How to Import a Snapshot in HighLevel: The Complete 2026 Walkthrough

Importing a snapshot takes minutes. Making it work takes an afternoon. The import step is trivial and every guide covers it. What follows, connecting channels, filling in custom values and testing before you publish, is where accounts actually go wrong.

This walkthrough covers the whole sequence in the order that avoids rework.

Before you start

Three things are worth having in place first, because two of them involve waiting on someone else.

• An agency-level login. Snapshots load from the agency account. A client-level user cannot do it.
• A2P registration underway. If the build sends SMS to US or Canadian numbers, brand and campaign registration must be approved first. This takes days. Starting it on import day means a launch that stalls.
• A verified sending domain. Email from an unverified domain lands in spam. DNS records propagate, which again is not instant.

Step 1: load the share link

1. Log into your agency account, not a client sub-account.
2. Open the share link you were sent. HighLevel recognises it and shows an import screen.
3. Choose the sub-account to load into, or create a new one first and select that.
4. Review the asset list, then confirm. Import runs in the background and takes a couple of minutes for a large snapshot.
5. Open the sub-account and check that funnels, workflows, pipelines and calendars are present. Occasionally one asset type quietly fails; catching it now is much easier than discovering it later.

Step 2: fill in the custom values

This is the step that turns a generic build into your build, and it is why a well-made snapshot is configured from one screen rather than page by page.

Go to Settings, then Custom Values. You will see a list of placeholders the snapshot uses throughout its funnels, emails and SMS templates. Typically:

Fill in every one. A blank custom value renders as an empty space in a live email, which is exactly the sort of thing a client notices before you do.

Step 3: connect your channels

A snapshot brings the structure. Nothing is connected, because connections are account-specific and cannot travel.

1. Phone number. Provision a new number in the sub-account or port an existing one. Confirm A2P registration is approved, or SMS steps will fail silently.
2. Email sending domain. Add your domain and complete DNS verification. Do not skip this and send from a shared domain, because deliverability will be poor from the first campaign.
3. Calendar. Connect the team's Google or Outlook calendars so availability reflects reality and double bookings do not happen.
4. Payment processor. Connect Stripe if the build takes payments, deposits or subscriptions.
5. Website domain. Point the domain at the sub-account and set the funnel or site as the default so the root URL serves something.
6. Social accounts. Connect Facebook, Instagram and Google Business Profile if the build uses lead forms, chat or review requests.

Step 4: test before you publish

Workflows in a well-built snapshot arrive paused. Resist the urge to publish everything and watch what happens.

1. Create a test contact with your own mobile number and an email address you can actually check.
2. Submit every form on the live funnel pages, not from the builder preview. Preview and live behave differently.
3. Check the messages that arrive. Read them on a phone. Look for unfilled custom values, broken links, and SMS that runs to three segments because it is too long.
4. Book a test appointment and confirm the reminder cadence fires at the right intervals with the right details.
5. Walk the pipeline. Move the test opportunity through each stage and confirm the stage automations fire once, not twice.
6. Test on mobile. Most traffic is mobile, and a page that is fine on a laptop can be unusable on a phone.

Step 5: publish in order

Publish workflows one at a time rather than all at once, so a problem is traceable to a specific change.

1. Lead capture and instant response first. This is where the revenue is, and it is the lowest risk.
2. Appointment reminders next, once at least one real booking exists to observe.
3. Nurture sequences after that, checking the send windows respect your time zone.
4. Review requests last, and only once you are confident the service side is delivering. Asking for a review before you are ready invites the review you do not want.

What usually goes wrong

Nearly every import problem is on that list, and nearly all of them are connection problems rather than snapshot problems. Work through the table before assuming something imported badly.