Supplier and Customer Rules help automate how documents from specific suppliers or customers are processed in Dext.
Once a rule is set, it’s automatically applied to every new document uploaded from that supplier or customer - reducing manual entry and speeding up review.
Important: You need to be an Admin user to create and manage Supplier/Customer Rules.
How rules work
These rules are useful when documents from a specific supplier or customer consistently follow a pattern. For example:
Uber receipts are always categorized as Travel
Adobe, Google, or Apple invoices are categorized as IT Costs
Utility bills are categorized as Utilities
Rules eliminate repetitive categorization for recurring suppliers or customers.
What you can automate
With Supplier or Customer Rules, you can set default values for:
Category
Invoice due date
Tax rate
Payment method
Paid/Unpaid status
Description
Currency
Note: If your account is connected to accounting software like QuickBooks Online, Xero, or Sage 50, additional fields may be available. These integrations also support suppliers in multiple currencies (e.g., CAD and USD).
Setting a rule
You can set rules either from the item itself or from your Suppliers/Customers lists.
From the Item Details page:
1. Open a document from the relevant supplier or customer.
2. Click Set Supplier Rules or Set Customer Rules.
3. Fill in the fields you want to automate.
4. Click Apply.
Note: When setting a new rule from the Item Details page, mark the Apply to all inbox items checkbox to apply it to existing documents.
From the Supplier/Customer list:
Go to Costs or Sales > Suppliers or Customers.
Click on a supplier or customer name.
Use the editable fields on the Rules page to add or change rules.
Note: Changes made on the Rules page will apply to all inbox items by default.
Setting rules in bulk
You can apply rules to multiple suppliers or customers at once.
For Suppliers:
Go to Costs > Suppliers.
Tick the checkboxes next to the suppliers you want to update.
Click Bulk Edit in the top-left corner.
Select and apply your rules.
For Customers:
Go to Sales > Customers.
Tick the checkboxes next to the customers.
Click Actions > Bulk Edit.
Note: Some fields - particularly those synced with your accounting software - may not be editable in bulk.
Rule prioritization and auto-publish
Auto-Publish Rules only apply to documents uploaded after the rule is created, regardless of where you set the rule from. They’re triggered automatically after data extraction.
Payment Method Rules, User Rules, and Auto-Publish Exceptions will override Supplier or Customer Rules if set for the same field.
Supplier and Customer Rules will override account-level defaults if set for the same field, for example, default due dates.
Frequently asked questions
Do rules apply to existing documents by default?
No, only to new documents. To apply rules to existing inbox items, edit them directly from the Rules page or use the Apply to all inbox items checkbox when editing from the Item Details page.
Important: Rules like Auto-publish and Extract line items can't be applied to items already in your inbox.
Can I edit all fields in bulk?
Not all. Specific fields linked to accounting integrations may be unavailable to edit in bulk.
Do rules support multiple currencies?
Yes, but only if connected to QuickBooks Online, Xero, or Sage 50.
Why are my supplier/customer rules resetting or not applying?
If you’re connected to accounting software, check if you’ve set up rules for the supplier/customer there - these will often overwrite the rules in Dext when we sync the data every 48 hours.
If you removed or made changes to the rules in the accounting software, make sure to refresh the integration data in Dext to reflect them.