How to Import an ESX File into Xactimate
Last updated: October 3, 2026
You have a .esx file in hand, from ESXPress, an adjuster, or another converter, and the question is simple: how do you get it into Xactimate? The short answer is that you open the import command, choose merge or open, and answer the reprice prompt. This guide walks through each step, what to check after, and the five failures that stop an import cold.
Step by step
Step 1: Check the file before importing
Confirm the .esx is the right estimate: the claim, the date, and whether it is the full project or a transfer. A .esx built from a carrier scope PDF carries the PDF's own prices as printed, which may differ from what your Xactimate install has loaded.
Step 2: Open the import command in Xactimate
In Xactimate Desktop the import command sits under the File or Tools menu, and the exact label varies by version, so follow Xactware's own help for the current path. Some versions also accept a drag and drop of the file onto the open project window. If your account or user profile does not carry permission for the import, the command is unavailable until an administrator grants it.
Step 3: Choose merge or open
Import offers an open or merge choice. Open replaces the current project. Merge adds the imported file's content into the open estimate, which is the right pick for adding a supplement onto the original estimate.
Step 4: Answer the reprice prompt
Xactimate will ask whether to reprice the file against your loaded price list. Accept if you want the file to follow your list's rules; decline to keep the prices the file shipped with. Reprice replaces file prices with your active list's prices, which is the platform's behavior rather than a conversion error.
Step 5: Verify the line items
After import, spot-check line items against the source PDF: quantities, activity codes (install, removal, add), and the total line count. Removals price labor only, so a removal line priced like an install is the first thing to check.
Step 6: Compare totals before you ship
Compare the imported totals against the PDF's totals: replacement cost, overhead and profit, tax, depreciation, and the net figure. Every price that moved is a line Xactimate repriced against its own list, and knowing which lines moved and why is what makes the estimate defensible.
Step 7: Check the drawing and structure
If the file carries a sketch, confirm the facets loaded and the geometry looks like the property. Confirm the folders and groups survived the import, because a flat estimate on a multi-section loss is harder to review and harder to price.
Step 8: Save and work the estimate
Save the project and continue in Xactimate: notes, F9 justifications, sketches, and final report generation all happen on the Xactimate side of the workflow.
When a file will not import
Most import failures trace back to one of five causes. Work them in this order, because the first two are the ones you can fix without touching the file.
1. Version mismatch
A file written by a different Xactimate version than the one opening it can fail outright. A file that opens in one version and errors in another is usually a format-version difference rather than a broken file, so confirm which version wrote it and re-export when you can.
2. Profile unavailable
Import runs against a user profile and the settings that profile carries. When the profile the file expects is not present on the machine, the import stops before it reads the estimate.
3. Missing price list
The file prices its lines from a list, so the list has to be present. If the region's price list is not loaded on that machine, the file has nothing to resolve its prices against.
4. Corrupt or incomplete file
An interrupted download, or a save that did not finish, produces a file that will not open. An .esx that will not open fails before any line item is read.
5. Wrong file type
A .pdf is not an .esx, and a .xml exported by another estimating system is not one either. Xactimate expects its own project format, so it treats both as the wrong file type. A scope XML is an input a converter reads on the way to producing an importable file.
Related
- What an ESX file is, the format you are importing
- Why Xactimate reprices on import, the behavior explained
- Inside the ESX file format, what the file holds and the rules Xactimate checks on import
- Have a PDF or scope XML file instead? Convert scope to ESX first
- Check a file before import with the free ESX Validator
- Auditing the claim behind the file? The roof claim supplement audit walks the line-by-line method
Questions
How do I import an ESX file into Xactimate?
Open the import command in Xactimate Desktop (it sits under the File or Tools menu, and the label varies by version), choose the .esx file, then pick open or merge. Merge adds the file's content to the estimate already open. Answer the reprice prompt, which prices the lines against the list loaded on that machine, and spot-check the line items against the source PDF. The numbered steps below walk the whole sequence.
Is an ESX file from ESXPress the same format Xactimate uses?
Yes. ESXPress writes Xactimate-native .esx files: folders, line items, SEL codes, quantities, notes. You import it into your licensed copy of Xactimate desktop like any other project file.
Why won't my ESX file import into Xactimate?
Five causes cover most failures. A version mismatch between the file and the Xactimate that opens it. A user profile the import needs that is not present. A price list the file expects that is not loaded. A corrupt or incomplete download. And the wrong file type, which is what happens when a PDF or another system's XML is handed to an importer that only takes .esx project files.
Will Xactimate reprice my file on import?
Xactimate reprices estimates on import against the price list loaded on that machine. If the catalog price for a line differs from the price the file carried, Xactimate uses its list. This is expected platform behavior, covered in depth in the repricing explainer.
Can I import into Xactimate Web or mobile?
Import paths differ across Xactimate products. Xactimate Online runs in the browser and keeps its own import flow, and the reprice-on-import behavior is the same platform behavior wherever you open the file. The menu and merge handling depend on the product and version, so check the platform's own help for the current path.
Do I need ESXPress to import an ESX file?
No. Importing is a Xactimate function. ESXPress makes the file: it converts a carrier scope, PDF or scope XML, into the .esx you import, maps line items to SEL codes, and verifies the result against the source before you download it.
What if I have a PDF instead of an ESX file?
Convert the scope, either the PDF or a scope XML export, to an ESX file first, then import that. The conversion maps the scope's line items to real SEL codes and flags anything it cannot verify, so it never silently guesses a code.
What should I check after the import finishes?
Four things. The line count against the source PDF, so nothing dropped. The activity codes on the largest lines, because a removal priced as an install moves the total. The totals against the PDF, so you know which lines repriced and why. And the sketch and folder structure, if the file carried them, so the estimate keeps its shape.
Xactimate is a registered trademark of Verisk Analytics, Inc. ESXPress is an independent tool and is not affiliated with or endorsed by Verisk/Xactware. Exact menu labels in Xactimate vary by product and version.