Import Data into BambooHR
How do I import data into BambooHR?
Purpose: To help you understand when importing data might be useful and where you can find information on how to import data into BambooHR.
Do you prefer hands-on learning? Our interactive guides will guide you through different aspects of your BambooHR experience. We have an interactive guide specifically designed to show you how to import data into BambooHR. You can use the link below to access this guide. All you need to do is modify the "REPLACEME" with your BambooHR subdomain, and you can get started!
https://REPLACEME.bamboohr.com/home?pendo=FWDn8ek-kKM_OSFKO0hBAlk3WZg
Training video
You can transfer data from an Excel spreadsheet and enter it into BambooHR by using the importing process. For example, I have 25 new employees joining our company this week and have decided that it is easier to use the importer to add the employees to the system rather than entering each employee manually.
Please watch the following video to learn how to import employee information into BambooHR. After you have watched the video, read the Instructions for Importing Data section below to find the unique URL you will use for importing data.
Importing data is only available to Account Owners and Full Admin users.
If you are ready to begin importing data and are waiting to hear back from our Support team, you can start the process by gathering all of the data you need to import and entering it into a spreadsheet.
Each column header in the spreadsheet will be a separate field in BambooHR. In the example above, I have a separate column for each part of an employee's address: Address line 1, Address line 2, City, State, and ZIP code.
You can find a sample template for basic employee data on the importer page in your account. We show an example of this at 11:50 (timestamp) in the video above. This template can help you identify the information you should start gathering from your employees for importing.
As you gather your data, remember that you must add the Employee # column to each row of data. The Employee # is the unique identifier for the employee and applies to importing data into BambooHR. You can learn more about this in our Import Training video.
You can only import a new Employee # if you add an employee to the system for the first time. Otherwise, you must update an employee's Employee # on their employee profile or through power edit.
BambooHR® Payroll
If you use BambooHR® Payroll, you will see a separate template on the importer page in your account, which also describes the requirements for including an employee in Payroll.
- If you add an employee to a Payroll-syncing pay schedule and the import is missing data in the required fields for Payroll, you will see an error. Be sure to include information in all the required fields when adding an employee to a Payroll-syncing pay schedule.
- If an employee is part of a syncing pay schedule and thy have a salary pay rate and non-exempt overtime status, the Overtime Rate field will be required.
- Overtime Rate must have a value greater than $0.00.
- Overtime Rate can only be in USD.
You will learn the basics of importing data into BambooHR. Please note that you must watch our training video on how to import data before beginning your first import. You can find the video at the beginning of this help guide.
The following terms will appear in the importing process:
Field data: These fields are rewritable in your account. This means that you can replace the original data and fill in new data. Examples include first name, last name, date of birth, hire date, etc. Importing will replace what was in the field with your new data set.
Table data: These fields include the tables in your account with their accompanying columns. Examples include the Compensation, Job Information, Employment Status (Status History), and custom tables. Importing will add a new line of data to the table, allowing a historical record for your employee.
There are three types of imports:
- Adding new employees to BambooHR en masse
- Adding field data to BambooHR for existing employees
- Adding table data to BambooHR for existing employees
Active and inactive employees: When importing historical data, Billing will count all active employees towards your headcount and reflect that amount on your following invoice. If you have inactive employees, ensure that you import termination details along with an inactive status for those terminated employees. This will help you avoid being billed for inactive records.
Basic Excel formatting tips
- The title of your Excel file cannot have any punctuation in it.
- The size limit of a document you are importing is 64MB.
- Ensure the top row in your Excel spreadsheet has the header of each column you are importing. You can create a report in BambooHR to gather these column headers.
- Check if the column headers are named in the exact format as shown in BambooHR, including the same capitalizations, abbreviations, symbols, etc.
- Make sure you have a column labeled Employee # and that each number matches the correct employee name as listed in BambooHR.
- Tip: To ensure that your column headers match, run a report in BambooHR with the fields you are importing.
- To import dates accurately in BambooHR, dates must be in the mm/dd/yyyy format (see below). *If you use a different date format in your account under General Settings and import the spreadsheet, the dates will automatically switch to the correct format.
- If you are importing data into a table, be sure to use the table importer. If you use the standard importer, many fields will not appear.
*You will also want to do the same for all of your columns containing a currency amount. Instead of selecting Date, select Currency.
For a foreign currency in the Pay Rate column, include an amount, a single space, and the three-letter currency code. For example, 14.00 EUR. If you import compensation data for multiple employees with different currencies, include the pay rate and the currency code in the Pay Rate column, separated by a single space (i.e., 50000 MXN or 50000 USD).
Notice how the hire date appears in a two-digit year date format.
Once you select the column, you can right-click on it and select Format Cells...
Click Date and select the mm/dd/yyyy format. Click OK after selecting.
All of the dates in the column now show in the mm/dd/yyyy format.
After you format your data correctly, save your file in one of the following formats: CSV, XLS, XLSX, or TXT.
When importing a multiple selection list, you can tell BambooHR to check multiple checkboxes by listing the list items with a “|” between them. Do not put a space before or after the “|”.
Example 1
You have the Allergies field, where employees can select more than one allergy option. Below is an image showing how you would lay this out in the spreadsheet.
Example 2
You are importing the Veteran Status field for your employees. Some of them have a combination of options. Below is an example showing how you would lay this out in the spreadsheet.
Using the importer
***It is best practice to create a spreadsheet with one line of data to test the process. Once imported correctly, you can proceed with importing data a second time with the remaining lines. Remember that you cannot undo the process once you have imported the data. Also, you will have to fix any mistakes manually.***
Log in to your BambooHR account. At the end of the URL, type manage/import/.
If you are importing data into single fields, you will be using the basic importer. Click Choose File and select your saved Excel or CSV file. Then, click Upload.
- Make sure the column names match up with the field names in BambooHR. If the system does not automatically select the correct BambooHR field name for a column, you can search for the correct field name in the dropdown list.
- You can also click through a few records to make sure everything will be imported correctly by clicking Next.
- If everything looks good, scroll down to the bottom of the page. You should see a couple of more options to select before importing the data (see below).
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For each row of data in the file: Choose if you are updating existing employees or adding new employees. In the example, we will select Update existing employees (based on the employee #) because we are adding data to existing employees. If you are importing employees who are not in BambooHR, you would select Insert a new employee.
- Please note that you cannot change an employee's employee # by importing it. You can only import a new employee # if you add an employee to the system for the first time. Otherwise, you must update an employee's employee # on their employee profile or through power edit.
- For all unknown list values: Choose what you want to do with unknown list values. You can have them ignored or added to the list of other options. This pertains to any dropdown list in BambooHR. Some examples of dropdown lists include Job Title, Department, Employment Status, Location, or any customized lists created for you. If you choose to ignore unknown list values, the data in those columns will not be imported unless already listed as a value in BambooHR.
Once you determine these two selections, click Import.
We recommend picking a few employees from the spreadsheet and double-check the accuracy of their data in BambooHR. In this way, you can be sure that the imported information is in the right employee profiles. The best way to do this is to run a report with the fields you have imported and then verify it from that report. This report can help you identify any missing data and any fields that may have not been imported. We do not recommend verifying the data from the Import Results section as this information only shows you the data from your spreadsheet.
Importing new employees follows the same process as above. Pay careful attention to your selected option under "For each row of data in the file." In this step, select Insert a new employee. You will need to do this with caution as selecting this button will add new employees to your account.
As indicated above, we recommend running a report for every import to verify that the data has been imported correctly.
Only use one table per spreadsheet. The Compensation table data will be on one spreadsheet while the Employment Status table data will be on a separate spreadsheet as both will be imported separately.
It is best practice to create a spreadsheet with one line of data to test the process. Once imported correctly, you can proceed with importing data a second time with the remaining lines. Remember that you cannot undo the process once you have imported data. Also, you will have to fix any mistakes manually.
When importing Compensation data, please remember that the Pay Rate and Pay Per fields are required for a successful data import.
BambooHR Payroll: For any employees with a pay schedule syncing with Payroll and Salary listed as Pay Rate and Non-Exempt listed for Overtime Status, the Overtime Rate field will be a requirement for import.
If you are importing termination details, you will need to import the information into the Employment Status table as the Terminated status. This information includes Termination Date, Eligible for Re-hire, Termination Type, and Termination Reason.
If you are importing information for a table, you will need to have the specific table information saved on a separate spreadsheet. Then, click on the blue link that says "go here."
Select the correct table you want to import by clicking on the down arrow in the Select a Table box. In the dropdown list, you will then see different options to select from.
Each table option will accurately list the column headers available within the table in your BambooHR account, which is why you must do each table import individually.
After selecting the table data you want to import, click Choose File and select your saved Excel or CSV file. Proceed to click Upload.
Make sure the column names match up with the field names in BambooHR. Your screen may look similar to the one shown above—where some of the field names match the column names and some do not. You can click a box in the Field column to select the correct field in BambooHR that matches a column name.
If your spreadsheet has information that is not part of the specific table, you will want to ignore that column for importing purposes to avoid any errors. In the case of column A (Last Name, First Name), you have already imported the employees, so you will need to select the xxxxx Do not import this field xxxxx option.
Again, you have the option of selecting what you want to do with unknown values. You can have them ignored or added to the list of other options. If you choose to ignore, those options that are not already in BambooHR will not be included in the import.
After you have confirmed that all the column headings match and data is likely to be imported correctly, click Import The Data.
If the data imported without any problems, you will see a green-colored message that indicates the number of rows that were added successfully. Click Show Import Details to see the detailed results.
For the standard job tables in BambooHR (i.e., Employment Status, Job History, and Compensation), you can utilize the standard reports already created in BambooHR to verify and confirm your data has been imported accurately.
If there are problems with the import, your screen will show something like the screenshot above. Notice the error message that says, "There were errors during the import. No rows were imported. See import results below for more information."
If you click Show Import Details, you will see the reasons why the information was not imported. In this case, there is already a row with this data for the employee. Please fix your spreadsheet and import its information again.
What’s going on: This could be due to tables, fields, or dropdown options being too similar.
For example, you have a dropdown list field for additional departments that employees report to. In the list, there are two options that are very similar, “Finance Office” and “Finance Offices." In the spreadsheet, you may have accidentally entered “Finance Offices" instead of “Finance Office." This would cause the data to be blank in the employee profile because the list item did not match.
To fix this, you can:
- Go to Settings > Employee Fields > Choose the field with the list item(s) you need to fix > Edit the list item(s).
- Review your spreadsheet to ensure the data is entered correctly.
What’s going on: There are a few things that could be affecting the import.
- Try changing the file from an Excel file to a CSV file or vice versa. Sometimes this can correct the backend formatting that caused the issue.
- The file size might be too large. Here are some steps to copy the data into a new spreadsheet:
- Grab ONLY the data and copy it. Drag your mouse over what you want to capture. You should NOT use the triangle above row A1 to capture the data or grab the entire sheet. There can be hidden data or formatting in the empty rows or columns, so you do not want those to transfer to your new spreadsheet.
- Paste the data into a new spreadsheet.
- A slow internet connection and a large file can cause a timeout and a white screen.
What’s going on: Your sheet is referencing a formula. Copy the fields and “Paste as Values."
Try this: You can use Find & Select > Formulas to find formulas easily. Make sure to remove any formulas.
What’s going on: Employee number is incorrect or is not included in the employee profile. This field is vital as it tells the system which employee to send the information to.
What’s going on: The pay schedule has not been created, or the pay schedule name does not match. The spelling, capitalization, and spacing in the pay schedule name must match. You can add that or fix the name in Settings > Employee Fields > Pay Schedule. This must be set up before you can import information from the Compensation table.
