Adding List Items to a SharePoint List using PnP PowerShell

Adding list items to a SharePoint Online list is a common task when automating SharePoint operations. PnP PowerShell simplifies this process, allowing users to insert single or multiple items programmatically.

This guide will cover:
How to connect to SharePoint Online
How to add single and multiple list items
How to add items with attachments

Prerequisites

Before proceeding, ensure you have:
PnP PowerShell installed
Admin or Editor permissions on the SharePoint site
The SharePoint site URL and list name

Step 1: Install and Import PnP PowerShell

If you haven’t installed PnP PowerShell, install it using:

Install-Module -Name PnP.PowerShell -Scope CurrentUser -AllowClobber -Force

Then, import the module:

Import-Module PnP.PowerShell

PnP PowerShell is ready!

Step 2: Connect to SharePoint Online

Before adding items, connect to your SharePoint site:

# Connect to SharePoint Online
Connect-PnPOnline -Url "https://yourtenant.sharepoint.com/sites/yoursite" -Interactive

🔹 Replace "yourtenant" with your tenant name
🔹 Replace "yoursite" with the site name

Connection successful!

Step 3: Add a Single List Item

To add a single list item, use:

# Add a new item to a SharePoint list
Add-PnPListItem -List "Employee Directory" -Values @{"Title"="John Doe"; "Department"="IT"; "JoiningDate"="2024-01-01"}

Item added successfully!

Step 4: Add Multiple List Items

To insert multiple items, use a loop:

# Define multiple items
$items = @(
    @{ "Title"="Alice"; "Department"="HR"; "JoiningDate"="2024-02-10" }
    @{ "Title"="Bob"; "Department"="Finance"; "JoiningDate"="2024-03-15" }
    @{ "Title"="Charlie"; "Department"="Marketing"; "JoiningDate"="2024-04-20" }
)

# Loop through and add each item
foreach ($item in $items) {
    Add-PnPListItem -List "Employee Directory" -Values $item
}

Multiple items added!

Step 5: Add Items with Attachments

To add an item with an attachment:

# Add a new list item
$item = Add-PnPListItem -List "Employee Directory" -Values @{"Title"="David"; "Department"="IT"}

# Attach a file to the item
Add-PnPFile -Path "C:\EmployeeDetails.pdf" -List "Employee Directory" -ListItem $item.Id

Item added with an attachment!

Step 6: Verify Added Items

To check if the item was added:

# Get the last 5 items added
Get-PnPListItem -List "Employee Directory" -PageSize 5 | Select Title, Department, JoiningDate

Items verified!

Step 7: Adding Items from a CSV File

If you have a CSV file, you can bulk insert data.

CSV File (employees.csv)

Title,Department,JoiningDate
Emma,Sales,2024-05-10
Liam,IT,2024-06-15
Sophia,HR,2024-07-20

PowerShell Script to Add CSV Data

# Import CSV
$employees = Import-Csv "C:\employees.csv"

# Add each employee to the SharePoint list
foreach ($emp in $employees) {
    Add-PnPListItem -List "Employee Directory" -Values @{
        "Title" = $emp.Title
        "Department" = $emp.Department
        "JoiningDate" = $emp.JoiningDate
    }
}

CSV data imported successfully!

Common Errors & Troubleshooting

Error	Cause	Solution
`Access Denied`	Insufficient permissions	Ensure you have Edit or Full Control rights
`Cannot find list 'Employee Directory'`	List name is incorrect	Use `Get-PnPList` to verify the list name
`Field not found`	Column name is incorrect	Use `Get-PnPField -List "Employee Directory"` to check column names
`Date format issue`	Incorrect date format	Ensure date values are in `"YYYY-MM-DD"` format