CSV to multi-vehicle delivery routes in one morning

The spreadsheet morning every farm knows

Cutoff hit yesterday. Pack lists live in one tool. Addresses live in a sheet. Someone opens Google Maps tabs and starts dragging pins across vans. That works until the fleet grows, frozen shares appear, or a seasonal driver needs a clean list before eight. The switcher journey is not "rip out membership." It is "get this CSV onto capable trucks today."

For the wider planning habit — zones, days, and how a farm week fits together — see how to plan delivery routes for a farm or CSA.

Three ways stops come in

• CSV import. Export the week's active deliveries and bring them into Porch Routes.
• Orders API. Send stops with your own order numbers when you already have a system.
• Manual entry. Add a handful of stops by hand when the day is small or last-minute.
• Temperature on the stop. Mark frozen, refrigerated, or dry so vehicles can be constrained honestly.
• OpenStreetMap addresses. Lookup and road distances run without a Google Maps key to buy.

From CSV to drivers on the road

1. 1

   Export or send this week's stops

   Pull active deliveries from your sheet or membership tool. Skips that never left the membership tool never become stops — see CSA routing without replacing membership software.

2. 2

   Import and mark what each van can carry

   Frozen, refrigerated, and dry are hard vehicle rules. Porch Routes will leave a stop unassigned rather than put frozen on a dry truck.

3. 3

   Build multi-vehicle routes

   Pick the day and the vehicles. The plan splits stops by capability, fits windows and capacity, and shows what the plan saves versus driving stops in arrival order.

4. 4

   Text drivers a link

   Drive mode runs in the phone browser: one stop at a time, maps hand-off, photo or signature proof, undo window before the customer is told. Staff drivers can log in if you prefer.

5. 5

   Members track; your system can hear back

   Branded tracking and texts go out under your farm name. When you use an order system, signed webhooks can return outcomes with your IDs.

What you are switching away from

You are usually not switching away from a beloved membership portal. You are switching away from manual pin-dragging and tools that treat every stop as dry. How Porch Routes sits next to Spoke / Circuit, OptimoRoute, Route4Me, Routific, and CSA suites is covered in the farm delivery route software comparison. The wedge here is farm-first signup to first route, hard vehicle temperature capability, and free Porch Light with no card.

What you can do on Porch Light (free)

Porch Light is free up to 150 orders a month with no credit card. Every feature sits on every plan; plans differ by order volume, included customer texts, and support. That is enough for many weekly farm or CSA exports to become real multi-vehicle routes before you pay.