How to Bulk-Add Caller IDs From a CSV List in VICIdial

The CSV method is the most precise way to bulk-add area-code caller IDs. Instead of letting the system guess descriptions for you, you spell out every field yourself, one row per entry. It is the right choice when your data already lives in a spreadsheet, or when you need descriptions the automatic state lookups would never produce.

Because you control every field, the CSV method also works for numbers outside the North American Numbering Plan, where the area-code state lookup has nothing to match against. If you dial international, or you simply want custom labels per entry that the automatic methods would never write, this is your method. It trades a little extra preparation for complete precision over what lands in the list.

It is also the only AC-CID Bulk Add method that handles a STATE-type CID group cleanly, which we cover further down. For most day-to-day campaign work, though, you will use the standard area-code format and let the columns do the talking.

The row format

Each line is a comma-separated row in the format NPA,CID,DESCRIPTION,ACTIVE. The four pieces:

• NPA - the area code these entries belong to.
• CID - the CID (caller ID) value the dialer will display for that area code.
• DESCRIPTION - free text, capped at 50 characters. Anything longer risks being cut.
• ACTIVE - whether the entry starts active, but read the note below on exactly when this column is honored.

A row like 813,7271234567,Florida,Y creates an entry for area code 813, displaying the CID (caller ID) 7271234567, described as Florida, set active. Each row lands in the area-code caller ID list of the Campaign you selected. Build the rows in a spreadsheet, then paste the whole block in at once.

When the ACTIVE column is used

Here is the gotcha that trips people up: the ACTIVE value in your CSV is only honored when the Active selector above the paste box is set to Input. If that selector is set to active or inactive outright, every row inherits that single choice and your per-row ACTIVE field is ignored entirely. Set the selector to Input whenever you want the CSV to decide each entry individually - otherwise the one selector wins for the whole batch.

The STATE-type variant for CID groups

If you are inserting into a CID group of the STATE type rather than a campaign's own list, the first column changes. Use STATE,CID,DESCRIPTION,ACTIVE instead of NPA,CID,DESCRIPTION,ACTIVE - the leading field becomes the state rather than a numeric area code. Everything else works the same way, including the 50-character description cap and the Input rule for the ACTIVE column.

flowchart TD
  A[Paste CSV rows] --> B{Target type?}
  B -- Campaign list --> C[Use NPA,CID,DESC,ACTIVE]
  B -- STATE CID group --> D[Use STATE,CID,DESC,ACTIVE]
  C --> E{Active select = Input?}
  D --> E
  E -- Yes --> F[Honor per-row ACTIVE]
  E -- No --> G[Force all to selector value]

Tips for clean imports

• Trim descriptions to 50 characters before pasting so nothing gets silently cut.
• Keep one area code per row - the dialer matches a lead's area code to pick the right CID (caller ID) at call time.
• Decide your Input-versus-fixed active strategy before you paste, not after.

Related methods

If you only need US state abbreviations as descriptions, STATE LOOKUP fills them automatically. For the whole admin toolset, see our bulk tools overview. Keep your DNC (do not call) obligations in mind whichever number you choose to display.

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