How to use product fields

Quick answer

Product fields are reference lists used in the Billing app: articles, resources, projects, cost centers, units, and bank accounts. You configure them once in Settings & Apps > Billing > Setup, then assign them to individual invoice rows to keep your invoices aligned with your accounting software. Values can be entered manually or imported directly from a connected accounting integration.

Who can do this

• Company Owners can always create and manage product fields.
• Company Admins can create and manage product fields unless the Allow only Company Owners to add and update products setting is enabled — in which case only the Company Owner retains write access. Any member who can access the company can read product fields (for example, to assign them to an invoice row). Management access is separate from read access. To check this setting, go to Settings & Apps > Billing > Settings > Member rights.

What product fields are

Product fields are company-wide lookup tables inside the Billing app. They serve two purposes:

1. Categorizing invoice rows — assign an article, project, resource, or cost center to each line item so your invoices reflect the right accounting codes.
2. Syncing with accounting software — when you export an invoice to an accounting system (such as Merit Aktiva, e-conomic, or Xero), the assigned product field values are sent alongside the invoice row so the accounting system can file the entry correctly. Product fields are not task custom fields or client custom fields. They are billing-specific reference data.

Types of product fields

Type	What it represents
**Articles**	Service or product codes — maps an invoice row to a corresponding item in your accounting system
**Resources**	Departments or member groups — optionally with a percentage split across team members for revenue attribution
**Projects**	Billing project codes — routes an invoice row to the correct project in your accounting system
**Cost centers**	Cost center codes for accounting cost attribution
**Units**	Custom billing units (for example, "document", "hour", "piece") beyond the built-in defaults
**Bank accounts**	Your company's bank accounts (IBAN + SWIFT code) that appear on invoice PDFs

Where to find product fields

Path: Settings & Apps → Billing → Setup tab The Setup tab lists each type in a collapsible panel. Click a panel header to expand it and see the items of that type. The count shown next to the panel name is the number of active items.

Adding a product field manually

1. Go to Settings & Apps > Billing > Setup.
2. Expand the panel for the type you want to add (for example, Articles).
3. Click + Add in the panel header.
4. Fill in the required fields:

• Description — a clear label that your team will recognize in dropdowns
• Code — the code that matches the corresponding entry in your accounting software (required for articles, resources, and projects; not required for units and cost centers)
• External ID — optional; used by integrations to match records across systems

1. For Bank accounts: enter the Bank name, IBAN, and SWIFT code instead of Description/Code.
2. For Resources: after filling in Description and Code, select one or more team members and set a percentage share for each. The total must add up to 100%. Use Share equally to distribute evenly.
3. Click Add (or Save when editing an existing item).

Importing product fields from accounting software

If your company has a connected accounting integration, you can import all reference data in one step instead of entering it manually.

1. Go to Settings & Apps > Billing > Setup.
2. Click Import lists at the bottom of the page.
3. Choose how to handle existing records:

• Only new — imports items that don’t exist yet; leaves existing items unchanged.
• Import everything — imports all items from the accounting system and overwrites matching existing records.

After import, each item shows its source (for example, “Merit” or “Xero”) in the Source column. You can still edit imported items manually after the fact.

Integrations that support product data import include Merit Aktiva, e-conomic, Xero, QuickBooks, Fortnox, Directo, Trigon, Smart Accounts, and Tripletex. What each integration imports depends on its API — Xero, for instance, imports articles and taxes but not resources or projects.

Assigning product fields to an invoice row

Once your product fields are set up, you can assign them per line item on an invoice.

1. Open an invoice in edit mode.
2. On any invoice row, click the three-dot menu (or the row options icon) and select Row Details.
3. In the Row Details dialog, assign values to any of the following:

• Article
• Project
• Resource
• Cost center

1. Click Save.

You can also set default product field values directly on a billing product (in Settings & Apps > Billing > Products). When a new invoice or contract row is created from that product, the defaults are pre-filled — saving time if most rows for a given service always use the same codes.

Archiving and restoring product fields

To remove a product field from dropdowns without deleting it permanently:

1. Open the item from the Setup tab.
2. Click Archive in the dialog footer.
3. Confirm. Archived items are hidden from all assignment dropdowns but remain visible in the Setup tab. To bring an item back, open it and click Restore.

Troubleshooting

Product fields are not showing up in the Row Details dropdowns

Check that the item is active (not archived) in Settings & Apps > Billing > Setup. Archived items are hidden from all dropdowns.

Import lists button is not visible or does nothing

The Import lists button only appears and works when your company has a connected accounting integration. Go to Settings & Apps > Billing > Connect to set one up first. If an integration is connected but Import lists still fails, check that your integration credentials are still valid.

I get a permission error when trying to add or edit a product field

Check the Allow only Company Owners to add and update products setting in Settings & Apps > Billing > Settings. When this is on, only the Company Owner can make changes. A Company Admin can disable this setting if needed.

Resource member shares do not save — I get a validation error

The percentage shares across all members assigned to a resource must total exactly 100%. Use the Share equally button to distribute shares evenly, then adjust individual percentages before saving.