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Exporting downloads a snapshot of your database to your laptop. Use it before risky changes, when migrating to another host, or when handing the data to a developer for local testing. For long-term backups, use JetBackup instead. It runs nightly, stores off-server, and includes the whole account, not just one database.

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Quick export (the fast path)

1

Pick the database from the left tree

Click the database name. Don’t click into a single table unless you only want that table.
2

Open the Export tab

Top of the page.
phpMyAdmin Export tab with Quick option selected
3

Leave defaults, click Go

Export method: Quick. Format: SQL. The browser downloads database_name.sql straight away.
That’s the 90% case. For everything else, switch to Custom.

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Custom export

Custom mode reveals every option. Useful when:
  • You only want some tables, not all
  • You want compressed output (.zip or .gz)
  • You want the dump in CSV, JSON, or another format
  • You need INSERT IGNORE instead of INSERT, or no DROP TABLE statements
phpMyAdmin Custom Export with all options visible
The options most people change:
OptionWhat to set
TablesPick a subset, or click Unselect All then re-pick
Output: Compressiongzipped for big databases, usually 1/10th the size
FormatSQL is the standard. CSV for spreadsheets. JSON for programmatic use
Object creation: Add DROP TABLETick if you want the dump to recreate from scratch on import
Data dump: Use extended INSERTsUntick if you’ve ever hit “MySQL server has gone away” on import

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Format choices

FormatWhen to use
SQLRe-importing into another MySQL/MariaDB server
CSVOpening in Excel or Google Sheets, or feeding into a data pipeline
JSONLoading into a script that doesn’t speak SQL
XMLLegacy enterprise tools that demand it
PDFPrinting a snapshot for compliance (schema only, no data)
For backups, always SQL.

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Export a single table

1

Drill into the table

Click the database in the left tree, then click the table name.
2

Open the Export tab

Same tab as for whole-database export. The scope is now just this one table.
3

Pick the format and click Go

The download is a single-table dump.

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Common issues

Browser blocked the download, or the export hit a timeout. Switch to Custom, tick Save output to a file, and pick gzipped compression. Smaller files finish before any timeout.For very large exports, use SSH and mysqldump:
ssh username@hostname.web.systeminterface.net
mysqldump -u username_dbuser -p username_dbname | gzip > backup.sql.gz
Custom export → scroll to Object creation options → untick Add CREATE PROCEDURE / FUNCTION / EVENT statement if you’re moving the dump to a host that doesn’t run procedures. Or use the SSH route with mysqldump --skip-definer.
Tick Add DROP TABLE / VIEW / PROCEDURE / FUNCTION / EVENT / TRIGGER statement in the Custom export. This makes the dump self-replacing. Re-importing replaces existing tables instead of failing on duplicates.Watch for utf8mb4_0900_ai_ci if exporting from MySQL 8 to a MariaDB target. See the import common issues for the workaround.

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Next

Re-import the dump elsewhere

Same Import tab on another phpMyAdmin or another host.

Set up nightly off-server backups

JetBackup runs without you needing to remember.

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Need a hand?