AI-Powered Invoice-to-PO Matching in Precoro
Use the AI-powered invoice-to-PO matching feature in Precoro to accurately and automatically match invoices with purchase orders.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
- What is AI-Powered Invoice Matching?
- How It Works
- Supported PO Types and Matching Scenarios
- How to Manually Trigger AI Invoice Creation
- FAQs
What is AI-Powered Invoice Matching?
Precoro’s AI-powered invoice-to-PO matching functionality helps automate invoice processing, allowing you to create invoices from OCR attachments without manual work and errors.
With AI, invoices are matched more accurately, even when PO numbers are missing, item descriptions are slightly different, or formatting differs across vendors.
Here’s how this feature improves your workflow:
- Automates invoice processing: Extracts invoice details, identifies relevant POs, and generates invoices without manual input.
- Handles data variations: Recognizes and matches invoices even if item names, formatting, or PO numbers differ.
- Finds the best match: Goes beyond exact matches to determine the most relevant PO based on the overall context.
How It Works
💡 Please note: This feature is currently in beta and available upon request. Please contact your customer success manager to enable AI invoice-to-PO matching in your account.
You’ll be able to choose one team member as the initiator. All AI-generated invoices will be assigned to that person, even if multiple users handle attachments in the AP Inbox. Please note that only the selected initiator will be able to review, edit, and confirm those invoices.
To start the process, upload an invoice attachment from your supplier. Precoro will use OCR to extract all relevant invoice data from the file.
Once the data is extracted, here's how the AI-powered invoice-to-PO matching works:
- Precoro searches for relevant Purchase Orders in the “Approved” status from the same supplier. POs in the “Draft” or “In revision” statuses are not considered for matching.
- With the help of AI, Precoro analyzes the available approved POs, comparing key details like:
- Item details (description, SKU, quantity, net and gross price)
- Document net and gross amounts
- Discounts and taxes (on the document and items)
- Shipping and receiving locations
- Required dates
- Purchase order number (if mentioned in the invoice)
- Contextual matches (e.g., item descriptions that differ slightly but refer to the same product)
- After identifying the best PO, Precoro performs item-level matching (OCR-extracted items are compared with the PO’s items):
- AI matches items even if there are minor differences in names or SKUs.
- Matched invoice items automatically inherit names and CFIs from the PO, reducing manual input.
- If all items are matched and totals align, the PO stays in “Approved” status, and the matching workflow is skipped.
- Precoro creates the invoice automatically, and the OCR attachment is marked as Completed.
The "AI" marker appears on the invoice document page opposite every item that was matched using AI. Hovering over it will show the corresponding item in the order. A similar marker is displayed by the auto-created invoices on the AP inbox page.
Supported PO Types and Matching Scenarios
The AI-powered invoice-to-PO matching supports all PO types:
- Standard Purchase Orders
- Custom Purchase Orders
- Service Orders
- Blanket Orders
With AI, you can easily match invoices to POs in various scenarios, including:
-
Full match: The invoice perfectly matches the PO, with identical items, quantities, and net/gross amounts.
-
Partial match: The invoice only covers part of the PO, and multiple invoices can be matched to a single PO over time.
-
Blanket PO match: AI matches the invoice totals to the overall PO amount, even if item-level details aren't specified.
How to Manually Trigger AI Invoice Creation
You can manually create invoices from OCR-processed attachments by using the Auto-create (with AI) button when:
- The matching PO was created after the attachment was uploaded;
- The PO was in revision or not yet approved during the upload;
- The Invoice from Order Auto Creation (AI invoice-to-PO matching) setting is disabled in your OCR configuration, but you still want to use AI invoice generation when needed.
You can use the Auto-create (AI) button anytime if the OCR attachment is still in a Draft status.
For example, if attachments are added throughout the month but POs are created or approved at month-end, your AP team can come back and create invoices with one click once POs are approved.
💡 Please note: To use the Auto-create (AI) button, make sure the AI-enhanced Invoice to Order Matching functionality is enabled in your OCR configuration. If it’s not, please contact your CSM to activate it.
Here’s how it works in action:
- Once you upload an invoice attachment to your AP inbox, Precoro processes the file using AI-powered OCR:
- When a best-matching PO is found, you can see it in the Related Documents section:
- To create an invoice, click Create → choose Auto-create (AI) from the drop-down:
- Precoro will instantly generate and prefill the invoice for you:
- Review the invoice draft and confirm to complete the process.
FAQs
Who becomes the invoice issuer when using the Auto-create (AI) button?
The person who clicks the Auto-create (with AI) button will be set as the issuer of the invoice, regardless of the default initiator configured in your settings.
What happens if the AI doesn't find a match for all invoice items?
The invoice won't be created. AI should successfully match all items in the attachment to the PO for auto-create to work.
Where can I find the Auto-create (AI) button?
You can find the Auto-create (AI) button in the Create menu on any draft OCR attachment.