Migration
Moving from Tradify to ServiceM8
Tradify exports customers, sites, jobs, quotes, invoices and price lists as CSV, and ServiceM8 imports clients, materials and job history from CSV. Job notes, photos, forms and certificates, recurring job templates and service reminders do not come out in bulk, per Tradify's own help centre, so plan to rebuild or archive them.
Last checked 25 Sep 2026 against the sources listed at the end of this page.
Moves cleanly
- Customers (Tradify Customers, Options, Export Customers to File, then ServiceM8 Clients, Bulk Import), or pulled from Xero when you connect it
- Price list items and supplier price lists (CSV into ServiceM8 Materials & Services, Bulk Import)
- Xero contacts, items and tax rates, which ServiceM8 imports when you connect the same Xero organisation
Moves with work
- Job history, as text records through ServiceM8's job history import (Home, the green notice, upload the Tradify jobs CSV)
- Customer sites (separate Tradify export; decide how each site maps to a ServiceM8 client or job address)
- Quotes and invoices, as CSV and PDF records for reference; open invoices are finished in Xero
- Kits and prebuilt tasks, rebuilt as ServiceM8 bundles or items
- Assets or equipment registers kept in a spreadsheet (ServiceM8 has a CSV asset import)
- Recurring jobs and service reminders, rebuilt by hand from Tradify's screens
Does not move
- Job notes and files, including photos and attachments (not in Tradify's exports; ask Tradify support for a full copy)
- Forms and certificates (download each one from the job's Forms & Certs tab)
- Recurring job templates (cannot be exported)
- Service reminders (cannot be bulk exported)
- The two way link between Tradify invoices and Xero (lost on disconnect and not restored on reconnect)
- Timesheet history as live data (export it as a report for your records)
How long it takes
| Business size | Realistic time |
|---|---|
| Sole trader | FFP estimate: 1 to 2 days of your time, plus certificate downloads |
| 3 to 5 person crew | FFP estimate: 1 to 2 weeks including a cut over week running both |
| 10+ staff with recurring maintenance | FFP estimate: 3 to 6 weeks, driven by rebuilding recurring jobs and reminders |
The short version
Your customer list and price list move cleanly. Your job history moves as text records, which is enough to look up what you did at an address but not enough to reopen an old job. The parts of Tradify you touch every day (photos, notes on jobs, compliance certificates, recurring jobs and service reminders) do not come out in a bulk export, and that is where most of the work in a switch sits.
Tradify's help centre says job notes and files are not included in its exports and suggests contacting its support team for a full copy. Ask for that copy before you cancel, and keep it somewhere you control. Forms and certificates have to be downloaded one by one from each job, so if you are an electrician or plumber with years of certificates, start that download early or decide which years you actually need to keep on hand.
Xero is the part to get right
Most Tradify users run it with Xero, and ServiceM8 connects to Xero the same way. That helps: when you connect ServiceM8 to Xero, your Xero contacts and items are pulled into ServiceM8 automatically, so you may not need to import customers by CSV at all. Pick one source for customers (Xero or the Tradify export), not both, or you will clean up duplicates for weeks.
Before you disconnect Tradify from Xero, Tradify asks that all payments are up to date between the two systems and any bills are sent. After the disconnection, linked invoices show as Sent to Accounting and all changes, including payments, have to be made in Xero. If you later reconnect, those invoices do not relink. So finish the switch on a clean cut over date: every open invoice either paid or owned in Xero, and new jobs only in ServiceM8.
The other trap is invoice numbers. Both apps send invoice numbers to Xero, and ServiceM8 will not send an invoice whose number already exists there. Start ServiceM8's numbering above your last Tradify invoice, or let Xero issue the numbers.
Recurring work and service reminders
Tradify's job export includes the individual jobs it has already created, not the recurring job templates, and service reminders cannot be bulk exported. If maintenance contracts are a big part of your revenue, list every recurring customer, interval and next due date by hand from Tradify's Recurring Jobs and Service Reminders screens, then set them up again in ServiceM8. It is tedious, but it is the step that protects repeat income.
Field map: Tradify to ServiceM8
Exports available from Tradify: CSV: jobs, quotes, invoices, customers, customer sites, suppliers, purchase orders and bills, price lists, CSV: reports (job sheet, job financial, productivity, timesheet), PDF: individual quotes, invoices, forms and certificates, one at a time, Full copy of notes and files: by request to Tradify support.
| Tradify | ServiceM8 | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Customer name | Client name | Tradify's export headers may be worded differently. Match on the header in your own file. |
| Customer email and phone | Client contact email and mobile | Split multiple contacts into separate ServiceM8 contacts on the client. |
| Customer billing address | Client billing address | If Xero is connected, Xero's contact address wins; clean it there first. |
| Customer site address | Job address | Sites are a separate Tradify export. Multi site customers need a decision on structure before import. |
| Price list item code and description | Material item number and name | ServiceM8 detects most column mappings; check the preview before confirming. |
| Price list sell price | Material price | Set Price Includes Taxes to Yes if the price includes GST, No if it excludes it. |
| Job number, description, address, dates | Job history text record | Searchable history, not a reopenable job with materials and payments. |
| Invoice number | Stays in Xero | Start ServiceM8 invoice numbering above the last Tradify number. |
Gotchas
- Get the full notes and files copy from Tradify support before your subscription ends. The standard exports leave photos and attachments behind.
- Pick one source for customers. Connecting Xero already imports contacts into ServiceM8, so a CSV import on top creates duplicates.
- Settle payments in both systems before disconnecting Tradify from Xero. Afterwards, Tradify invoices can only be changed in Xero and will not relink.
- Set ServiceM8's first invoice number above Tradify's last, or let Xero number invoices, or ServiceM8 will reject the clash.
- Imported job history is text only. Techs cannot see old photos or certificates on site unless you attach them to the client or job yourself.
- Recurring jobs and service reminders must be listed by hand. Do this first, because missed reminders are lost revenue.
- Test the import on ServiceM8's free trial with a small file before loading everything.
Sources
- Tradify's exports cover job, quote and invoice details only; job notes and files such as photos and attachments are not included, and Tradify support can be contacted for a full copy. Tradify Help Centre, checked 25 Sep 2026.
- In Tradify, forms and certificates cannot be exported in bulk, service reminders cannot be exported in bulk, and recurring job templates cannot be exported. Tradify Help Centre, checked 25 Sep 2026.
- ServiceM8 can import text records of Tradify job history from a CSV export, started from the green notice on the Online Dashboard Home screen, at no charge, and it can be tried during the free 14 day trial. ServiceM8, checked 25 Sep 2026.
- ServiceM8 bulk imports clients and materials from a CSV template, and accounts connected to Xero, QuickBooks Online or MYOB get clients and items imported automatically on connection. ServiceM8 Help Center, checked 25 Sep 2026.
- After Tradify is disconnected from Xero, linked invoices show as Sent to Accounting, further changes including payments are made in Xero, and reconnecting does not restore the link. Tradify Help Centre, checked 25 Sep 2026.
- ServiceM8 rejects an invoice whose number already exists in Xero, and recommends letting Xero issue invoice numbers automatically to prevent conflicts. ServiceM8 Help Center, checked 25 Sep 2026.
- ServiceM8 supports bulk importing assets from a CSV spreadsheet. ServiceM8 Help Center, checked 25 Sep 2026.