Upload a CSV

POST /imports

The body is the raw file, streamed and parsed into a staging table as it arrives — never buffered whole, so file size is bounded by disk rather than memory. Appends import.job-created and returns the staged job (202) with its detected headers and row count. Without target, the job takes the target whose fields the headers fit best; PUT /imports/:jobId/target changes it before the import runs. Nothing is applied to any domain service yet. 400 UnreadableUpload if the body is not usable as CSV. No idempotency key: a retried upload is a second staged job by design — staging is cheap, nothing is applied until commit, and an unwanted job is deletable.

Access

Requires imports:write.

How scopes come from roles: Scopes and roles. Getting a token: Authentication and app tokens.

Retries

No idempotency key: a retried upload is a second staged job by design — staging is cheap, nothing is applied until commit, and an unwanted job is deletable.

Why every write carries a key: Idempotency and retries.

Facts appended

import.job-created

What a fact is: Facts and the journal.

AI agent tool

No agent tool. The CSV's raw bytes are the request body, which a JSON tool call cannot carry; an agent submits the rows as JSON with imports_submit_rows.

Connecting an agent: AI agents.

Example

curl

curl -X POST 'https://import.getmanifold.io/imports?target=inventory.item&filename=opening-stock.csv' \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $MANIFOLD_TOKEN" \
  -H 'Content-Type: text/csv' \
  --data-binary 'SKU,Product name,Qty
MUG-SPECKLE,Speckled stoneware mug,120
BOWL-SALT-L,"Salt-glaze serving bowl, large",40
PLATE-SIDE,Side plate,12.5
'

JavaScript (fetch)

const response = await fetch("https://import.getmanifold.io/imports?target=inventory.item&filename=opening-stock.csv", {
  method: "POST",
  headers: { Authorization: `Bearer ${process.env.MANIFOLD_TOKEN}`, "Content-Type": "text/csv" },
  body: "SKU,Product name,Qty\nMUG-SPECKLE,Speckled stoneware mug,120\nBOWL-SALT-L,\"Salt-glaze serving bowl, large\",40\nPLATE-SIDE,Side plate,12.5\n",
});
if (!response.ok) throw new Error(`${response.status}: ${await response.text()}`);
const answer = await response.json();

Request body · text/csv

SKU,Product name,Qty
MUG-SPECKLE,Speckled stoneware mug,120
BOWL-SALT-L,"Salt-glaze serving bowl, large",40
PLATE-SIDE,Side plate,12.5

Response · 202 · application/json

{
  "id": "imp_01a15890-2c00-7a11-8b22-3c4d5e6f7a80",
  "target": "inventory.item",
  "filename": "opening-stock.csv",
  "status": "staged",
  "headers": [
    "SKU",
    "Product name",
    "Qty"
  ],
  "progress": {
    "rows": 4,
    "applied": 0,
    "failed": 0,
    "skipped": 0
  },
  "createdAt": "2026-10-20T06:00:00.000Z",
  "updatedAt": "2026-10-20T06:00:00.000Z"
}

The panel writes this call in other languages. It does not send it: Manifold's APIs do not take calls from a web page on another site, so run the call from your own code or terminal. The whole API as OpenAPI: import-export.openapi.json. Base URL https://import.getmanifold.io.

Errors

Every refusal is a status and a JSON body whose _tag names it. A refused call changes nothing.

`400`

Refusal	What it means	What to do
`UnreadableUpload` reason	The body is not a CSV file Manifold can read.	Send the file as `text/csv`, comma-separated, with a header row.

`401`

Refusal	What it means	What to do
`Unauthorized` reason	The token is missing, expired or not one Manifold issued.	Get a fresh token and send the call again.
`TokenAlreadyUsed` tokenId	A single-use app token was already spent.	Mint a new token for this call.

`402`

Refusal	What it means	What to do
`SubscriptionRequired` status	The organization's subscription has lapsed, so writes are refused.	An owner settles billing. Reads still work meanwhile.

`403`

Refusal	What it means	What to do
`TenantRequired` userId	The token names no organization.	Choose the organization, then get a new token.
`ScopeRequired` required	The token's roles do not grant the scope this call needs.	Ask an owner or admin for a role that grants it.

`409`

Refusal	What it means	What to do
`MirroredFromSource` source	This area is fed by your source system until the organization goes live.	Make the change in the source system, or go live first.

`503`

Refusal	What it means	What to do
`RequestLogUnavailable` tokenId, reason	The service could not record the request, so it did nothing.	Send the same request again shortly.

How refusals work everywhere: Errors.

Used in

Bulk import from a spreadsheet, step 2: Upload the file