Extracting First Values (Make.com)

Step-by-Step Guide: Extract the First Value from Any Comma-Separated Field in Make.com

This guide shows you how to extract only the first value from any field that contains multiple comma-separated entries (like emails, phone numbers, tags, etc.) using Make.com. This is perfect for sending just the primary value to tools like Instantly, Google Sheets, Airtable, or Slack.

✅ Use Case Examples

Emails:

BUSINESS_EMAIL = "john@example.com, support@brand.com, info@brand.com"
→ Extracted: john@example.com

Phone Numbers:

MOBILE = "1234567890, 9876543210"
→ Extracted: 1234567890

Tags:

TAGS = "sales, marketing, enterprise"
→ Extracted: sales

🔧 Step-by-Step Setup in Make.com

STEP 1: Webhook (or Any Input Source)

Start with a module that receives data, typically:

Webhook > Custom Webhook

Make sure the field (like BUSINESS_EMAIL or MOBILE) contains values separated by commas.

STEP 2: Add an Iterator (if your data is bundled)

If your webhook sends data in an array (e.g. result[]):

Add: Tools > Iterator

Set array to: {{1.payload.result}}

This will process each row (lead/user) one by one.

STEP 3: Set Variable – Extract the First Value

Add: Tools > Set Variable

Create a variable for each field where you want only the first value:

🟩 First Email

Variable Name: FirstEmail
Value: {{trim(get(split(2.BUSINESS_EMAIL; ","); 1))}}

🟦 First Phone

Variable Name: FirstMobile
Value: {{trim(get(split(2.MOBILE; ","); 1))}}

🟨 First Tag

Variable Name: FirstTag
Value: {{trim(get(split(2.TAGS; ","); 1))}}

Update the 2. reference depending on your scenario (it refers to the previous module number).

STEP 4: Send to Any App

You can now use these variables in:

Instantly → Email: {{3.FirstEmail}}

Google Sheets → Email column: {{3.FirstEmail}}

Webhook > Make a Request → Map in JSON body

Airtable → Insert as field value

🧠 Tips

Always use trim(...) to remove extra spaces

You can safely apply this pattern to any text field

Works even without an Iterator if you're processing one record at a time

📦 Universal Formula Template

Copy-paste this into any Set Variable value field:

{{trim(get(split(YOUR_FIELD; ","); 1))}}

Replace YOUR_FIELD with whatever field you need.

✅ Summary

This method gives you a clean, consistent way to always pull just the first value from any multi-entry string. It’s reusable across:

Emails

Phone numbers

Tags

Names

Lists of any kind

Set it once, and confidently send only the data you actually want to downstream tools.

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Last updated on August 6, 2021