Import Data

Import Data — Import Worksheet

The Import Worksheet gives you a structured, controlled way to create or update large volumes of records in Business Central — including items, customers, vendors, and many other master data types — together with all their associated specifications in a single operation. Rather than entering records one by one, you prepare your data in a worksheet, review it before anything is written to the database, and then execute the import when you are satisfied. The result is a faster, safer, and more consistent way to bring data into Business Central, whether you are doing an initial data load, a periodic bulk update, or a repeated creation process.

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Feature Overview

The Import Worksheet works in two distinct stages. First, you populate the worksheet with the records you want to create or update. You can do this by typing directly into the worksheet, or by importing rows from an Excel file using the Import Data action. Each row in the worksheet represents one record to be created or updated, and the columns are defined by a reusable Import Template that maps each column to a specific field or Information Code in Business Central.

Once the worksheet is populated and reviewed, you execute the import by running Carry out actions, which processes every accepted row and writes the data to Business Central. For each row, the Action Message field shows the outcome — whether the record was successfully created, whether it already existed, or whether an error occurred. Rows that contain errors are flagged with a Field Error Hint so you can correct them and retry without having to restart the entire process.

A key strength of the worksheet is that it handles both standard Business Central fields and master data specifications in a single pass. When a template column is configured as Master Data Information, the value entered in that column is stored as an information entry rather than a standard table field, meaning full specification data is imported alongside the record itself.

The Item Variant Creation Worksheet is a dedicated variant of the worksheet tailored for creating item style variants in bulk, with options to copy specifications, prices, and unit of measure data from an existing reference item.

Typical Use Cases

As a master data administrator, I want to import a list of new items from a supplier's Excel catalogue — including item numbers, descriptions, and all relevant specifications such as material, colour, and dimensions — so that hundreds of items are created in Business Central in a single operation with their full specification data already populated.
As a product manager, I want to use the Item Variant Creation Worksheet to generate a set of new style variants from a reference item, automatically copying its master data specifications, unit of measure codes, and sales prices, so that each variant starts with a complete and consistent data foundation without manual re-entry.
As a data migration specialist, I want to prepare worksheet rows from an Excel file during a system implementation, review and correct any errors flagged in the Field Error Hint column before executing the import, so that the go-live data load is clean and validated before anything is committed to the database.
As an operations coordinator, I want to run a recurring batch import from a fixed Excel template to update item specifications that change periodically — such as lead times or certifications — so that the update process is repeatable and does not require manual editing of individual item cards.
As a purchasing manager, I want to use the Master Data Batch Import to Worksheet to import data from multiple Excel sheets in a single session, each mapped to a different import template, so that I can update vendor records and their associated specifications from one consolidated Excel workbook.

Key Concepts

Import Template — a reusable configuration that defines how each column in the worksheet maps to a field or an Information Code in Business Central. Each template is linked to one Business Central table (such as Item or Customer) and specifies up to 50 columns. Columns can be of type Table (mapping to a standard field) or Master Data Information (mapping to a specification). Templates are managed in the Master Data Import Template page.
Master Data Import Worksheet — the working page where rows are prepared and reviewed before execution. Each row corresponds to one record. The worksheet header shows the active Batch Name, allowing multiple independent sets of import rows to coexist and be processed separately.
Batch Name — a way to group worksheet rows into named batches. A batch can contain rows from multiple templates, enabling a single execution run to create or update records across different record types in one go. Batches are defined on the Batch Import Lines page.
Action Message — a status field on each worksheet row that shows what will happen or what happened when the row is processed. Possible values include Create (the record does not yet exist and will be created), Master Data already Exist (the record was found and will be updated if the Update existing Master Data option is enabled), Import Success, and Error while inserting record.
Accept Action Message — a checkbox on each row that controls whether the row is included when Carry out actions is run. Only rows where this is enabled are processed. This lets you deliberately skip certain rows or selectively process a subset of the worksheet.
Import Data (Excel import) — an action that reads an Excel workbook and populates the worksheet with rows based on the column mapping defined in a chosen template. You specify the template, the batch name, the file, and the sheet name to import from. The Excel column numbers in the template control which Excel column feeds each worksheet column.
Carry out actions — the action that executes the import for all accepted rows. It offers two options: Update existing Master Data (controls whether records that already exist are updated or skipped) and Stop and show first error (controls whether the import halts on the first error or continues and flags errors on individual rows).
Field Error Hint — a read-only field on each worksheet row that captures the error message from the last failed import attempt for that row. This makes it straightforward to identify and correct the specific value that caused the failure.
Copy from Record — a template setting that causes new records to be created as copies of an existing record. When enabled, the system copies all specified data — including master data information, unit of measure codes, and purchase and sales prices — from the source record to each new record created from the worksheet.
No. Series integration — templates can be configured to automatically draw the primary key (such as an item number) from a Business Central number series, so that new records receive a correctly formatted number without the user needing to supply it manually.
Item Variant Creation Worksheet — a specialised worksheet page for creating item style variants in bulk. It supports copying specifications, sales and purchase prices, and unit of measure codes from a reference item, and can automatically generate sequential variant suffixes based on a defined incrementing pattern.

Relations to Other Features or Apps

Within the Master Data Information app, the Import Worksheet is the primary bulk entry point for information entries. When a template column is configured as Master Data Information, the value imported through that column is stored as a structured information entry, fully compatible with Merge Descriptions, Specification on Pages, Extended Texts, Translations, and Master Data on Documents. Imported specifications participate in all downstream processes exactly as if they had been entered manually through the Information Setup panel.

Within standard Business Central, the worksheet creates or updates standard records — items, customers, vendors, and others — using the same validation logic as the standard Business Central pages. The Import Data action reads standard Excel files using Business Central's built-in Excel Buffer, and the No. Series integration uses the standard number series engine. The Item Variant Creation Worksheet interacts with the standard Item Variant and Item Translation tables when copying data from a reference item.

When This Feature Adds Value

When you need to create or update a large number of records — tens, hundreds, or thousands — and entering them individually through standard pages would be impractical or time-consuming.
When incoming data from suppliers, ERP migrations, or other systems arrives as Excel files and needs to be mapped cleanly to both standard fields and structured specifications without manual reformatting.
When you want a review-and-approve step between preparing the data and writing it to the database, allowing errors to be identified and corrected before anything is committed.
When the same import process is repeated regularly — for example, a weekly update of lead times or certifications — and a saved template makes each run fast, consistent, and independent of the person running it.