How to Import and Export Deck Lists on Archidekt

Archidekt supports importing deck lists from Arena, MTGO, and other deck list formats through its text deck editor, and exporting decks back out to Arena, MTGO, and many other formats. The import/export workflow lives inside the deck editor, so you don't need separate tools — but the results depend on how cleanly your source list matches card names Archidekt recognizes.

Importing a Deck List into Archidekt

What you need before starting

• A deck list in text form (copied from Arena, MTGO, a forum post, a spreadsheet, etc.)
• An Archidekt account if you want to save the deck (browsing and building are available, but saving requires being logged in)
• Card names spelled as they appear in the source platform — Archidekt matches against its card database, so misspellings or set-specific naming quirks can cause cards to be skipped

Step-by-step import

1. Open the Archidekt deck editor and create a new deck (or open an existing one you want to add cards to).
2. Switch to the text input mode of the editor. Archidekt describes this as a "text deck editor" that accepts pasted lists.
3. Paste your deck list into the text field. The format Archidekt expects is the standard one line per card, typically quantity card name, which is what Arena and MTGO exports produce.
4. Confirm the import. Archidekt parses the list and places recognized cards into the appropriate categories (creatures, lands, etc.) in the visual editor.
5. Review the result. Any lines Archidekt couldn't match will not appear as cards — check the total count against your source list to spot missing entries.

Common import problems

Exporting a Deck from Archidekt

Step-by-step export

1. Open the deck you want to export in the Archidekt editor.
2. Use the export function and choose your target format — Archidekt lists Arena, MTGO, and "many other formats" as export destinations.
3. Copy the generated text.
4. Paste it into the destination platform's import field (Arena's deck import, MTGO's deck editor, or another site's list importer).

What to check after exporting

• Format compatibility: Arena and MTGO each expect their own text conventions. Exporting to the wrong target can produce a list the destination rejects.
• Card availability: A card legal in your Archidekt deck may not exist in the target platform's card pool (this is most common when moving between paper-oriented lists and Arena, which has a narrower card set).
• Printings and basics: Basic lands and specific printings may need to be re-added manually on the destination side.

Practical Tips for Clean Round-Trips

• Keep a plain-text copy of your list outside Archidekt. If an import partially fails, you can fix the source text and re-import rather than rebuilding card by card.
• Import first, then edit visually. The text editor is fastest for bulk entry; the drag-and-drop visual editor is better for fine-tuning categories and counts afterward.
• Use Archidekt's price sources (TCGPlayer, Card Kingdom, Cardhoarder, Cardmarket) after import if you want to compare the cost of the list across vendors — this is a separate step from import/export and doesn't affect the list itself.
• If you're building around cards you already own, Archidekt's collection tracking lets you filter to owned cards, which is useful after importing a list you want to trim down.

When This Workflow Fits

Import/export on Archidekt is the right approach when you already have a list somewhere else (Arena, MTGO, a friend's text file) and want to analyze, price, or playtest it in Archidekt's editor — or when you've built in Archidekt and need to move the finished list into a platform that actually plays the games. It's less useful if your source list uses non-standard formatting or card names that don't exist in Archidekt's database, since you'll spend more time fixing mismatches than the import saves.