A default account is the expense account a supplier's bills are coded to unless someone changes it. It saves time on repeat suppliers. What is chart of accounts?
Before you start
- Permission to edit contacts
The Xero way
Where to find it: Contacts > All contacts > open the supplier > Edit > Financial details > Default settings > Purchase defaults
- Open the supplier contact and click Edit.
- Under Default settings, set the Purchase defaults: default account, tax rate and tracking category.
- Set the default Invoice / bill due date if the supplier has standard terms.
- Save the contact.
- Or: when you save a new bill, tick the option to keep its details as the supplier purchase defaults.
Limits in Xero
- If a line uses an inventory item, Xero uses the inventory item's account, not the supplier default.
- Xero does not enter the supplier default account when you use the Create tab to add a spend money transaction while reconciling a statement line.
Good to know in Xero
- Default account priority: the inventory item first, then the contact. For tax rate: the contact first, then the inventory item, then the account.
- Supplier defaults also apply to bills created from an emailed PDF.
Words Xero uses
- Tracking category. A label you add to each bill line, such as Job or Site, so reports can be split by it.
The Pulsify way
- Forward the supplier's invoice to your Pulsify address or upload it. Pulsify reads every line and finds the supplier in Xero.
- Pulsify suggests an account for each line from how that supplier was coded on past bills in Xero.
- Correct a suggestion when it is wrong. Later bills for that supplier follow the pattern.
- Approve. The bill is created in Xero.
Pulsify connects to Xero in one click. Approved bills are created in Xero with the source file attached.
What Pulsify does not do here
- There is no setting in Pulsify to fix a default account for a supplier. It learns from past bills.
- A default set on the supplier in Xero stays in Xero.
Common mistakes
- Expecting the supplier's default account on a line that uses an inventory item. Xero uses the item's account.
- Using the Create tab to add a spend money transaction while reconciling and expecting the default account to fill in. Xero does not enter it there.
More help
- How to set default buying details for each supplier in MYOB AccountRight
- How to set a default account for each supplier in MYOB Business
- How to set a default nominal code for each supplier in Sage 50
- How to set up a new supplier safely in Xero
- How to code one bill to several account codes in Xero
- How to bulk change account codes on bill records in Xero
- All Xero how-to guides
- Pulsify setup guides
Sources
Last checked 2026-10-19. Confidence: confirmed.
Common questions
Where do I set a supplier's purchase defaults in Xero?
Open the supplier contact and click Edit. Under Financial details, find Default settings and Purchase defaults. Set the account, tax rate and tracking category, then save the contact.
Which default wins, the supplier or the inventory item?
For the account, the inventory item comes first and then the contact. For the tax rate, the contact comes first, then the inventory item, then the account.
Do supplier defaults apply to emailed bills?
Yes. Supplier defaults also apply to bills created from an emailed PDF.
Does Pulsify let me set a default account?
Not as a setting. Pulsify learns each supplier's coding from past bills in your accounting system and suggests an account for every line.
Pulsify setup guides
Want this done for you?
Book a call to see how Pulsify handles supplier bills in Xero.