---
title: Adding Clients
description: "Adding a client creates the record that your projects, invoices and contracts hang off, and it can invite the client to the client portal in the same step. You can add clients one at a time from the **Add New…"
url: "https://help.onesuite.io/docs/adding-clients/"
updated: "2026-10-01"
category: Client Management
---

# Adding Clients

Adding a client creates the record that your projects, invoices and contracts hang off, and it can invite the client to the client portal in the same step. You can add clients one at a time from the **Add New Client** drawer, convert them from a won deal in the CRM, or import many at once from a CSV file.

**In this guide you'll learn how to:**

- Add an individual client
- Add a company client and the people who work there
- Invite a client to the client portal while you create them
- Set a portal brand color for one client
- Choose between adding, converting and importing clients

## Before you start

- **Clients** is always on. It cannot be switched off in **Settings**, **Customize Navigation**, so every business has it in the sidebar under **Client**.
- You need permission to create clients. Without it, the **Add New** button does not show.

## How to add an individual client

You add an individual client by choosing **Individual** as the client type and entering their name and email.

1. Click **Clients** in the sidebar.
2. Click **Add New** in the top right. On an empty list, you can click **Add client** instead.
3. In the **Add New Client** drawer, set **Client Type** to **Individual**.
4. Enter the **Client Name**.
5. Enter the **Client Email**.
6. Optional: tick **Invite to client portal** and choose their access level. The next section explains the options.
7. Click **Create Client**. If you ticked the portal invite, the button reads **Create & Send Invite**.

The client appears in your list straight away.

## How to add a company client

You add a company client by choosing **Company** as the client type, then adding the people who work there in the **People** section.

1. Click **Clients** in the sidebar, then click **Add New**.
2. Set **Client Type** to **Company**.
3. Enter the **Company Name**.
4. Enter the **Primary Email** for the company.
5. Under **People**, click **Add contact** and enter the **Person name** and **Email**.
6. Leave **Invite to client portal** ticked if this person should log in to the portal, and choose their access level. Untick it to save them as a contact only.
7. Tick **Point of contact** on the person you will talk to most.
8. Click **Add contact** again for each other person at the company.
9. Click **Create Client**, or **Create & Send Invite** if anyone is invited.

![Add New Client drawer with Client Type set to Company and two person cards in the People section, one marked Point of contact](https://help.onesuite.io/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/adding-clients-1.webp)

### How people at a company work

- Only one person can be the **Point of contact**. Ticking it on a second person moves it to them.
- Each new person card starts with **Invite to client portal** ticked.
- Every person needs a name. A person also needs an email if you invite them to the portal or make them the point of contact.
- A person you don't invite is saved as a contact record only, with no portal access. Their card says so.
- To remove a person before you save, click **Remove person** on their card.

## How to invite a client to the portal as you create them

You invite a client by ticking **Invite to client portal** in the drawer, and OneSuite emails the invitation when you click **Create & Send Invite**.

1. Tick **Invite to client portal**. For an individual client it sits under the email field. For a company client it is on each person card.
2. Choose an access level in the **Access** control. It shows the name of the preset you picked, or **Custom** if you set one-off options.
3. On a company client with more than one invited person, click **Apply to everyone** after you change one person's access to give everyone the same access.
4. Optional: tick **Include a personal invite message**, then write your **Message**. Use the `{client name}` token to greet each person by name, or click **Reset to template** to start again from the default text.
5. Click **Create & Send Invite**.

The message is sent to everyone marked **Invite to client portal**. The access levels you can pick are the presets your business keeps in **Settings**, **Client Portal**, **Access Presets**. Open **Settings** from the account menu: click your name at the bottom of the sidebar, then **Settings**.

If you skip the invitation now, you can send it later from the client's profile. See [Client Profiles](https://help.onesuite.io/docs/client-profiles/).

## How to set a portal brand color for one client

You can give one client's portal its own brand color in the **Portal appearance** section of the drawer.

1. In the **Add New Client** drawer, open **Portal appearance**.
2. Enter a hex value in **Brand color**, or click the swatch to pick one.
3. Leave it blank to keep the business default, shown as **Inherit business default**.

If the value is not a valid hex color, the drawer shows **Enter a valid hex color, e.g. #006FEE** and will not create the client until you fix it.

## Add New Client fields

| Field | Required | Notes |
| --- | --- | --- |
| **Client Type** | Yes | **Individual** or **Company**. Shows only when your business has more than one client type. |
| **Client Name** or **Company Name** | Yes | The label depends on the client type. |
| **Client Email** or **Primary Email** | Yes | Must be a valid email address. |
| **Invite to client portal** | No | Individual clients: under the email. Company clients: on each person card. |
| **People** | No | Company clients only. Each card has **Person name**, **Email**, **Invite to client portal** and **Point of contact**. |
| **Include a personal invite message** | No | Shows once anyone is invited. |
| **Brand color** | No | Under **Portal appearance**. Overrides the business default for this client's portal. |

If a required field is missing, the drawer shows a message such as **Client name is required**, **Primary email is required** or **Valid email is required**, and the create button stays disabled.

## Other ways to add clients

You can also convert a won deal from the CRM or import a CSV file of clients.

- **From the CRM:** open the opportunity and click **Convert to Client**. If a company is linked, the company becomes the client. If not, the point of contact becomes the client. See [Creating Opportunity](https://help.onesuite.io/docs/creating-opportunity/).
- **From a CSV file:** on the **Clients** list, open the table's **Options** menu and click **Import**. The file can hold up to 1,000 rows. See [Imports, Exports, and Search](https://help.onesuite.io/docs/imports-exports-and-search/).

## Adding more information after you create a client

The drawer asks only for the essentials. Open the client's profile to add contact details, status, priority, industry, source and company fields, and to manage people and the point of contact later. See [Client Profiles](https://help.onesuite.io/docs/client-profiles/).

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## FAQs

### How do I add a new client in OneSuite?

Click **Clients** in the sidebar, click **Add New**, choose the client type, and enter a name and email. Click **Create Client** to save. Everything else can be added later from the client's profile.

### What is the difference between an individual and a company client?

An individual client is one person with their own email and portal invite. A company client is an organization with a primary email and a **People** section, where you add the people who work there and mark one as the point of contact.

### Why is the Create Client button greyed out?

A required field is missing or invalid. Check that the name and email are filled in, that every invited person or point of contact has a valid email, and that any **Brand color** is a valid hex value.

### Can I add a client without inviting them to the client portal?

Yes. Leave **Invite to client portal** unticked, or on a company client untick it on each person card, and the client is saved as a record only. You can invite them later from their profile.

### Can I just keep my clients in a spreadsheet instead?

You can, but a spreadsheet cannot link a client to their projects, invoices and contracts, or give them a portal login. If your list already lives in a spreadsheet, save it as a CSV file and import it into **Clients** in one go.

### How do I add many clients at once?

Import them from a CSV file. On the **Clients** list, open **Options** and click **Import**, then map your columns and preview the data before you start the import.

## What to do next

**Work with the client record:** Add details, people and portal access in [Client Profiles](https://help.onesuite.io/docs/client-profiles/).

**Bring in a whole list:** Upload a CSV of clients with [Imports, Exports, and Search](https://help.onesuite.io/docs/imports-exports-and-search/).

**Start the work:** Set up a project for your new client with [Laying the Groundwork: Project Creation in OneSuite](https://help.onesuite.io/docs/project-creation/).