Important Notice:
When connecting Karbon to Xero, please note that all contacts listed under the "All Contacts" view in Xero—including suppliers and non-client entries—will be synced into Karbon. At this time, there is no option to selectively import specific contact types.
If you prefer not to bring over certain contacts (e.g., suppliers), we recommend holding off on connecting Xero until more filtering options are available.
This is an initial release of the integration, and we’re actively working to enhance it. We are prioritizing the ability to control which types of contacts are synced, and we appreciate your patience as we continue to improve the experience.
This guide provides a comprehensive walkthrough on how to set up and effectively use the Xero contact sync integration with Karbon. By connecting these two platforms, you can automate the flow of client contact information, ensuring data accuracy and saving valuable time. This article covers the initial setup process, managing the synchronization of contacts, resolving any conflicts that may arise, and understanding how to keep your contact data up-to-date in both systems.
Index
Prerequisites
You must have an active Karbon account with administrator privileges.
You must have an active Xero (General Ledger) account with Primary Admin credentials.
Ensure you are logged into the correct Xero account that you wish to connect to Karbon.
Setting Up the Xero Contact Sync
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Access Karbon Settings: Navigate to Settings in your Karbon account and click on Connected Apps.
Connect to Xero: Locate Xero in the list of available apps and click the Connect button.
Authorize Karbon: You will be redirected to Xero. Log in with your primary administrator credentials again and click Allow access to authorize Karbon to connect to your Xero account.
Assign Default Contact Type: Once the connection is established, you will be prompted to select a default ContactType in Karbon. This type will be automatically assigned to any new contacts created in Karbon as a result of the Xero sync. Choose the most appropriate ContactType from the dropdown menu (e.g., Client-VIP).
Initiate Initial Sync: After assigning the ContactType, Karbon will automatically begin the initial synchronization process, importing all contacts from your Xero account.
Managing Contact Sync
Importing and Syncing Contacts
Once the connection is established, Karbon automatically imports all contacts from Xero and attempts to match them with existing Karbon contacts based on the contact's name and billing email. Imported Xero contacts are categorized as follows:
Full match: Both the name and billing email match an existing Karbon contact. These contacts will be automatically synced.
Conflict: Either the name or the billing email matches a Karbon contact, but not both. These require manual review in the "Resolve Match Issues" screen.
No match: Neither the name nor the billing email matches an existing Karbon contact. These will result in the creation of new Karbon contacts.
Xero Contact Name | Xero Primary Email | Karbon Contact Name | Karbon Billing Email | Result |
John Smith | John Smith | Full match | ||
Sam Brown | Sam Brown | Conflicts - Email doesn't match | ||
James Morgan | Josh Morgan | Conflicts - Name doesn't match | ||
Thomas Richardson | - | - | No Match |
Please keep in mind, the initial sync, Karbon will not create new contacts in Xero.
Contacts with No Match
Xero contacts who have been imported and cannot be matched with a Karbon contact will result in a new Karbon contact being created, the contact who is created will inherit the ContactType selected on the sync set-up screen and inherit the following data from the Xero contact if available;
Contact Name
Primary Email Address
Primary Phone Number
Billing Address
Please Note:
Newly created Karbon contacts will be matched with the Xero contact that triggered its creation.
Karbon will automatically create a Karbon contact as either a person or organization using AI, If this classification was incorrect please refer to the following FAQ's on how to remedy and change the classification: Xero Contact Sync: FAQ
Fully Matched Contacts
When a contact match is found, any differences in billing address or phone number will be overridden with data from the Xero contact.
Example:
If there is a conflict in the billing address on a matched contact, the Karbon contact will be updated to match the Xero contact field.
For a full list of synced data points, see the table below.
Xero Contact Data Point | Karbon Contact Data Point |
Contact Name | Contact Name |
Primary Email | Billing Email |
Primary Phone Number | Primary Phone Number |
Billing Address | Billing Address |
Please Note: Once a contact is matched, any changes made to the above data points in one system will automatically update the corresponding data in the other. (e.g., if the billing email address is updated in Karbon, the primary email address in Xero will be updated.)
Interacting with Matched Contacts
To view your synced contacts, navigate to the View Client List from the Connected Apps settings.
You can click on a contact name to view the Karbon contact details or click the three-dot menu (...) next to a contact and select Open in Xero to view the corresponding contact in Xero.
Resolving Conflicts
Contacts where only the name or email matches are listed under Resolve Match Issues on the Connected Apps page.
Here, you can review each partial match and choose to:
Confirm Match: Link the contacts, and Xero data will overwrite Karbon data for the synced fields.
Create New Contact: Create a separate Karbon contact using the data from the Xero contact.
Once a conflict is resolved, the contact will be added to the synced client list.
Continuous Syncing on Matched Contacts
Once a contact is successfully matched, a continuous bi-directional sync is established for the following data points:
Contact Name
Billing Email
Billing Address
Primary Phone Number
Any updates to these fields in either Karbon or Xero will automatically update the corresponding field in the other system.
Unsyncing Matched Contacts
You can choose to stop the synchronization for a specific contact. To do this, navigate to the View Client List, click the three-dot menu next to the contact, and select Unsync Contact. Once unsynced, changes made to the contact in either Karbon or Xero will no longer affect the other.
Re-syncing Contacts
Previously unsynced contacts can be found under the Unsynced tab in the Resolve Match Issues screen.
To re-enable synchronization, you can either Re-match the contact to an existing Karbon contact or Create New Contact using the data from either system. Once resolved, the contact will be added back to the synced contact list.
Creating Contacts
Creating Contacts in Xero and Pushing to Karbon
Any new contact created in your connected Xero account after the initial sync setup will be automatically imported into Karbon and processed through the matching algorithmTo determine whether a contact from Xero Practice Manager should be created as an Organization or a Person in Karbon, the integration analyzes the Contact Name field from Xero. This field is then processed using an intelligent classifier. Based on this classification, the contact will be created in Karbon as either an Organization or a Person.. If no match is found, a new Karbon contact will be created.
Creating Contacts in Karbon and Pushing to Xero
Contacts created directly in Karbon do not automatically sync to Xero. To create a new Xero contact from a Karbon contact:
Open the desired contact in Karbon.
Scroll down to the Xero Client section.
Click the Create Contact button.
This action will create a new contact in Xero using the following information from the Karbon contact:
Contact Name
Billing Email
Primary Phone Number
Billing Address
You can verify the creation of the Xero contact in the Xero Client section of the Karbon contact details.