The quick answer
Go to Lists > Relationships > Vendors and turn on the Edit switch in the list toolbar, next to Show Inactives. Columns you can change get a pencil icon on their heading. Click a cell, pick or type the new value, and click somewhere else. NetSuite saves that one field to that one vendor as soon as you leave the cell. There's no Save button for the list. The switch only shows up when an administrator has checked Inline Editing under Setup > Company > Enable Features, and your role, the list view and field permissions still decide which cells you can change.
The screenshots show sample data. Person and company names are fictional. Use your own vendors and values when following the steps.
Before you start
In this example, Alex Morgan at Example Supply Co. is cleaning up vendors added during onboarding. Birchwood Packaging Co., Driftwood Print Shop and Fernhill Dairy Supply have no Category, and Fernhill Dairy Supply is also missing its Email. They need Packaging, Printing and Dairy, plus orders@fernhill.example for the email. Your own Category values depend on what your account has set up.
Opening each vendor, clicking Edit, changing one field and saving takes a few page loads per vendor. Inline editing lets you fix the cell where you spotted the gap. Alex is signed in as an Administrator. With another role, you need Edit permission on vendors, and field permissions, the vendor form and subsidiary restrictions have to allow the change.
01. Check that Inline Editing is on
Go to Setup > Company > Enable Features and stay on the Company subtab. Under Data Management, Inline Editing should be checked. Here it already is, so nothing changes on this page. If it isn't, an administrator checks it and clicks Save.
02. Find the blank cells
Go to Lists > Relationships > Vendors. The list uses the Vendor General view and shows six vendors. Alder Freight Lines, Cascade Bean Importers and Elm Street Legal LLP already have a Category. Birchwood Packaging Co., Driftwood Print Shop and Fernhill Dairy Supply don't, and Fernhill Dairy Supply's Email cell is empty too.
03. Turn on the Edit switch
In the list toolbar, click the Edit switch next to Show Inactives so it turns on. In this view a pencil icon appears on the Name, Category, Phone and Email headings. Those are the columns you can change from this list. Primary Subsidiary and Login Access have no pencil, so you'd change them on the record or, where the field allows it, with Mass Update or a CSV import. Which columns get a pencil depends on your view, role and account.
The vendor names stop being links while the switch is on. Use View in the Edit | View column when you want to open a record. An Add button also appears next to New Vendor.
A pencil means the column supports inline editing in this list. It doesn't promise every row will accept a change. Validation, mandatory fields, subsidiary restrictions, workflows and scripts can still refuse a value.
04. Set the missing categories
Click Birchwood Packaging Co.'s blank Category cell. It turns into a Category field with the list of categories open. Choose Packaging.
Do the same for Driftwood Print Shop with Printing and for Fernhill Dairy Supply with Dairy. Each value is saved to its vendor record when you move on to the next cell. The three rows now read Packaging, Printing and Dairy.
Each cell you change is submitted as its own save of one record. Three categories are three saves, not one batch. If one fails, NetSuite shows an error and normally doesn't save that change, while the ones already saved stay saved.
05. Add the missing email
Click Fernhill Dairy Supply's blank Email cell. A text box opens in the cell. Type orders@fernhill.example.
Click outside the list to leave the cell, and the Email column shows the address. The keyboard works too. Tab saves and moves to the next editable cell to the right, Shift+Tab moves left, Enter saves and moves down, and Shift+Enter moves up. Esc also saves the new value and closes the cell, so it doesn't cancel anything. To back out a change, press Ctrl+Z while the cell is still open, or put the old value back.
If NetSuite shows an error instead, assume the change wasn't saved. Open the vendor to see what it actually holds, then check the value, your role's access to the field, required fields, and any workflow or script on vendors.
06. Confirm on the vendor record
In Fernhill Dairy Supply's row, click View. Under Primary Information, Category shows Dairy. Under Email | Phone | Address, Email shows orders@fernhill.example. Nobody opened this vendor in Edit mode.
Open the System Information subtab. System Notes has one row per change, both set by Alex Morgan with Context UI and Type Set. Field Category went from a blank Old Value to Dairy, and Field Email went from blank to orders@fernhill.example. The row order and the exact Context label can differ in your account, and you need permission to see System Notes.
Check the result
- The Vendors list shows Packaging for Birchwood Packaging Co., Printing for Driftwood Print Shop and Dairy for Fernhill Dairy Supply.
- Fernhill Dairy Supply's Email cell shows orders@fernhill.example.
- The Fernhill Dairy Supply record shows Category Dairy and the new Email.
- System Notes on that record has a Set row for Category and one for Email, each with a blank Old Value.
Turn the Edit switch off when you're done to get the normal read-only list back.
Common questions
Why is there no Edit switch on my NetSuite list?
Inline Editing is probably off. An administrator turns it on at Setup > Company > Enable Features, on the Company subtab under Data Management. If it's already on and the switch is still missing, the list view or your role doesn't support inline editing for that record type.
What does the pencil icon on a column heading mean?
The column supports inline editing in that list. It doesn't promise that every row will take a change, since permissions, validation, workflows and scripts can still refuse a value. In the Vendor General view, Name, Category, Phone and Email have a pencil, and Primary Subsidiary and Login Access don't.
Do inline edits save automatically, or do I need to click Save?
They save on their own. Leave the cell by clicking elsewhere, pressing Tab or pressing Enter, and NetSuite saves that field to that vendor. There's no Save button for the list, and each cell is a separate save.
Does pressing Esc cancel an inline edit?
No. Esc saves the new value and closes the cell. To back out, press Ctrl+Z while the cell is still open, or put the old value back.
How can I see who changed a vendor's category from the list?
Open the vendor and go to System Information > System Notes. Each inline edit shows up as its own row with the date, who set it, the context, the field, and the old and new values. In this example, Category went from a blank Old Value to Dairy with Context UI and Type Set.
Can I inline edit saved search results?
Yes, when the columns are fields stored on the record the search returns. Formula columns, joined fields and searches that use expressions can't be edited this way. Look for the pencil and try one harmless edit before you rely on a search for inline changes.
Do workflows and user event scripts run on inline edits?
They can. Inline edits run in the xedit context, and a workflow only responds if it includes the Direct List Edit event. A user event script gets only the changed field unless it loads the record, so test any automation that depends on the field you're editing.
When should I use Mass Update or a CSV import instead?
Use inline editing for a few corrections you can check row by row. Mass Update fits many records that need the same change based on criteria. A CSV import in Update mode fits a prepared file with different values for many records or fields.