What Is an ESX File? How ESX Roof Reports Are Made and Used

An ESX file is the native sketch format used by Xactimate. When you import an ESX roof report, Xactimate rebuilds the roof diagram inside your estimate and pulls in the measured quantities, so the facets, pitches, and edge lengths are already there without keying a single number. Here is how ESX files are made, what is inside them, and how to use one.

What is inside an ESX roof report

An ESX file is not just a picture. It carries the full measured geometry of the roof: every facet and its area, the pitch of each facet, and the lengths of ridges, hips, valleys, rakes, and eaves, plus waste calculations. When Xactimate opens it, that data becomes a live sketch you can price against. See what is in a roof measurement report for a full breakdown.

How an ESX file is created

A good ESX roof report is built in a few steps:

1. Imagery: high-resolution aerial and satellite images of the property are pulled from an address.
2. Measurement: each facet is traced and measured, and the pitch and edge lengths are calculated.
3. Human review: a measurement specialist checks the geometry against the imagery to catch obscured facets or unusual shapes.
4. Export: the finished roof is exported to Xactimate's ESX format, ready to import.

That is exactly how RoofAngle produces every ESX for Xactimate report, from just an address, with no one climbing a ladder.

How to import an ESX file into Xactimate

Once you have the ESX file, importing it takes seconds: open your estimate, import the sketch, and Xactimate rebuilds the roof with the measured quantities in place. For the full click path, see how to import an ESX roof report into Xactimate.

ESX vs XML: which do you need?

ESX is for Xactimate. If your carrier or reviewer estimates in Symbility, you want the XML version instead. Both are built from the same measured roof, so many teams order both for a property when the file will change hands. Read ESX vs XML roof reports for a side-by-side.

Why order an ESX instead of measuring yourself

Measuring by hand means a ladder, time, and pitch math. An ESX report gives you the same result in hours, reviewed by a person, ready to import. It is why adjusters, roofers, and restoration teams order them by the thousands.

Order an ESX roof report

Enter an address, choose ESX, and download an import-ready file from $17. Prefer to see one first? Look at a sample report.