How to Parse Invoices with PDF.co

Invoices take a part of everyday life in any small, medium-sized, or big company. While doing any simple transaction, you will need to use a certain invoice template. You will be either provided with an invoice template, or you will need to create your own invoice based on your personal and company data.

That is how invoices work. They can be issued on the part of the buyer or from the seller. It depends on the type of transaction when it was made and what other details might be involved.

What is an Invoice?

The invoice itself is usually related to a sale transaction. It contains all the information about the products, their amount, and prices specified per product/service that was provided.

A general invoice is a commercial document that was issued by a buyer or a seller.

What Does an Invoice Include?

Most of the invoices usually include their payment terms. For example, there might be a number of days when the payment is due. At times, a discount can be offered if the payment is completed before the due date.

Sometimes, the buyer has already concluded the payment when the invoice arrives.

If we’re talking about rental services, an invoice usually contains a particular reference to the duration of the billed time. The invoice amount is based on various factors such as price, quantity, discounts, etc.

Any invoice can be called a sales invoice if named by a seller. Otherwise, an invoice can be named a purchase invoice as identified by a buyer.

In general, the term “invoice" means the amount of money that is owed or owing.

How to Parse Invoices?

PDF.co can parse invoice data from PDFs or images. It exports data to JSON file format where it can be easily applicable in reports and other documents.

All you need to do is to upload the invoice from your computer, Dropbox, or URL. You can automate this task by using PDF.co and Zapier integration.

Check this step-by-step tutorial to learn how to make a Zap using PDF.co and Google Drive. It will enable automated invoice parsing when you add them to your Google Drive specifically made folder.

1. Create your first Zap

You will need to “Make a Zap” by clicking the top-right corner button in your Zapier dashboard. Now, select Google Drive as App, and “New File in Folder" will be your Trigger Event.

Now, connect your Google account and select a proper Google Drive folder to store your invoices. It should be a publicly accessible folder.

After clicking TEST & CONTINUE, you will run this Zap successfully.

2. Create your Zap to parse invoices

Now it’s time to set your automation for direct invoice parsing. All you need is to choose PDF.co as the App and Document Parser for the Action Event.

In the second step, you will connect your PDF.co account using your API key. Please find it on your PDF.co dashboard. If you haven’t created a free account yet, please sign up.

3. Customize your automation

Document Parser can be set up now to perform the task for you.

The Input field will include your Invoice or Document URL.

The Template Id field will include the ID of the Template you created. You can find the Template Id on the PDF.co Document Parser page. You can also easily create and edit your templates using our Document Template Editor.

Please check the screenshot below if you have doubts: