How to Integrate Personio and Playroll

The Playroll Personio integration automatically brings employee details and approved time-off from Personio into Playroll, so your HR team doesn’t have to re-enter the same data in both systems.

The integration does two things:

• Employee import: When you add a new hire in Playroll, you can import their basic details from Personio to pre-fill the Add Employee form.
• Time-off sync: Once you switch on time-off sync, any request approved in Personio is created as approved leave on the Playroll Employee Leave page. The sync runs automatically every 24 hours.

Requirements Before You Start

Before you touch any settings, confirm the following:
•   You're a company administrator in Playroll, with access to the Integrations page
•   You can sign in to your company's Personio account to complete the connection
•   For employee import: the employee profile you want to import hasn't been created in Playroll yet

How to Connect Personio to Playroll

The setup happens in two parts: first, a company administrator connects Personio and sets up time-off sync, then your team imports employees from Personio as they add them in Playroll.

Part 1: Connect Personio and Set Up Time Off Sync

Start on the Integrations page in Playroll, on the Personio section.

Step 1: Open the Personio Integration

This is where you'll connect Personio and manage time off sync.
1.  On the Integrations page, select the Personio card (marker 1)
2.  Once you're connected, the card shows a Connected badge (marker 2)

Step 2: Review the Overview

The Overview tab shows you how data moves between the two platforms before you connect anything.
1.  Open the Overview tab (marker 1)
2.  Check the summary: one-way via API, Personio to Playroll, on a scheduled sync every 24 hours (marker 2)
3.  Read the description to see how employee import and approved time off sync work (marker 3)

Step 3: Connect Personio

This links your Personio account to Playroll. Until it's done, nothing can sync or be imported.
1.  Open the Configuration tab
2.  Find “Allow Playroll to access your Personio account?” – it shows Pending Authentication until you're connected (marker 1)
3.  Click Connect (marker 2) to open the Knit connection step
4.  Sign in to Personio

Watch out for this: the status stays Pending Authentication until the connection is complete. Don't move on to time off sync until it shows Active.

Step 4: Check the Connection and Turn On Time-Off Sync

Approved time-off only syncs once the toggle is switched on.
1.  Check that the status pill shows Active (marker 1) and the button has changed to Reconnect
2.  In Time off Requests, turn on the toggle (marker 2)
3.  Click Map now, or Edit mapping if you've mapped types before (marker 3)
4.  Once your mapping is saved, click Save (marker 4)

Step 5: Map Personio Time-Off Types

This tells Playroll which Playroll leave type each Personio time off type should become.
1.  In the Time Off Types Mapper, find each Personio time off type listed under External Fields (marker 1)
2.  Choose the matching Playroll leave type under Playroll Fields (marker 2)
3.  Click Save mapping (marker 3)

Watch out for this: a Personio type left unmapped, like “Home office” in the screenshot, is skipped. Those requests won't appear in Playroll.

Step 6: Check Approved Leave in Playroll

Leave doesn't appear in Playroll the moment it's approved in Personio.
1.  Approved Personio time-off requests for matched employees are created as approved leave
2.  Find them on the Employee Leave page after the next scheduled sync

Watch out for this: the sync runs every 24 hours, so expect up to a day's gap between approval in Personio and the leave showing in Playroll.

Part 2: Import an Employee From Personio

Start on the Add employee form. The import option only shows when Personio is connected and the employee hasn't been created yet.

Step 7: Start the Import

Importing pre-fills the form with the employee's Personio details, so you don't type them again.
1.  Open the Add employee form
2.  Click Import from Personio (marker 1)

Watch out for this: if you can't see Import from Personio, check that Personio is connected and that the employee hasn't already been created in Playroll.

Step 8: Choose the Employee and Import

This brings the employee's available Personio details into the Add employee form.
1.  In Personio Employee Import, select the employee from the Personio Employee list (marker 1)
2.  Click Begin import (marker 2)
3.  Check the pre-filled info, complete the remaining fields and submit the form as usual

Watch out for this: the form is only pre-filled with the info available in Personio, so some fields may still be empty. Complete them before you submit.

Setup Checklist

Before considering the integration complete, confirm all of the following:

✅ Personio is connected – the status pill shows Active and the Personio card shows Connected

✅   The Time off Requests toggle is switched on

✅ Every Personio time off type you use is mapped to a Playroll leave type and saved

✅  Your team knows approved time off appears after the next scheduled sync, every 24 hours

✅ Your team knows to use Import from Personio on the Add employee form for new hires

Personio + Playroll FAQs

Why isn't approved Personio time-off showing up in Playroll yet?

The most common reason is timing: approved requests come across on a scheduled sync every 24 hours, not the moment they're approved. If it still hasn't appeared after the next sync, check that the Time off Requests toggle is on, the time off type is mapped, and the employee is matched in Playroll.

Why are some Personio time-off requests missing from Playroll?

Their time off type probably isn't mapped. A Personio type left unmapped, like “Home office”, is skipped. Open the Configuration tab, select Edit mapping, choose a Playroll leave type for it, then click Save mapping and Save.

Can Playroll send changes back to Personio?

No. This is a one-way integration; data moves from Personio to Playroll only. Changes you make in Playroll won't update Personio.

Why can't I see Import from Personio on the Add employee form?

The button only shows when Personio is connected and the employee hasn't been created in Playroll yet. Check that the status on the Personio Configuration tab shows Active.