Kaizen #13 - Bulk Write API

Kaizen #13 - Bulk Write API

Hello everyone!

Welcome to yet another post in the Kaizen series.
This week, we are going to discuss the Bulk Write API.

What is the Bulk Write API?

The bulk write API allows you to insert, update, and upsert records in a module in Zoho CRM in bulk. The primary difference between the bulk write API, and the Insert, Update, Upsert records API, is the number of records that you can handle. 

While you can insert, update, and upsert, only 100 records via the Insert, Update, and Upsert Records API per call, you can handle 25000 records via a Bulk Write API call.

When you should use the Bulk Write API?
  1. When you want to insert, update, or upsert more than 100 records per API call. 
  2. When you want to perform background processes like migration and initial data sync between Zoho CRM and external services.
Below are the differences between Insert, Update, Upsert Records API and the Bulk Write API.

Insert, Update, Upsert Records
Bulk Write API
You can insert, update, or upsert only 100 records per API call.
You can insert, update, or upsert 25000 records per API call.
The response is available instantly.
The response is not available instantly; the bulk write job is scheduled, and the status is available after job completion in the callback URL.
You will receive a success response. 
A downloadable ZIP file containing a CSV file, is available with ID, status, and errors if any.

How does the Bulk Write API work?

To insert, update, or upsert records in bulk, follow the below steps:

  1. Prepare your CSV file
  2. Upload your file
  3. Create a bulk write job
  4. Check the job status
  5. Download the result
Now, let us see each step in detail.

1. Prepare your CSV file

The Bulk Write API only accepts a CSV file compressed into a ZIP file as input. The first row should contain the field API names. Refer to the field metadata API, to get the field API names. Each subsequent row contains the data to be written in Zoho CRM. You can insert, update, or upsert records only in a single module through one bulk write API call. Refer to attachments to get a sample ZIP file to bulk-insert contacts. 

Input format for each data type

Datatype
Description
Single Line
Accepts up to 255 characters.
Accepts alphanumeric and special characters.
Ex: Mike O'Leary
Multi-Line
Small - accepts up to 2000 characters.
Large - accepts up to 32000 characters.
Ex: This is a sample description.
Email
Accepts valid email IDs.
Phone
Accepts up to 30 characters. This limit may vary based on the value configured in 'Number of characters allowed' in the properties pop-up of the field, in UI.
Accepts only numeric characters and '+' (to add extensions). 
Ex: 9800000099
Picklist
You can pass an existing pick list value. If you give a new one, it is automatically added to the pick list set.
The pick list value accepts all alphanumeric and special characters.
Ex: auto mobile
Multiselect Picklist
You can either pass the existing pick list values or add a new one. The values are separated by semicolon(;).
The pick list value accepts all alphanumeric and special characters.
Ex: Analytics;Bigdata
Date
Accepts date in yyyy-MM-dd format.
Ex: 2019-08-28
Date/Time
Accepts date and time in yyyy-MM-ddTHH:mm:ss±HH:mm
ISO 8601 format.
Number
Accepts numbers up to 9 digits. This limit may vary based on the value configured in 'Maximum digits allowed' in the properties pop-up of the field, in UI.
Accepts only numeric values.
Ex: 350
Currency
Before the decimal point - accepts numbers up to 16 digits.  This limit may vary based on the value configured in 'Maximum digits allowed' in the properties pop-up of the field, in UI.
After the decimal point - accepts precision up to 9 digits. This limit may vary based on the value configured in 'Number of decimal paces' in the properties pop-up of the field, in UI.
Decimal
Before the decimal point - accepts numbers up to 16 digits. This limit may vary based on the value configured in 'Maximum digits allowed' in the properties pop-up of the field, in UI.
After the decimal point - accepts precision up to 9 digits. This limit may vary based on the value configured in 'Number of decimal places' in the properties pop-up of the field, in UI.
Accepts only numeric values.
Ex: 250000.50
Percent
Accepts numbers up to 5 digits.
Accepts only numeric values.
Ex: 25
Long Integer
Accepts numbers up to 18 digits. This limit may vary based on the value configured in 'Maximum digits allowed' in the properties pop-up of the field, in UI.
Accepts only numeric values.
Ex: 0012345600012
Checkbox
Accepts Boolean values (true,false).
Ex: true
URL
Accepts valid URLs.
Lookup
Accepts the unique ID of the record, which you can get through the get records API.
Use the dot(.) operator to link the record. For instance, if there is an account lookup in the Contacts module, you can give the column name as Account.id
Ex: Account.id : 4150868000001136302

Note:
Multiselect and User datatype fields are not supported in Bulk Write.

Here is a sample content for a CSV file with different field types.



Note:
  1. To give multiple values for a multi-select pick list field, enclose them in double quotes("") and separate each value with the semicolon(;).
  2. If your multi-line field has more than one line, input them directly by enclosing them in double quotes("").
2. Upload your CSV file

This involves making a POST API call, with the ZIP file containing the required data. The file is passed as form-data input, with key as file. When the call is successful, you will receive a file_id which you can further use to create a bulk write job.

Headers

Header Name
Description
feature
bulk-write
X-CRM-ORG
Your zgid which you get from the organization API.




3. Create a bulk write job

In this step, make a POST API call with the file_id obtained from the previous step, the callback URL, operation type (insert, update, upsert), module, and field API names. When the call is successful, you will receive a job ID in the response. You can use this ID in another request to poll for the status of the job.

Request URL

{{api-domain}}/crm/bulk/v2/write

Sample Input for bulk insert

{
    "operation": "insert",
    "callback": {
        "method": "post"
    },
    "resource": [
        {
            "type": "data",
            "module": "Contacts",
            "file_id": "4150868000001038001",
            "field_mappings": [
                {
                    "api_name": "Last_Name",
                    "index": 0,
                    "default_value": {
                        "value": "DefaultValue"
                    }
                },
                {
                    "api_name": "Email",
                    "index": 1
                },
                {
                    "api_name": "Phone",
                    "index": 2
                }
            ]
        }
    ]
}

Sample Input for Bulk Update

{
  "operation": "update",
  "callBack": {
    "method": "post"
  },
  "resource": [
    {
      "type": "data",
      "module": "Contacts",
      "file_id": "4150868000001123001",
      "field_mappings": [
        {
          "api_name": "Last_Name",
          "index": 0
        },
        {
          "api_name": "Email",
          "index": 1
        },
        {
          "api_name": "Phone",
          "index": 2,
          "ignore_empty": true
        }
      ],
      "find_by": "Email"
    }
  ]
}

Input Keys

Key
Description
operation
string, mandatory
The operation to be done. The possible values are—insert, update, upsert.
insert - To insert records in bulk.
update - To update existing records in bulk.
upsert - To update if the record exists or insert the record.
callback
JSON object, mandatory
The callback details. Contains callback URL in the "callback" key and the "method" as post. 
resource
JSON array, mandatory
The details of the data in the ZIP file that is uploaded. 
  • "type" with value "data "
  • "module"- It is the module (API name) you want to write the data in, from the uploaded CSV file.  Refer to the module metadata for more details.
  • "file_id" - It is the file ID obtained in the previous step.
field_mappings
JSON array, mandatory
The details about the fields given in the CSV file. Each object corresponds to each field in the CSV file. Mention the position of the fields in the CSV file in the "index" key, that must start from 0. 
"default_value" key can be used when a few fields are left blank, and you want the system to fill the default details.
ignore_empty
boolean, optional
If you have a few empty fields while updating the record and you want the system to ignore it, input the value as true.
find_by
string, mandatory (for Update and Upsert)
The system finds the record to be updated by the "find_by" field. It must be a unique field configured in Zoho CRM. 

To check the same, go to Setup > Modules and Fields > Choose Module > Choose Layout > Choose the field > Click on more options > Check if Do not allow duplicate values is enabled. 
Using field metadata API, you can get which fields can be set as unique fields in the CRM.



4. Check job status

The Bulk Write API supports polling and callback. 

Polling
You can poll to check the status of the scheduled bulk write job with the job ID you received in the previous step.

Request URL: {{api-domain}}/crm/bulk/v2/write/{job_id}
Request Method: GET



Sample Response

  1. The status can be either ADDED, INPROGRESS, or COMPLETED. Only the COMPLETED jobs will have the "download-URL" key in the response. 
  2. The "file" JSON object in the response represents the total count of records (added, skipped, updated). If the status is mentioned as "skipped" for any record, the reason will be displayed under the ERRORS column, in the downloaded ZIP file. 
{
  "status": "COMPLETED",
  "character_encoding": "UTF-8",
  "resource": [
    {
      "status": "COMPLETED",
      "type": "data",
      "module": "Contacts",
      "field_mappings": [
        {
          "api_name": "Email",
          "index": 1,
          "format": null,
          "find_by": null,
          "module": null,
          "default_value": null
        },
        {
          "api_name": "Last_Name",
          "index": 0,
          "format": null,
          "find_by": null,
          "module": null,
          "default_value": {
            "name": null,
            "module": null,
            "value": "DefaultValue"
          }
        },
        {
          "api_name": "Phone",
          "index": 2,
          "format": null,
          "find_by": null,
          "module": null,
          "default_value": null
        }
      ],
      "file": {
        "status": "COMPLETED",
        "name": "Contacts.csv",
        "added_count": 7,
        "skipped_count": 0,
        "updated_count": 0,
        "total_count": 7
      }
    }
  ],
  "id": "4150868000001060014",
  "callback": {
    "method": "post"
  },
  "result": {
  },
  "created_by": {
    "id": "4150868000000225013",
    "name": "Patricia Boyle"
  },
  "operation": "insert",
  "created_time": "2020-01-03T15:19:52+05:30"
}

Callback
If you do not want to poll for the status of the job, you can wait for the system to notify you of job completion on the callback URL provided in the POST request.

  • The state indicates the successful completion ("state":"COMPLETED") or failure ("state":"FAILED") of the job.
  • The callback response will also contain the download URL if the job was completed successfully.

5. Download the result

In this step you can get the result of the bulk write job in a ZIP containing the CSV file. Call the 'download_url' to download the result. The CSV file will contain the first three mapped columns from the uploaded file, and three more columns—STATUS, RECORD_ID, and ERRORS.

Request URL: {{api-domain}}/crm/bulk/v2/write/{job_id}/result

Sample Response



You can see that out of four records, one was skipped because the unique field had a duplicate value.

Limitations
  • You can upload only one ZIP file per bulk write API call.
  • You can bulk write to only one module per API call.
  • The size of the ZIP file being uploaded must not exceed 25 MB. If the file size exceeds the size limit, you must split the file and schedule it as multiple bulk write jobs. Also, you can bulk write only up to 25000 records with 200 column headers per bulk write API call.
  • Every successfully scheduled bulk write job reduces 500 credits from your daily credit limit. 
  • All the mandatory fields must be given in the CSV file if you are trying to insert records. Similarly, ID is mandatory when you are trying to update records.
  • Subforms are not supported in Bulk Write.
  • Consider that you have a lookup field in the Leads module, that looks up to other leads. You cannot have the value of this field as another Lead that is being written in this bulk write job. In other words, you can only lookup to an existing lead.
    For limitations, refer to limitations in our API guide.
    We hope you found this post useful. If you have any further queries, reach out to us at support@zohocrm.com or let us know in the comments section.

    Cheers!
        Previous 'Kaizen' - Bulk Read API
        Next 'Kaizen' - Notification API



    Access your files securely from anywhere









                          Zoho Developer Community




                                                • Desk Community Learning Series


                                                • Digest


                                                • Functions


                                                • Meetups


                                                • Kbase


                                                • Resources


                                                • Glossary


                                                • Desk Marketplace


                                                • MVP Corner


                                                • Word of the Day


                                                • Ask the Experts



                                                          • Sticky Posts

                                                          • Kaizen #217 - Actions APIs : Tasks

                                                            Welcome to another week of Kaizen! In last week's post we discussed Email Notifications APIs which act as the link between your Workflow automations and you. We have discussed how Zylker Cloud Services uses Email Notifications API in their custom dashboard.
                                                          • Kaizen #216 - Actions APIs : Email Notifications

                                                            Welcome to another week of Kaizen! For the last three weeks, we have been discussing Zylker's workflows. We successfully updated a dormant workflow, built a new one from the ground up and more. But our work is not finished—these automated processes are
                                                          • Kaizen #152 - Client Script Support for the new Canvas Record Forms

                                                            Hello everyone! Have you ever wanted to trigger actions on click of a canvas button, icon, or text mandatory forms in Create/Edit and Clone Pages? Have you ever wanted to control how elements behave on the new Canvas Record Forms? This can be achieved
                                                          • Kaizen #142: How to Navigate to Another Page in Zoho CRM using Client Script

                                                            Hello everyone! Welcome back to another exciting Kaizen post. In this post, let us see how you can you navigate to different Pages using Client Script. In this Kaizen post, Need to Navigate to different Pages Client Script ZDKs related to navigation A.
                                                          • Kaizen #210 - Answering your Questions | Event Management System using ZDK CLI

                                                            Hello Everyone, Welcome back to yet another post in the Kaizen Series! As you already may know, for the Kaizen #200 milestone, we asked for your feedback and many of you suggested topics for us to discuss. We have been writing on these topics over the


                                                          Manage your brands on social media



                                                                Zoho TeamInbox Resources



                                                                    Zoho CRM Plus Resources

                                                                      Zoho Books Resources


                                                                        Zoho Subscriptions Resources

                                                                          Zoho Projects Resources


                                                                            Zoho Sprints Resources


                                                                              Qntrl Resources


                                                                                Zoho Creator Resources



                                                                                    Zoho CRM Resources

                                                                                    • CRM Community Learning Series

                                                                                      CRM Community Learning Series


                                                                                    • Kaizen

                                                                                      Kaizen

                                                                                    • Functions

                                                                                      Functions

                                                                                    • Meetups

                                                                                      Meetups

                                                                                    • Kbase

                                                                                      Kbase

                                                                                    • Resources

                                                                                      Resources

                                                                                    • Digest

                                                                                      Digest

                                                                                    • CRM Marketplace

                                                                                      CRM Marketplace

                                                                                    • MVP Corner

                                                                                      MVP Corner







                                                                                        Design. Discuss. Deliver.

                                                                                        Create visually engaging stories with Zoho Show.

                                                                                        Get Started Now


                                                                                          Zoho Show Resources

                                                                                            Zoho Writer

                                                                                            Get Started. Write Away!

                                                                                            Writer is a powerful online word processor, designed for collaborative work.

                                                                                              Zoho CRM コンテンツ






                                                                                                Nederlandse Hulpbronnen


                                                                                                    ご検討中の方







                                                                                                            • Recent Topics

                                                                                                            • Collections Management: #5 Convenience on Offer, using Self-Checkout

                                                                                                              "Is this the right page? Oh, now, it wants my address again. Why am I being redirected?" These were the exact thoughts running through Karan's mind as he tried to subscribe to an application he genuinely liked. He clicked "Buy Now", expecting a quick
                                                                                                            • Uploading a signed template from Sign to Creator

                                                                                                              Good day, Please help me on how to load a signed document back into Creator after the process has been completed in Sign. Below is the code that I am trying, pdfFile = response.toFile("SignedDocument_4901354000000372029.pdf"); info pdfFile; // Attach
                                                                                                            • PROBLEMA

                                                                                                              Salve, non riesco a inviare email, e mi esce una tabela errore temporaneo. come posso risolvere il problema ?
                                                                                                            • Tip #50- A Closer Look at the Unattended Access Dashboard- 'Insider Insights'

                                                                                                              Having complete visibility and quick access to everything you need certainly makes managing multiple remote devices a lot easier, and that is precisely what the Unattended Access Dashboard in Zoho Assist is designed to offer. Once you go to the Unattended
                                                                                                            • How to update custom multi-user field in Zoho Projects?

                                                                                                              I'm trying to update custom multi-user fields in Zoho Projects via a Deluge function in CRM. The code I have so far is below. It works for updating standard project fields and single-line custom fields, but it does not work to update multi-user fields.
                                                                                                            • Tip of the Week #75– Manage your social media messages from a single shared inbox.

                                                                                                              Are you tired of jumping between apps or browser tabs to reply to your business's Facebook and Instagram DMs? Handling customer messages on social media might seem simple, but switching between multiple platforms can easily lead to lost messages, duplicate
                                                                                                            • Zoho Map integration tasks have changed - you need to "Locate all instances of Zoho Map integration tasks in your Deluge scripts by searching for the v1 marker... before 16 January 2026"

                                                                                                              The Zoho Map deluge integration task has been changed (as at 21 October 2025) to provide a more structured, JSON-like response. This change affects all three Zoho Map integration tasks (Geocode, Reverse Geocode, and Distance Between). More details can
                                                                                                            • Using files from Zoho CRM in Gemini/ChatGPT/Claude

                                                                                                              Hi all, I’ve got subscriptions to Gemini and a few other AI tools which I use for tasks like data enrichment, email composition, etc. In our workflow, we often receive various documents from clients — such as process workflows, BRDs/requirement documents
                                                                                                            • Zoho Analytics & Zoho Creator - Modified Time value

                                                                                                              I'm trying to use the Zoho Creator system field 'modified time' in Zoho Analytics, but it's consistently showing 12 hours 'out' In Zoho Creator In Zoho Analytics Is this a constant difference that I just need to correct with a timezone change - or is
                                                                                                            • Zoho CRM - Option to create Follow-Up Task

                                                                                                              When completing a Zoho CRM Task, it would be very helpful if there was an option to "Complete and Create Follow-Up Task" in the pop-up which appears. It could clone the task you are closing and then show it on the screen in edit mode, all the user would
                                                                                                            • Portal For Different Apps

                                                                                                              I found some older threads on this but didn't see anything very recent. I'm new to Zoho One so forgive me if my terminology is off a bit. I was hoping set up a single point of entry into Zoho One. So, many of the apps could be found in one single place
                                                                                                            • Calls undetected

                                                                                                              Zoho Voice records indicate my last call ended at 6:00 PM. All incoming and outgoing calls occurred between 6:00 PM and 7:00 PM.
                                                                                                            • Unable to Select Authenticated Domain as Sender

                                                                                                              We’ve already authenticated our domain, but it’s still not appearing in the sender list when we try to run a campaign. Could you please check what might be causing this issue?
                                                                                                            • Forever FREE Business Email with Zoho Mail

                                                                                                              Forever FREE Business Email with Zoho Mail: is it available?
                                                                                                            • Zoho Projects - Project Details on the Project Menu

                                                                                                              Hi Project's team, I've helped may businesses setup and use Zoho Project and one thing I see time and time again is confusion on where to find the Project Details information. I would be much more intuitive if Project Details was on the menu before Dashboard.
                                                                                                            • Introducing WhatsApp integration in Bigin

                                                                                                              Greetings! In today's business landscape, messaging apps play a significant role in customer operations. Customers can engage with businesses, seek support, ask questions, receive personalized recommendations, read reviews, and even make purchases—all
                                                                                                            • Zia Conversation Summary: Context at a glance for every customer interaction

                                                                                                              Hello everyone! Every customer conversation tells a story—but in CRM, that story is rarely in one place. A sales rep moving between multiple leads has to reopen long email threads, check call remarks, and revisit meeting notes just to remember what was
                                                                                                            • Zoho Projects - Show Task List as dropdown field on Task records

                                                                                                              Hi Project's Team, I noticed today that there is no field on a task record related to the task list it belongs to. A dropdown would be helpful for quickly moving tasks between lists while in a task. I know that you can go to "Other Actions" and choose
                                                                                                            • Changing the Default Search Criteria for Finding Duplicates

                                                                                                              Hey everyone, is it possible to adjust the default search criteria for finding and merging duplicate records? Right now, CRM uses some (in my opinion nonsensical) fields as search criteria for duplicate records which do nothing except dilute the results.
                                                                                                            • My followed tickets extension is not working under the All departments view

                                                                                                              Hi. I've installed the My followed tickets extension. However, when I try to open the extension under the all departments view, I get the following message: 'Sorry, this extension is not supported in the All Departments view.' How can I solve this p
                                                                                                            • Ticket Time Entry to Timesheet

                                                                                                              The title just about sums it up. I have searched here and not found anything relevant, but If I overlooked, then please set me straight.  We have staff that do nothing but close tickets in desk all day long. These tickets represent their timesheet. Is there a way to have this information sync or for a tech to go into their timesheet themselves and sync it with their tickets of the same timeframe?? We waste a ton of time doing timesheets and the old "Clock in/Clock out" isnt detailed enough for us!!
                                                                                                            • Calls undetected.

                                                                                                              The call is not showing on the call log.
                                                                                                            • Calls undetected

                                                                                                              Zoho is not reading calls made.
                                                                                                            • Multi-currency and Products

                                                                                                              One of the main reasons I have gone down the Zoho route is because I need multi-currency support.  However, I find that products can only be priced in the home currency, We sell to the US and UK.  However, we maintain different price lists for each. 
                                                                                                            • Archiving Contacts

                                                                                                              How do I archive a list of contacts, or individual contacts?
                                                                                                            • Missing information data Zoho inventory

                                                                                                              there some missing data in Zoho inventory connection. pick list stock counts bin location we have requested it via mail and the support team doesn’t gove feedback. has anyone achieve to get these info or to ask other ya les
                                                                                                            • Calendar Events Issues

                                                                                                              Not able to view scheduled events on my calendar
                                                                                                            • Extensions 101 webinar series: Build, integrate, and monetize with extensions

                                                                                                              Attention developers! Are you ready to take your extension development skills to the next level? We're excited to bring back the Extensions 101 webinar series with an expanded lineup of Zoho products and an introduction to more platform features. Last
                                                                                                            • Custom Related List Inside Zoho Books

                                                                                                              Hello, We can create the Related list inside the zoho books by the deluge code, I am sharing the reference code Please have a look may be it will help you. //..........Get Org Details organizationID = organization.get("organization_id"); Recordid = cm_g_a_data.get("module_record_id");
                                                                                                            • Where are recordings stored?

                                                                                                              I have hosted a couple of test meeting, used the "record" button to start and stop the recording but I am unable to find where are those recordings saved?  Can anybody help? Thanks
                                                                                                            • Zoho Desk's integration with Microsoft PowerBI delivers advanced analytics insights

                                                                                                              Hello everyone, Gaining advanced insights through reports and dashboards is one of the critical requirements of every business. In addition to key metrics tracked in Zoho Desk, such as agent performance, SLA adherence, and ticket lifecycle, businesses
                                                                                                            • Create static subforms in Zoho CRM: streamline data entry with pre-defined values

                                                                                                              Last modified on (9 July, 2025): This feature was available in early access and is currently being rolled out to customers in phases. Currently available for users in the the AU, CA, and SA DCs. It will be enabled for the remaining DCs in the next couple
                                                                                                            • IMAP error message in Zoho mail

                                                                                                              I cannot send emails today. Everything fine for years until today. Get a message: "You are yet to enable IMAP for your account. Please contact your administrator". Does anyone know how to correct this?
                                                                                                            • Enhancements to Zoho Map integration tasks

                                                                                                              Hello everyone, We're excited to announce enhancements to the Zoho Map integration tasks in Deluge, which will boost its performance. This post will walk you through the upcoming changes, explain why we're making them, and detail the steps you need to
                                                                                                            • IMAP stopped working today

                                                                                                              Hello! I've been a paid customer for more than 10 years, IMAP was always working fine. But today this is the error I've got on my iPhone: I've tried toggling the IMAP for my account (Mail -> Settings -> Mail accounts) off and on again, but that did not
                                                                                                            • Are custom portals accessible on the Zoho learn smartphone app?

                                                                                                              In other words, can users external to my organisation, once signed up, use the app in the same way as internal users? Thanks
                                                                                                            • Zoho Books/Inventory - Update Marketplace Sales Order via API

                                                                                                              Hi everyone, Does anyone know if there is a way to update Sales Orders created from a marketplace intigration (Shopify in this case) via API? I'm trying to cover a scenario where an order is changed on the Shopify end and the changes must be reflected
                                                                                                            • Conditional Layouts On Multi Select Field

                                                                                                              How we can use Conditional Layouts On Multi Select Field field? Please help.
                                                                                                            • Multiple columns in a form

                                                                                                              I am evaluating Zoho Creator. However, I am seeing almost no layout control on a form.  Just a basic 1 or 2 column format that is then imposed on the entire form.  That's not going to work for many, many real world cases. We need multiple columns per line, and we need each line/section to occupy a single column or be able to span the columns.   Someone please tell me that I'm missing something and the capability is actually there.  
                                                                                                            • Global search

                                                                                                              Hi! I think it would be great to have a global search that would give you results from all records of a database, no only for a single field of a single form as we have now. Thanks!
                                                                                                            • Next Page