Salesforce Workbench: 6 Ways to Use Workbench in Salesforce

Every Salesforce admin and developer hits a moment when the standard UI is not enough. You need to update 10,000 records at once, run a SOQL query on deleted data, test an API endpoint or retrieve metadata without setting up a full IDE.

That is exactly where Salesforce Workbench comes in.

Workbench Salesforce is a free, browser-based tool that gives admins and developers direct access to their Salesforce org through Force.com APIs. There is no download, no installation and no complex setup. You log in through your browser and get access to a complete set of data management, query, metadata and API tools, the same way a managed services team accesses client orgs for ongoing data operations.

This guide covers what SDFC workbench is, how to access it and six practical ways you can use it to save time in your Salesforce org.

Key Takeaways

What Is Salesforce Workbench?

Salesforce Workbench is a web-based suite of tools that lets you interact with your Salesforce organization through the Force.com APIs. It was originally built by Ryan Brainard and is now hosted on the Salesforce developer platform.

In practical terms, workbench Salesforce gives you a clean interface to perform operations that would otherwise require Data Loader, a developer console or custom code. So instead of writing Apex to query deleted records or configuring a full CLI environment to retrieve metadata, you open a browser tab and do it in minutes.

The tool works across Production, Sandbox and Developer Edition orgs, which makes it useful at every stage of a project lifecycle.

Salesforce Workbench Login: How to Access It

Accessing workbench login takes less than a minute. Here is how:

1. Type workbench.developerforce.com into your browser and hit enter
2. Pick your environment: Production for live orgs, Sandbox for testing
3. Select the API version that matches your org
4. Tick the terms and conditions checkbox
5. Click Login with Salesforce
6. Enter your Salesforce credentials on the next screen
7. Click Allow when Workbench asks for org access

Already logged into Salesforce in the same browser? Salesforce Workbench login picks up that session automatically, so you skip the credentials screen entirely. That small detail saves a surprising amount of time when you are jumping between tools mid-task.

One rule before you do anything else: always run bulk operations in Sandbox first. Production has no undo button for mass deletes.

6 Ways to Use Salesforce Workbench

1. Force Reset a User’s Password

Sometimes the standard Forgot Password flow stops working. The user never completed their security question. They lost access to their registered email. Their account got locked after too many failed attempts. Salesforce Workbench gives you a direct path around all of it.

Steps:

1. Open workbench.developerforce.com in your browser
2. Find Utilities in the top navigation and click it
3. Hit Password Management
4. Type the user’s Salesforce ID, enter a new password and confirm it in the field below
5. Click Change Password
6. Send the user their new credentials and tell them to update their security question immediately after logging back in

Two minutes from start to finish. No waiting on email delivery, no back-and-forth about what address they used to register. Once you send the new password, remind them to complete their security question so the same problem does not repeat.

2. Run a SOQL Query

Standard Salesforce reports have real limits. You cannot report on deleted records, query fields that are not on a page layout or pull data across objects in ways the report builder does not support. The Salesforce query tool inside workbench Salesforce handles all of those scenarios without requiring you to write raw code from scratch.

The SOQL query builder walks you through each step. Pick an object, select your fields, add filters, set a sort order and choose a record limit. The builder constructs the query for you.

Steps:

1. Log in to workbench.developerforce.com
2. Click Queries in the top navigation
3. Select SOQL Queries
4. Choose your object from the dropdown, for example Lead, Contact or Opportunity
5. Select the fields you want returned
6. Add filters in the Filter Results section, for example IsDeleted = TRUE to find records in the recycle bin
7. Set your sort order and record limit
8. Click Query, then review results on screen or download as a CSV

This is one of the most used features in SDFC workbench because it surfaces data no standard report can reach. Deleted records, licence-filtered user lists, records modified by a specific user in a specific date range. All of it works here in a few clicks.

3. Mass Update Records

Bulk updates in standard Salesforce require exporting data, modifying it externally, then re-importing through a separate tool. Workbench Salesforce cuts that entire process into a single browser-based workflow.

Steps:

1. Build a CSV with two columns: the Salesforce record ID and the field you want to update
2. Navigate to workbench.developerforce.com and log in
3. Click Data in the top menu, then select Update
4. Pick your object type from the dropdown
5. Choose From File, upload your CSV and map the columns to the correct Salesforce fields
6. Run the update and check the results screen for errors

The ID column drives the entire operation. Without it, every row fails. Always test with five to ten records first, because automation rules, validation logic and workflow triggers still fire during API-level updates. Catching conflicts at a small scale costs nothing. Catching them after thousands of records have been processed incorrectly costs a lot. Implementation services cover data architecture and bulk operation planning as part of every Salesforce engagement.

4. Mass Create Records

Need to load leads from a recent event? Seed test data before a UAT session? Import a large product catalogue? Salesforce Workbench handles bulk inserts without the setup overhead other tools require.

CSV preparation matters here. Salesforce is strict about required fields and picklist values. Any mismatch between your spreadsheet and what the org expects causes rows to fail, so get the file right before uploading.

Steps:

1. Build your CSV in a spreadsheet. Every required field needs a value and every picklist entry needs to match Salesforce exactly, including capitalisation
2. Go to workbench.developerforce.com and sign in
3. Click Data in the top navigation
4. Hit Insert
5. Choose From File, upload your CSV and map each column to the correct Salesforce field
6. Check the mapping once more and kick off the insert

Only creating one record? Skip the CSV entirely. The Single Record option lets you type field values directly on screen, useful for test records or fields that never appear on standard page layouts.

5. Mass Delete Records

Salesforce caps native mass deletion at 250 records per run. Removing thousands of outdated leads, duplicate accounts or test records through the UI turns a simple cleanup into a multi-day manual task. Workbench SDFC removes that limit entirely.

Steps:

1. Pull a Salesforce report of the records you want to delete and export a full CSV backup. Include all relevant fields, not just IDs and keep this file safe before touching anything
2. Create a second CSV with only the ID column. This is what you feed into Workbench, separate from your backup
3. Log in to SDFC workbench and click Data
4. Select Delete, then choose From File
5. Upload your ID-only CSV and map the ID field
6. Confirm and run the deletion

Deleted records go to the Salesforce recycle bin and stay there for 15 days. After that window closes, they are gone permanently. If you deleted something you needed, act fast. The next use case covers exactly how to get those records back.

Restrict Workbench delete access to admins and developers who know the data model. This runs at the API level, bypasses UI limits and has no undo outside the recycle bin window. The backup step is non-negotiable.

6. Undelete Records

Deleted records are recoverable within the 15-day recycle bin window. Whether a bulk delete ran too far, a user removed records they should not have or an automation deleted something by mistake, Salesforce Workbench gives you a clean path to restoration.

Deleted records do not appear in standard Salesforce views or reports. You need the SOQL query builder to locate them first using the IsDeleted = TRUE filter.

Steps:

1. Open the SOQL query builder in workbench login and run a query with IsDeleted = TRUE on the relevant object, for example the Lead object to find all deleted leads
2. Export the results and identify the IDs of the records you want to restore
3. Build a CSV with just those IDs in a single column
4. Click Data in the top menu, then select Undelete
5. Upload your ID CSV and map the ID field
6. Confirm and run the undelete operation

Workbench follows Salesforce’s standard 15-day rule with no exceptions. Records hard-deleted directly from the recycle bin or permanently removed after the 15-day window, are not recoverable through any method. If the deletion was recent and the records are still in the bin, this process takes under five minutes.

Additional Ways to Use Salesforce Workbench

The six use cases above cover the most common tasks. Workbench Salesforce goes further than that though. Here are four more operations admins and developers reach for regularly.

• REST Explorer: Open the REST Explorer tab and test any REST API endpoint directly from your browser. No external tools, no Postman setup, no code. You run GET, POST, PATCH and DELETE operations through a clean interface, which makes debugging integrations and validating third-party connections significantly faster. If an integration is behaving unexpectedly, this is usually the first place to investigate.
• Metadata Retrieve and Deploy: Point SDFC workbench at your org with a package.xml file and pull any metadata component you need. Going the other direction works the same way. Zip up your changes and push them into the org without touching Salesforce CLI or VS Code. Teams managing multiple environments use this constantly for quick deployments that do not warrant a full CI/CD pipeline.
• SOSL Queries: Standard Salesforce reports search one object at a time. SOSL searches across multiple objects in a single query. So if you want every record across Accounts, Contacts and Leads that mentions a specific company name, workbench SDFC returns all of it at once. Reports simply cannot do this.
• Apex Execute: Write a block of anonymous Apex code and run it straight from the browser. One-off data fixes, logic tests, triggered actions that would otherwise need a full deployment. Apex Execute handles all of it without touching your production codebase.

Salesforce development services and hire Salesforce developers options give you certified expertise for complex data operations and integrations.

Best Practices for Using Salesforce Workbench Safely

Salesforce Workbench talks directly to the Salesforce API. It skips certain UI guardrails that protect users from accidental changes, so a single misfire on a bulk delete can cause serious data loss.

Follow these rules every time you use it:

• Test in Sandbox first: Run every bulk operation in a Sandbox environment before touching Production, without exception
• Lock down access: Give Workbench access only to admins and developers who know the data model; mass delete does not ask twice
• Back up before you delete: Export a full CSV with all relevant fields before any deletion, keeping the ID-only CSV separate for the actual operation
• Start with five to ten records: Scaling straight to thousands skips the chance to catch automation conflicts, validation rule failures and trigger errors before they spread
• Name your CSVs properly: Include the object name, date and purpose in every filename so you can trace exactly what ran and when

These habits matter most in Production orgs where live customer data has no margin for error.

Salesforce consulting team helps businesses decide which tools and processes are right for their data operations, as part of building a Salesforce environment that scales without technical debt.

Conclusion

Salesforce Workbench is one of the most practical tools available to admins and developers working in the Salesforce ecosystem. It is free, browser-based and handles everything from SOQL queries and bulk data operations to metadata deployments and REST API testing, all without requiring a single installation.

The six use cases covered in this guide represent the most common ways teams use workbench SDFC to save time on tasks that would otherwise require multiple tools or manual effort. As a Salesforce query tool, it removes the barriers between you and your org’s data, so you can work faster and with more precision.

Used responsibly, with proper access controls and a test-first approach, SDFC workbench is an essential part of any Salesforce admin or developer’s toolkit.