Overview
Using Airtable Sync, you can sync records from a source base to one or more destination bases.
To set up a sync, you need access to a shared view that is enabled for syncing. You can then use this view to create a new synced table in any base that you have creator permissions to. Once the sync is set up, all visible records in the source view will be available in the synced table on the destination base. Synced data cannot be modified on the destination base.
Syncing can occur two ways, automatically or manually. Automatic syncing occurs approximately once every 5 minutes and is only available on paid plans.
Setting up a sync
There are three steps to complete in order to set up a basic sync.
- Create a syncable view share link in the source base
- Open the syncable view share link and click "Use this data"
- Use the setup window to create the synced table
Step 1: In the source base, create a view share link and enable sync
Create a grid view that you’ll use as the source for the sync. You can determine which information can be synced by filtering out records and hiding fields.
Then, click Share view to create a view share link and select “Allow data in this view to be synced to other bases”. You can copy the URL in the pink box and share it with other users that may want to sync this data. You may choose to set a password or a domain restriction to further restrict access.
In the example below, we are sharing a view of employees on the engineering team, so we will create a new view that hides certain fields and filters records.
Step 2: Open the syncable view share link and click "Use this data"
Click the ‘Use this data’ button on a shared view page
While viewing a shared view that has sync enabled, click the ‘Use this data’ button on the top right. Then, select the workspace and base you want to sync to. You can also choose to create a new base with the synced table or copy the data into a new table that you can edit.
NOTE
There are three ways to create a synced table in your destination base. Method 1 detailed above is the most straightforward, but you can also explore methods 2 and 3 below which provides more options.If you are a collaborator on the base you would like to sync from, then create a new table and click the Choose base and shared view option. This will bring up a menu of bases, tables, and views to choose from. After choosing a syncable view source click Next. This will take you to the setup page.
Go to the base you would like to sync information to. Create a new table, and choose “Create synced table”, and select “Enter shared view URL”. Then, paste in a syncable view share link to proceed to setup.
Step 3: Setup
When setting up your first sync, we recommend using the default settings. After you become comfortable with basic sync setup, you can view the section on settings in our advanced setup article.
Click Create table.
A table will appear that will have a lightning bolt icon next to the table's name, any synced fields, and where you would normally see a plus sign to add records.
NOTE
We’re excited to share access to this long-awaited feature. Please send us your feedback and ideas here.