Vendor Management

Vendors are the businesses and individuals you pay through Topkey Bill Pay — contractors, cleaning crews, maintenance providers, and any other service providers you work with. This page explains how to create and manage vendors, configure payment settings, collect banking details securely, and keep your vendor list organized.

Browsing Your Vendor List

Navigate to Bill Pay → Vendors to see all vendors associated with your account.

The vendor list shows each vendor's name, assigned processors, payment method, routing number, ACH status, and a Combine payments toggle. Use the tabs at the top to switch between All, Active, and Archived vendors.

To search for a specific vendor, type into the Search bar at the top of the list. Use Filters to narrow results by additional criteria.

Creating a New Vendor

1. From the Vendors list, click New Vendor in the top-right corner.
2. In the New Vendor panel that appears, fill in the General Information section:
   • Vendor Name — enter a clear, recognizable name for the vendor.
   • Phone number — include the country code and phone number.
   • Tax ID — enter the vendor's federal tax identification number if applicable.
   • 1099 Vendor — set to Yes if this vendor should be tracked for 1099 reporting; otherwise leave as No.
   • Upload W9 — attach the vendor's W-9 form using Choose File.
   • Upload COI forms — attach any certificates of insurance using Choose Files.
3. Set the Payment Term (for example, Net 15, Net 30, Net 60) to define when payment is due after a bill is received.
4. Set the Payment Method — choose ACH, Check, or Manual.
5. If you selected ACH, complete the ACH Information section:
   • Beneficiary Name
   • Account Type (checking or savings)
   • Routing Number
   • Account Number
6. Click Save to create the vendor.

Editing a Vendor

To edit an existing vendor's details, click the edit icon next to their name in the vendor list, or open the vendor's detail page and click Edit in the top-right corner. All fields — including general information, payment settings, and banking details — can be updated from the edit view.

Vendor Detail Page

Click a vendor's name in the list to open their detail page.

The detail page is organized into four tabs:

• Contacts — manage the people associated with this vendor.
• Addresses — view and manage addresses on file.
• Bills — see all bills associated with this vendor.
• Processors — manage which team members are responsible for this vendor's bills.

The right sidebar displays key details including phone number, payment term, payment type, Tax ID, and banking information for both ACH and wire payments.

Managing Vendor Contacts

The Contacts tab on a vendor's detail page shows everyone associated with that vendor. You can add multiple contacts and designate one as the preferred contact for communications.

Adding a Contact

1. Open the vendor's detail page and select the Contacts tab.
2. Click Add Contact.
3. Enter the contact's First Name, Last Name, Email, and Phone number.
4. Click Save.

Setting a Preferred Contact

Each contact row has a star icon on the left. Click the star to mark that contact as preferred. A filled (highlighted) star indicates the preferred contact. Only one contact should be marked as preferred at a time.

Sending a Secure ACH Link

Rather than entering a vendor's banking details yourself, you can send the vendor a secure link so they can submit their own ACH information directly. This protects sensitive banking data.

To send a Secure ACH Link to an individual contact:

1. Go to the Contacts tab on the vendor's detail page.
2. Find the contact you want to reach and click Send Secure ACH Link.
3. Choose how to deliver the link:
   • Send via Email — sends a secure link to the contact's email address.
   • Send via SMS — sends a secure link to the contact's phone number (only available if a phone number is on file).
4. Confirm the prompt to send.

Vendor Payment Settings

Payment settings can be configured when creating a vendor or updated at any time through the edit view.

• Payment Method — choose how you pay this vendor:
  • ACH — direct bank transfer using the vendor's routing and account numbers.
  • Check — physical check payment.
  • Manual — record payments made outside of Topkey.
• Payment Term — set the standard due-date window for this vendor's bills (for example, Net 15, Net 30, Net 60). Topkey uses this to automatically calculate due dates when bills are created.
• Combine payments — when enabled, multiple bills from this vendor can be paid in a single transaction. This toggle is visible directly in the vendor list and can also be set in the edit view.

Assigning Processors to a Vendor

Processors are team members responsible for managing and processing a vendor's bills. Assigning processors helps your team know who owns each vendor relationship.

To manage processors:

1. Open the vendor's detail page.
2. Select the Processors tab.
3. Add or remove team members as processors for that vendor.

Processors assigned to a vendor appear in the Processors column of the vendor list.

Bulk Actions

You can take action on multiple vendors at once by selecting the checkboxes next to vendor names in the list. Once vendors are selected, the following bulk actions become available:

• Merge Vendors — combine selected duplicate vendor records into one (see Merging Vendors below).
• Collect ACH Info — send banking information requests to all selected vendors at once via email or SMS.
• Delete — permanently remove the selected vendor records.
• More — access additional bulk operations.

Importing Vendors via CSV

If you have a large number of vendors to add at once, you can import them using a CSV file.

1. From the Vendors list, open the Actions menu.
2. Select Import CSV.
3. Follow the on-screen instructions to upload your file and map the columns to Topkey's vendor fields.

Exporting Your Vendor List

To export your full vendor list:

1. From the Vendors list, open the Actions menu.
2. Select Export CSV.

This downloads a CSV file of all your vendor records.

Merging Vendors

If you have duplicate vendor records — for example, the same contractor added twice under slightly different names — you can merge them into a single record.

1. From the Vendors list, open the Actions menu and select Merge vendors, or select the duplicate vendor records using their checkboxes and choose Merge Vendors from the bulk actions bar.
2. Follow the prompts to select which vendor record to keep and confirm the merge.

Archiving and Restoring Vendors

Archiving a Vendor

To archive a vendor you no longer work with, click the delete (trash) icon next to their name in the vendor list. Archived vendors are moved to the Archived tab and no longer appear in the Active view.

Restoring an Archived Vendor

If you need to reactivate an archived vendor:

1. Switch to the Archived tab in the vendor list.
2. Find the vendor you want to restore.
3. Use the restore action to move them back to active status.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the difference between ACH and wire banking information on a vendor's detail page? ACH is used for standard electronic bank transfers processed through the ACH network and is the most common payment method for recurring vendor bills. Wire banking information is used for wire transfers, which are typically faster but may carry additional fees. Both sets of details are stored separately on the vendor record.

Can a vendor submit their own banking details instead of me entering them manually? Yes. Use the Send Secure ACH Link feature on the vendor's Contacts tab to send the vendor a secure link via email or SMS. The vendor fills in their own banking details through that link, so you never need to handle the information directly.

What happens to bills associated with a vendor if I archive them? Archiving a vendor removes them from your active vendor list but does not delete their historical bills or payment records. You can restore the vendor at any time from the Archived tab to make them active again.