Is there a way to export questions and answers from Answers in Viva to another format?

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Is there a way to export questions and answers from Answers in Viva to another format?

Sam Buckman 25

I'd like to know if it is possible to export the questions and answer data from Answers in Viva in a format readable by some other application. E.g. Stack Overflow for Teams can export to a JSON file https://meta.stackoverflow.com/questions/394543/export-questions-and-answers-from-a-stack-overflow-teams-site.

The most information I've found is this page https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/viva/engage/eac-as-manage-data#export-user-data-and-admin-lists which by my reading is saying it's not possible; but it's a little unclear* and also doesn't seem focused on Answers in Viva, so I thought it might not be definitive.

*Maybe the Q&A counts as a 'message' in the 'Export tenant data' option? Maybe the export API can do other things?

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Answer 1

Dora-T 13,745 Microsoft External Staff Moderator

Hi @Sam Buckman

Thank you for reaching out to the Microsoft Q&A Forum.

I understand you’re looking for a way to export questions and answers from Answers in Viva into a format that’s easily readable by other applications.

Based on testing from my side, here’s what I’ve found:

When exporting data for a single user, the questions and answers do appear within the messages.csv file. This suggests that in this context, Q&A content is treated as “messages,” which aligns with your initial thought.

User's image

However, when exporting tenant-wide data (covering the entire organization), the Q&A content does not show up in the messages.csv file. This was somewhat unexpected and means that tenant-level exports do not capture Q&A data in the same way.

I understand this limitation might be inconvenient depending on your needs, especially if you require a full tenant export.

If you’d like to hear more insights or experiences from others, feel free to reach out the Viva Community is a great place to learn and share. It's a valuable space for exchanging ideas and finding support.

Additionally, if tenant-wide export of Answers in Viva Q&A data is important to you, we highly encourage you to submit feedback via the Ideas · Community. This feedback enables Microsoft to better understand user needs and prioritize future enhancements accordingly.

I hope this helps, but if it’s not quite what you meant, please let me know so I can assist better.

If the answer is helpful, please click "Accept Answer" and kindly upvote it. If you have extra questions about this answer, please click "Comment".

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Dora-T 13,745 Reputation points Microsoft External Staff Moderator

2025-06-16T00:10:57.8133333+00:00

Hi @Sam Buckman

Just checking in to see if the above information was helpful.

If you have any further updates on this issue, please feel free to post back.

If you think my reply is helpful to you, please remember to mark it as an answer.

Warm thanks.
Dora-T 13,745 Reputation points Microsoft External Staff Moderator

2025-06-18T00:58:50.5066667+00:00

Hi @Sam Buckman

It has been a while and I am writing to see how things are going with this issue.

Have you had a chance to check the replies provided?

Any update would be appreciated.
Sam Buckman 25 Reputation points

2025-06-19T03:59:11.54+00:00

Hi @Dora-T
Sorry for the slow reply. Yes, that's exactly what I wanted to know, thank you!

Follow-up questions - could an admin do the 'single user' process for each user to get the whole database, or is there some limitation there? Does messages.csv include either the topic tags or an id which can be used to join the topic tags?

And yeah, that is a pretty inconvenient limitation - the issue is that we're considering adopting this, but people are going to be reluctant to invest effort in using it if they're worried all the data will be lost if it gets discontinued. But if it's just 'annoying' rather than 'impossible' that might be good enough.
Dora-T 13,745 Reputation points Microsoft External Staff Moderator

2025-06-25T03:43:01.1233333+00:00

Hi @Sam Buckman
Thanks for getting back and for your follow-up questions.

Based on my testing, exporting data for individual users works as expected. However, when reviewing the messages.csv file, I didn’t see any columns that include topic tags or unique IDs that could link the content to specific topics. That does seem like a limitation if organizing or reporting by topic is important for your use case.

About the concern regarding long-term data access if Viva Answers is ever discontinued, I completely understand. It’s definitely something worth factoring in when considering a new platform. As a forum moderator, I can share information based on public documentation and community insights. However, I don’t have access to internal systems or roadmap details to confirm anything beyond what’s currently published.

If this is important for your organization, I’d recommend sharing your feedback through the Microsoft Feedback Portal. That helps the product team better understand what matters most to users.

Thanks again for your patience and understanding.

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Is there a way to export questions and answers from Answers in Viva to another format?

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