Importing Customers and Vendors Into QuickBooks

Start with the template

In the import data area, choose customers or vendors and download the sample file. Use its column headings exactly. Copy your contact list into those columns. Common fields include display name, company, first and last name, email, phone, billing address and notes. Tax identification numbers for vendors can be stored where the product allows.

Clean before you import

Remove duplicates, fix capitalization, standardize business names and delete test entries. Decide on a naming rule, such as company name first for businesses and last name first for individuals. Make sure each display name is unique, since QuickBooks requires it across customers, vendors and employees. Add the same email format and phone style to every row.

Handle opening balances separately

Do not put amounts owed in the contact import unless you are sure of how they will post. A cleaner approach is to import contacts and then enter open invoices and bills as real transactions with their original dates, so aging reports are correct. Opening balance entries that lump everything together hide which invoice remains unpaid.

Map and review

Upload the file and map each column. Preview the rows, fix errors the tool lists, and import a small batch of five or ten first. Open a few of the new records to see whether addresses and emails landed in the right fields. Then import the full list.

After the import

Run the customer contact list and vendor list. Check counts against the original spreadsheet. Merge any duplicates created by earlier manual entries; merging a contact moves its transactions, so be careful about which name remains. Mark vendors who need a 1099 and collect missing W-9 forms. Archive or inactivate contacts that you do not expect to use.

Keep the cleaned spreadsheet as your master, along with the date of import. If you later migrate to another system, you will have a ready list in a tidy format.

Sources for your contact list

Your list may live in email contacts, a CRM, an old accounting file, a spreadsheet or a stack of invoices. Export from the most complete source, then fill gaps from the others. Combine lists in one spreadsheet and sort by name to catch near duplicates, such as an abbreviation in one place and a full name in another. A few minutes at this stage prevents hours of merging later.

Typical rejections include a display name that already exists, an email address with a typo or two addresses in one cell, a state or country that does not match the allowed values, and special characters such as colons in names. Fix the rows the tool lists and import again. If a field like phone has mixed formats, standardize it first. Import errors are usually minor and are easier to fix in the spreadsheet than in the software afterward.

Common questions

This guide is general information, not tax, legal or accounting advice. Rules, fees and due dates change; check with the IRS, the NJ Division of Taxation or a licensed professional for your situation.