited)), not .xlsx.
Remove empty rows between leads.

Which results to send

validSend
The mailbox server confirmed the address. This is the file that goes into the main campaign.
riskyHold, or send separately
Usually a catch-all domain, which accepts every address so no verifier can confirm the mailbox. Leave it out, or load it into its own smaller campaign at low daily volume so any bounces stay visible and away from the main one.
invalidDrop
The server said the mailbox does not exist, or the domain cannot take mail. Sending will bounce.

Things to watch with Clay and lemlist

Name the Clay columns the way lemlist reads them (email, companyName, companyDomain, linkedinUrl) so they map without manual work, and keep spaces out of custom column names.
Filter out rows where the Clay email enrichment returned nothing: lemlist uses the email as the lead's ID and rows without one fail.
The Manage duplicates step decides what happens to leads already in lemlist. Choose it deliberately rather than clicking through.

Estimate what an unverified list would do to the campaign with the cold email bounce cost calculator, or reshape the file for lemlist with the CSV import formatter.

Common questions

How do I move a Clay list into lemlist?: Get a CSV of the list out of Clay (In Clay, open the table you want to export. Filter the view down to the rows you want and make sure the email column is visible. Click Actions > Export > Download CSV. Once processing finishes, the file downloads. Earlier exports are listed under Available Exports.), verify it, then import the valid file into lemlist: In lemlist, go to Campaigns and open the campaign. Click Leads list, then Import new leads, then CSV import, and drop in the valid file. Review the suggested field mappings, change any from its dropdown or create a custom field, and click Continue. Skip or choose AI actions and enrichment (enrichment can use credits), then pick how to handle duplicates under Manage duplicates and click Import leads.
Do I need to verify a Clay export before lemlist?: Lead databases go stale as people change jobs, and a bounced cold email counts against your sending domain the same as any other. Verifying the Clay export before it goes into a sequence keeps the bounce rate under the roughly 2% line where mailbox providers start filtering, and it catches catch-all domains you should not send to blind.
Which columns should I map in lemlist?: Email address to email; Company name to companyName; Company domain to companyDomain; LinkedIn profile URL to linkedinUrl; Anything else your copy uses to Custom variable. Set every column your copy does not use to skip or ignore.
Should risky or catch-all addresses go into the campaign?: Usually a catch-all domain, which accepts every address so no verifier can confirm the mailbox. Leave it out, or load it into its own smaller campaign at low daily volume so any bounces stay visible and away from the main one.
What does verifying the list cost?: Your first 100 checks are free after Google sign-in, once per account. Then $9 for 2,500 emails one-time, or Pro at $29.99 a month with no cap on email verification. Files up to 100,000 rows.