Automating Invoice Processing with n8n, PDF.co, and Airtable

Step 1: Trigger Invoice Collection

Node: Email Trigger (IMAP)

Settings:

• Mailbox Name: INBOX
• Action: Mark as Read
• Download Attachments: True
• Custom Email Rules: ["UNSEEN", ["SUBJECT", "Sales Invoice"]]

Success looks like: When a new/unread email with subject “Sales Invoice” arrives, the workflow is triggered and attachments are pulled in.

Step 2: Upload Documents to PDF.co

Node: PDF.co API → Upload File

Settings:

• Binary File: True
• Input Binary Field: attachment_0

Success looks like: The invoice file is uploaded securely to PDF.co and returns a file URL for parsing.

Step 3: Parse Invoice with AI

Node: PDF.co API → AI Invoice Parser

Settings:

• Action: AI Invoice Parser
• URL: ={{ $json.url }} (from Step 2)

Success looks like: A structured JSON with invoice details is returned. Example output:

{
  "vendor": { "name": "ABC Company", "contactInformation": { "email": "contact@abccompany.com" } },
  "customer": { "billTo": { "name": "John Doe", "contactInformation": { "email": "johndoe@email.com" } } },
  "invoice": { "invoiceNo": "INV-1001", "invoiceDate": "2025-09-21" },
  "paymentDetails": { "dueDate": "2025-10-05", "total": "$1,980.00" },
  "lineItems": [
    { "description": "Web Design Services", "qty": "1", "unit_price": "$1,000.00", "total": "$1,000.00" }
  ]
}

Step 4: Create a Record in Airtable

Node: Airtable (Create a Record)

Settings:

• Credentials: Airtable Personal Access Token
• Resource: Record
• Operation: Create
• Base: Invoice Record (select from list)
• Table: Invoice (select from list)
• Mapping Mode: Map Each Column Manually

Fields to Map:

• Customer’s Name → {{$json.body.customer.billTo.name}}
• Customer’s Email → {{$json.body.customer.billTo.contactInformation.email}}
• Vendor’s Name → {{$json.body.vendor.name}}
• Vendor’s Email → {{$json.body.vendor.contactInformation.email}}
• Invoice Date → {{$json.body.invoice.invoiceDate}}
• Invoice Number → {{$json.body.invoice.invoiceNo}}
• Payment Due Date → {{$json.body.paymentDetails.dueDate}}
• Total Amount → {{$json.body.paymentDetails.total}}

Success looks like: A new record is created in Airtable under your Invoice table, containing parsed invoice details.

Step 5: Final End-to-End Test

1. Send an invoice as an attachment to your inbox (or use the sample PDF).
2. Execute the workflow in n8n.
3. Check Airtable → A new invoice record should appear.