How to import an ESX roof sketch into Xactimate, online and desktop, and check it against the report

The import is a few clicks in Xactimate online or desktop. The part that saves the claim is the ten-minute check of facets, pitches and edge lengths that comes after it.

By RoofStruct Team6 min read

In Xactimate online, open the Projects page, click +New Project, switch to the Import tab, pick the .esx file and click Import. In Xactimate desktop, go to Tools → Data Transfer → Import, point it at the folder that holds the file, then Select Data and Import. Then, before you write a single line item, check the sketch against the PDF that came with it.

That last step is the one people skip, and it's the one that keeps a claim from going short. The rest of this guide walks through both import paths and a check you can run in about ten minutes.

Before you import: a 60-second checklist

Run through this with the delivery email open:

  • You have both files. An ordered RoofStruct sketch comes as one sketch file plus one printable PDF of the same drawing. Save them in the same job folder.
  • It's the right format. If you picked Symbility® .XML at checkout instead of .ESX, that file goes into Symbility, not Xactimate. Same geometry, different desk.
  • The address matches the claim. Read the address on the PDF against the claim file before the file goes anywhere.
  • You have a Xactimate® licence. The .ESX needs your own copy of Xactimate; the PDF opens anywhere.
  • You know who owns the project. If an adjuster already started a project for this loss, ask whether they want the sketch imported as a new project or sent to them.

Path 1: Xactimate online

Verisk's help for Xactimate online describes the import as a five-step flow from the Projects page (checked Oct 2026):

  1. On the Projects page, click +New Project.
  2. In the small New Project window, switch to the Import tab.
  3. Click Select a file from your computer.
  4. Pick the .esx file and click Open.
  5. Click Import.

Two notes from the same page: it takes one file at a time, and you can skip the window entirely by dragging the .esx file from your computer onto the Projects page.

Path 2: Xactimate desktop

The desktop import runs through Data Transfer, per Verisk's desktop help (checked Oct 2026):

  1. From the project dashboard, open Tools.
  2. Under Data Transfer, choose Import.
  3. Click the folder icon and select the folder on your computer that holds the .esx file.
  4. Back on Tools, click Select Data to open the Data Transfer dialog.
  5. Select the file and click Import.

If you don't see Data Transfer at all, it isn't a broken install. Verisk notes the option isn't available to every user; your instance administrator can change your security group in Xactimate Admin.

The ten-minute check against the report

The sketch carries geometry only: roof outline, facets, pitches and edge lengths. No line items, prices or labour. So the check is about geometry too. Open the sketch next to the PDF and go down this list.

A worked example

Say the PDF reads 2,640 sq ft of roof area across 9 facets, a 6/12 main pitch and a 10/12 front gable, with 48 ft of ridge, 62 ft of hip, 31 ft of valley, 186 ft of eave and 44 ft of rake.

  1. Facet count. Count the planes in the sketch. Nine on the PDF, nine in the sketch. If one is missing, it's usually a small porch roof or a cricket.
  2. Total roof area. It should land on the PDF's 2,640 sq ft, give or take rounding. A gap of 100 sq ft or more means a facet is missing, doubled, or carrying the wrong pitch.
  3. Pitch per facet. Check the steep ones first. A 10/12 gable keyed as 6/12 shrinks that facet’s area by about 14 % (pitch factor 1.118 against 1.302) and quietly short-changes the shingles.
  4. Edge lengths by type. Ridge, hip, valley, eave, rake. These feed ridge cap, valley metal, starter and drip edge, so a wrong label costs real material. 31 ft of valley on the PDF should be 31 ft of valley in the sketch, not 31 ft of hip.
  5. One field measurement. Compare one eave you taped, or the pitch from your inspection notes, with the sketch. One known number anchors the rest.

If you ordered a measurement report and the sketch in the same checkout, both are produced for the same property, so the numbers should match line for line. If they don't, or the sketch is wrong against the roof, tell us from the order page: a wrong measurement is corrected or refunded, your choice, within 30 days.

For the pitch numbers themselves, how to calculate roof pitch has the pitch factor table to sanity-check a facet by hand.

Where you trip

  • Importing the .XML into Xactimate. Symbility's format belongs in Symbility. No need to re-order: check which format you picked and open it in the right tool.
  • Hunting for Data Transfer. If it's missing in desktop, it's a permissions setting, not a bad file. Ask your administrator.
  • Dropping several files at once in online. The import takes one file at a time.
  • Writing line items before the check. Every quantity downstream comes from the sketch. Ten minutes now beats a supplement later.
  • Expecting walls you didn't order. Exterior walls are an add-on drawn in the same sketch file. If the estimate needs the walls, tick it at checkout.
  • Trusting the pin. On rural lots and new subdivisions, confirm the roof on the PDF is the building on the claim.

What the file is and when you need one is covered in what is an ESX file. Ordering the sketch, with or without the walls, is on the ESX sketch page.

FAQ

Why can't I see Data Transfer in Xactimate desktop?

Verisk says Data Transfer isn't available to all users. Your instance administrator can update your security group in Xactimate Admin.

Can I import more than one .esx file at once in Xactimate online?

No. The online import takes one file at a time, through the Import tab or by dragging the file onto the Projects page.

Does an imported RoofStruct sketch come with line items?

No. It's geometry only: outline, facets, pitches and edge lengths. Your own price list and macros do the pricing in Xactimate.

How fast does an ordered sketch arrive?

Usually delivered within 4 hours (turnaround can vary with volume and complexity), seven days a week, Eastern Time.

Sources

Checked Oct 2026:

RoofStruct is an independent service and is not affiliated with or endorsed by Verisk Analytics, Inc., the maker of Xactimate®, or with CoreLogic.

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