How-To Guide

8 min read

How to Import Inventory Item to Xero (2026 Guide)

After converting your data with one of our tools, follow these steps to import the inventory item into Xero.

Import Steps

Navigate to Products and Services

Log in to your Xero account and click the Business menu in the top navigation bar. Select Products and Services from the dropdown. This page lists all your existing inventory items, services, and non-inventory products.

Open the import function

On the Products and Services page, click the Import button. This opens the inventory import wizard where you can upload a CSV file containing your product and service data.

Download the inventory template

Click Download Template to get the official Xero inventory items CSV template. The template includes columns for item codes, names, descriptions, purchase and sales details, pricing, account codes, and inventory tracking fields.

Tip: Xero can import up to 1,000 lines per file (not including the header row). If you have more items, split them across multiple files.

Prepare your inventory data

Open the template and fill in your item data. The ItemCode column is required and must be unique, with a maximum of 30 alphanumeric characters. Ensure that any account codes referenced in PurchaseAccountCode, SalesAccountCode, InventoryAssetAccountCode, and CostOfGoodsSoldAccountCode already exist in your Xero Chart of Accounts before importing.

Warning: Account codes in the CSV must match existing accounts in your Xero Chart of Accounts. Import will fail for items referencing non-existent account codes.

Configure tracked inventory items

If you want Xero to track stock levels for specific items, set IsTrackedAsInventory to TRUE for those rows. When tracking is enabled, you must also provide values for InventoryAssetAccountCode, CostOfGoodsSoldAccountCode, and SalesAccountCode. Optionally include QuantityOnHand to set opening stock levels.

Tip: Only physical goods that you buy and resell should be tracked as inventory. Services and non-stock items should have IsTrackedAsInventory set to FALSE.

Save the file as CSV

After entering all product and service data, save the file in CSV format. Ensure there are no special characters in item codes and that all numeric values like prices do not include currency symbols. Use plain decimal numbers for all price fields.

Upload and review the file

Back in the import wizard, click Select File to browse and choose your saved CSV file. Click Next to let Xero validate the file. Xero shows an import summary listing how many items will be created or updated and flags any errors such as duplicate item codes or missing account codes.

Complete the import and verify

Click Complete Import to finalize the process. Navigate back to Business > Products and Services to review your imported items. Check that purchase and sales prices, account codes, and tracking settings are correct for a sample of items.

Tip: After importing, you can edit any item individually by clicking on it in the Products and Services list.

Required Xero Fields

Field	Type	Description	Example
ItemCode	Text	Unique item code (max 30 chars, alphanumeric)	PROD-001

Xero requires these fields for successful import.

Tip Make sure your converted file is saved and ready before starting the import. You can preview the converted data in the tool before downloading.

Frequently Asked Questions

Xero accepts CSV files for importing inventory item. Our converter ensures the file is formatted correctly for Xero.

Check the error message from the platform. Common issues include date format mismatches, missing required fields, or duplicate entries. Our converter handles most formatting issues automatically.