Invoices are usually submitted in a PDF format, so uploading them into your preferred bookkeeping software can be a bit tricky. Fortunately, you don't need to manually enter all the data into a spreadsheet.
A few simple clicks can turn this:
Into this:
This short video shows the process:
Procedure:
- Verify first of all if your PDF is scanned or contains embedded text. If it does, you will need an OCR-compatible edition like PDF2XL Enterprise. Before you begin mapping the layout, be sure to turn on the OCR Mode.
- Locate the table on the page. You will want to draw a box around it to create the layout. It should be orange, which signifies that this is a table. If it is blue, right-click and select 'Change to Table'.
- If your columns and rows are not where they should be, they can be moved, merged, or split. See: 'How to Modify a Table's Columns' and 'How to Modify a Table's Rows'.
- If there is other information that you feel is important, you can draw boxes around each part individually. These blue 'fields' will place the selected data in their own cells.
- You can right-click on each blue field and select 'Set Field Heading' if you want to label these cells.
- Once all your data is mapped, go to the Convert tab and select your Conversion format. Most Invoices are converted into and Excel file or into a .CSV file.
- Click the 'Convert Document' button and let PDF2XL turn your PDF into a fully editable and organized spreadsheet.
Want to try it out?
*Note: Since it's not possible to upload the layout in it's original format, the extension has been changed to .txt. After you download the file, rename it from 'Invoice-Sample.txt' to 'Invoice-Sample.layoutx'.
(go here to learn how to import a layout).