How To Make Automated Invoice Processing Easy for Your Team Using Document AI

TL;DR

• Manual invoice processing is slow, expensive, and prone to error.
• Automating invoice data extraction with tools like Docsumo can reduce processing time from 10 minutes to under 1.
• Follow a simple 7-step process to extract, verify, and integrate invoice data.
• Customize your workflow with editable fields, confidence scoring, and smart integrations.
• Enjoy cost savings, faster turnaround, and fewer errors with automated invoice processing.

Manually processing invoices is a major headache for finance teams. It’s time-consuming, error-prone, and expensive. Sometimes it takes up to 10 minutes and costs as much as $40 per invoice. Multiply that by hundreds or thousands of invoices a month, and it’s easy to see how quickly things can spiral.

Now imagine cutting that process down to just seconds. That’s the power of Document AI. With the right tool, like Docsumo, your team can automate invoice data extraction, eliminate manual entry, and free up valuable time for more strategic work.

In this guide, we’ll walk you through how automated invoice processing works and how to make it easy for your team to adopt. We’ll also cover some important questions to help you get started with confidence.

1. What is automated invoice processing?

A: Automated invoice processing utilizes AI and OCR (Optical Character Recognition) to capture and extract data from invoices, including vendor details, dates, totals, and line items, without requiring manual input. It helps streamline your Accounts Payable process, improve accuracy, and save time.

2. Why is manual invoice processing inefficient?

A: It’s time-consuming (10 minutes per invoice), error-prone, and expensive. Each invoice can cost up to $40 to process manually. Delays in approvals and data entry create backlogs, which can harm vendor relationships.

3. How can automation reduce invoice processing costs?

A: Automation makes invoice processing faster, cheaper, and much easier to manage. What used to take up to 10 minutes per invoice can now take less than a minute at a fraction of the cost. Instead of manually entering data, automation takes care of it, reducing errors and minimizing the need for extra hands. The result is lower processing costs (around $1 per invoice) and more time for your team to focus on higher-value tasks.

4. What documents can Docsumo process?

A: Docsumo can handle over 50 types of documents, including standard invoices, proforma invoices, credit notes, and many more commonly used business documents. It also allows you to define custom document types if your use case requires it.

5. What are the steps to automate invoice data extraction?

A: Here’s how to do it in 7 steps:

1. Sign up for a Docsumo trial
2. Upload invoices (PDFs or images)
3. Review auto-identified fields
4. Customize fields for extraction
5. Verify data accuracy
6. Download data in formats like Excel, CSV, JSON
7. Integrate data into your systems via API or webhook

Each step is designed to be user-friendly, even if you're not tech-savvy. Want to see it in action? Watch the video walkthrough to get started quickly.

6. Can I customize what fields are extracted?

A: Yes. You can edit existing fields, add new ones, or even create entire sections. You can also mark fields as unique to prevent duplicate entries, which is particularly useful for fields like invoice numbers or PO references. This flexibility helps you tailor the system to your organization’s workflow.

7. How does Docsumo ensure accuracy?

A: Docsumo uses confidence scores to indicate how certain it is about a field’s accuracy. If the score is low, you’ll see an icon prompting you to double-check. Over time, the model learns from your corrections and improves accuracy automatically.

8. What formats can I download the extracted data in?

A: You can export invoice data as: Excel, CSV & JSON. This makes it easy to integrate with your financial systems, ERPs, or analytics platforms.

9. Can I integrate Docsumo with existing tools?

A: Yes. Docsumo offers seamless integration via REST API and webhook URLs. You can connect it with tools like Salesforce, SAP, QuickBooks, and others to automate your end-to-end workflows. See how integration works on Docsumo’s platform page.

10. What are the key benefits of using Document AI for invoices?

A: Using Document AI to automate invoice processing offers:

• Faster processing time
• Lower costs per invoice
• Fewer manual errors
• Real-time data access
• Improved compliance and audit trails

For example, Biagi Bros processes over 11,000 invoices and Bills of Lading each month and saves more than 2,500 man-hours monthly through automation.

If your team is spending too much time on manual data entry, it's time to level up. Book a trial with Docsumo and start processing invoices the smart way.