Short answer
Leaving a modern SaaS product usually costs two things: time and choices. Time because exports are often partial, split by object type, or need hand-cleaning; choices because important export capabilities — corporate exports, high-fidelity asset formats, bulk attachment downloads and CSV/JSON dumps — are frequently restricted to paid tiers or gated behind support requests. Expect days-to-months of work and some recurring costs if you need vendors to run compliance exports or keep data accessible during a transition.
What you should check before you start
- Which file formats the product actually produces (CSV, JSON, HTML, PDF, SVG, PNG, original source files).
- Whether the export is whole‑workspace, per‑project or per‑object, and whether attachments are included.
- Plan gates: is the export limited to administrators, enterprise plans, or subject to an approval process?
- Billing and contract terms: do you pay until the end of the billing cycle, get pro‑rated credits, or lose prepaid fees if you cancel?
- Retention windows for hosted assets such as recordings or archives — once deleted, some data is unrecoverable.
Vendor by vendor — what creates work
Slack
Public channel exports (JSON) are available from the workspace settings, but exports that include private channels or DMs are gated: Workspace Owners must apply for Corporate Export or a compliance export and the request can require approval and a review process. That means an organisation leaving Slack may need to stay on a paid plan or work with Slack support to obtain the complete dataset — a multi‑day to multi‑week process for larger organisations. Slack also operates prorating and billing rules (credits for inactive members; self‑serve billing behaviour varies by how you paid), so budget for admin time to sort invoices and any manual data requests. slack.com
Figma
Figma exports are strong for visual assets: PNG, JPG, SVG and PDF exports of frames and components are straightforward, and the API plus the desktop app let you batch‑export assets. But Figma does not export editable source files that map cleanly to other design tools — exports are raster or vector slices, not a project in another app. Expect designers to reassemble files after export. help.figma.com
Notion
Notion provides whole‑workspace exports to HTML, Markdown and CSV for tables. That covers most content, but rich inline embeds, databases with complex relations and some page metadata require rework after export. Notion’s export is useful for archives and migration but rarely yields a plug‑and‑play import into competing workspace tools. Plan for developer time to normalise relational data. notion.com
Trello
Trello offers board exports as JSON (and CSV on some plans or via the API). JSON delivers everything but in a format many tools don’t import directly; you’ll typically need scripts to map cards, lists and attachments into a new structure. For small teams exports are quick; for enterprise customers with hundreds of boards and many attachments expect a meaningful cleanup task. support.atlassian.com
Airtable
Airtable allows CSV/JSON exports and offers a well‑documented API for full extraction. Attachments are downloadable but often stored as URLs that you must batch‑fetch. Airtable’s structured data makes automated migration easier than unstructured tools, but relational links and formula fields will need remapping in the target database. help.figma.com
Canva
Canva lets you download designs in common formats, but higher‑value outputs (SVG, print‑ready PDFs, transparent PNGs) and some export API features are restricted to Pro/Team/Enterprise plans. Brand kits and certain library objects don’t always export cleanly, so agencies moving clients off Canva frequently hand‑recreate brand assets. If you rely on Canva’s online components (templates, brand guidelines), expect manual work. canva.com
Mailchimp
Mailchimp provides account exports (audiences, campaign content, templates, reports) as a single ZIP via the app or API, but the export process is rate‑limited (one export at a time; 24‑hour generation limits documented in the developer docs). Mailing lists and subscriber statuses export as CSVs, but any preference/segmentation rules must be translated to the new platform. For regulated data, request the account export early to allow time for a re‑export if you hit rate limits. mailchimp.com
ClickUp
ClickUp exposes multiple export types (tasks, views, Docs, Whiteboards) and many of those exports are separated by object type. Users report that exports are gated differently by plan — some bulk exports and whiteboard formats are limited — so moving everything out can mean repeated exports and manual stitching. Plan for several export passes and validation of attachments. help.clickup.com
monday.com
monday.com allows CSV/Excel exports and a mature API, but high‑volume contract customers often find cancellation and refunds governed by contract language: many contracts are stated to be non‑cancelable except for a first‑time 30‑day right to a pro‑rated refund, and self‑service billing behaviour varies with purchase channel. For exit planning, read the customer agreement and ask your vendor contact about data exports and timing before the renewal window. s29.q4cdn.com
Zoom Workplace
Cloud recordings, transcripts and chat exports are downloadable, but account settings can auto‑delete recordings after retention periods; once the retention expires, the recordings are permanently deleted. Zoom also sets default storage allocations per licensed user and charges for excess storage, so if you rely on recordings in your migration you may need to purchase extra storage or export everything quickly. support.zoom.com
Plutio and SuiteDash
Flat‑rate products such as Plutio and SuiteDash generally provide CSV‑style exports for invoices, clients and projects but vary on attachments and file exports. If you use these platforms as your CRM and billing system, plan for account‑level reconciliation and an audit of invoices and payment history before you cancel. (Where the vendor documentation is sparse, contact support for a definitive export plan.)
Contract and billing traps that add cost
- Annual prepaid plans: many vendors will not refund the remainder of a prepaid annual subscription outside a short grace window — read the T&Cs. monday.com’s filings and help pages note limited pro‑rata refund rights for new customers and different behaviour when invoices are involved. s29.q4cdn.com
- Gated compliance exports: Slack’s corporate‑export and related compliance tools require owner approvals and, for some organisations, an application process; that adds time and sometimes a professional services ticket. slack.com
- Rate limits and one‑export queues: Mailchimp’s account export is convenient but rate‑limited to one export at a time, so large accounts should stagger requests. mailchimp.com
- Retention windows: Zoom’s cloud recordings can expire after configured retention periods and become unrecoverable. Export early. support.zoom.com
How long will it take, realistically?
Small teams (a few users, few projects): a weekend to a couple of working days to export, validate and import. Mid‑sized teams (dozens of users, multiple tools): one to four weeks — you’ll hit rate limits, gated support queues and mapping work. Large organisations (hundreds+ users, heavy attachments, compliance requirements): several weeks to months because of corporate export approvals, legal review for message exports, and the need to archive or transform large volumes of media.
Practical checklist for a clean exit
- Catalogue: list accounts, owners, linked services and assets (recordings, attachments, templates).
- Risk‑map: mark anything subject to regulation (customer data, financial records, transcripts).
- Plan exports by object and format, and test a single project export first.
- Schedule requests that require vendor involvement early (Slack corporate export, Zoom retention overrides).
- Budget for re‑import transforms: relations, formulas and templates rarely map automatically.
- Keep a short overlap period with the new tool where possible, to consult and correct mapping issues while the old service is still available.
Bottom line
There is no universal “export all” button that yields a turnkey import for a competitor. Expect export formats to be a mix of CSV/JSON/HTML and rendered assets (PDF, SVG, PNG), not guaranteed editable source projects. If you use any of the products listed in our catalogue — Slack, Figma, Notion, Trello, Airtable, Canva, Mailchimp, ClickUp, monday.com, Zoom Workplace, Plutio or SuiteDash — read the vendor export and billing documentation before your renewal date and schedule any support requests early. The technical export is usually straightforward; the hidden cost is the effort to reassemble, validate and reconcile the exported data in your new systems.
Plan for time: exports are rarely instant and often partial; the work is in mapping and reassembly, not the download.