Topic:

An explanation and examples for indicating the country for a phone number in a CSV upload file.

Description:

There are two ways to indicate the country for a phone number in a CSV upload file:

• The CSV upload file can provide the ISO 3166 two-character alpha country code or country name and the phone number without the numeric country code.

• The file may be formatted to contain the phone number with the numeric country calling code and not the two-character alpha country code or country name.

Important: Phone numbers (including SMS numbers) in CSV uploads must contain only digits (no dashes, parentheses, spaces, or other delimiters). The general length requirement is 4–20 digits; North American numbers must be exactly 10 digits. In all cases, ensure the country is correctly specified using either the numeric country calling code, the ISO two-character code (for example, US), or the full country name with correct capitalization.

Phone Number and Country Name or ISO 3166 Two-Character Country Code

One method to indicate a country for a phone number is to provide the phone number, as it would be dialed as a local number, in the applicable phone or SMS field and then give the country name or ISO 3166 two-character country code in the corresponding country field. Please see the following examples of acceptable formatting of a CSV as viewed in Microsoft Excel:



Notice in the example that the phone numbers included in the Phone 1 field do not include the numeric country calling codes. The numbers are provided as they would be dialed as a local call in their respective countries.

To help prevent contact upload errors and incorrect matching, Everbridge strongly recommends that you include the Phone Country and Phone Country Value (or equivalent Phone Country fields) for every phone delivery method in your upload file when using this method.

For information on acceptable country names or two-character country codes, please see the following article:
000001412 - How To Upload Country Names for Contact Records in Everbridge Suite

Phone Number With Numeric Country Calling Code

The other method to indicate the country for a phone number is to provide the phone number with the country calling code in the applicable phone or SMS field and NOT include a country in the corresponding country field. The + sign before the country calling code MUST be included when using this formatting method. Microsoft Excel may make unwanted changes to your file if a value starts with a + (such as stripping out the + signs), so it is not recommended to view or edit your CSV in Excel if using this formatting method. For this reason, the properly formatted examples below are shown in the program Notepad++.

The example shows that the phone numbers contain + and the country calling code. +45 is used for the phone number from Denmark, and +1 for the United States phone number. The Phone Country 1 field is intentionally empty.

Everbridge uses intelligent detection in some cases to infer the country from the dial-in code and phone number patterns. This is why some numeric calling codes may appear to be converted automatically to a country in the platform. However, this detection is not guaranteed for all countries, and there is no mechanism to add custom country code mappings. For any contacts whose countries are not being correctly inferred, the reliable approach is to update your CSV format to supply either the ISO two-character code or the full country name in the appropriate Phone Country field.

A non-Everbridge source for country calling codes may be found on the Wikipedia page here: List of Country Calling Codes

Information That Applies to either Method

For information on the logic when a country is not provided, or how the system determines the country when a numeric calling code covers more than one country, please see the following article:
000044209 - How Is the Country for a Contact Determined if No Country Code Is Defined in the Contact Upload File and the Dial-in Code Is Shared With Multiple Countries?

For information on phone number formatting, including delimiters, and the general validation requirements for phone and SMS numbers in CSV uploads, please see the following articles:

• 000059296 - CSV Upload File Phone Number Format - Delimiters

• 000001412 - How To Upload Country Names for Contact Records in Everbridge Suite

As a best practice to prevent phone contact upload errors, incorrect matching, or mixed contact data, ensure that:

• All phone numbers and SMS numbers contain only digits (no spaces, dashes, parentheses, or other delimiters), with a length of 4–20 digits in general, and exactly 10 digits for North American numbers.

• You include the Phone Country and Phone Country Value (or equivalent Phone Country fields) for every phone Delivery Method when using the "local number + country field" method.