How to automate NetSuite vendor invoice capture

Can you automate vendor invoice capture and coding in NetSuite?

Oracle NetSuite is often the top choice for fast-growing companies that need a flexible, powerful, and customizable ERP to manage their business processes. It seamlessly automates core functions like financial reporting, payroll, and inventory management and can be customized to meet companies’ unique needs.

If you already use NetSuite, you may be considering using it to automate vendor invoice (bill) capture and entry. However, as we’ll see, vendor bill capture in NetSuite’s core Accounts Payable module is a slow, manual process. Although it may be an adequate solution for a small company, NetSuite Accounts Payable may not be the right bill-capture solution for a growing business with a large volume of supplier invoices.

Fortunately, NetSuite users have some good options to automate bill capture. They can choose NetSuite’s own Bill Capture solution or opt for an integrated third-party SuiteApp that offers comprehensive invoice processing and AP automation services. In this article, we’ll explore both options and discuss their advantages and disadvantages. After reading, you’ll have the info you need to choose the right invoice capture solution for your business.

Let’s get started.

How do you enter vendor bills in NetSuite Accounts Payable?

As we mentioned, NetSuite provides basic vendor bill entry functionality in its core Accounts Payable module, which is included in most NetSuite subscriptions. It’s a complex process where users must manually create a vendor bill in NetSuite AP, select the appropriate vendor and ledger account, enter the invoice details, and assign GL codes. After saving the bill, users manually verify the bill by matching it to the purchase order and then notify the approver that the bill is ready for review.

The manual bill entry process in NetSuite AP is an improvement over entering invoice information into a spreadsheet or QuickBooks. While it’s suitable for small businesses, it’s too time-consuming and error-prone for businesses handling large numbers of invoices.

To meet the needs of larger businesses, NetSuite offers NetSuite Bill Capture, an automated invoice capture solution available as a standalone module or as part of NetSuite’s invoice management solution.

How to scan vendor invoices with NetSuite Bill Capture

NetSuite Bill Capture replaces NetSuite’s manual data entry process with an automated invoice capture and data entry workflow. It uses optical character recognition (OCR) and machine learning (ML) technologies to extract invoice details from digital invoice image files. Bill Capture is available as a standalone module or as part of NetSuite’s Accounts Payable Automation package.

Processing invoices in NetSuite Bill Capture is a three-step process:

1. Enter invoice image files into Bill Capture

Bill Capture allows AP departments to automatically capture invoices in three ways: 1) vendors can email invoices to a NetSuite address, 2) users can upload digital invoices, or 3) users can scan paper invoices and upload the digital images to NetSuite.

After the invoice image file is entered into Bill Capture, it appears on the Scanned Vendor Bills page in NetSuite. Bill Capture then scans the image file and extracts the invoice details (vendors, items, PO numbers, amounts, etc.). When the scan is complete, users can click Review in the View/Review column to open the Review Scanned Bills page, where they can review the extracted data and create a vendor bill.

2. Review suggestions and proposed vendor bill

On the Review Scanned Bills page, the scanned bill is shown on the left, and the proposed vendor bill record, with Bill Capture’s suggested entries, is on the right. To make suggestions, Bill Capture draws from the existing NetSuite vendor record, the associated purchase order(s), and user actions and corrections on previous bills for the vendor.

For example, Bill Capture attempts to enter invoice line items as Items or Expenses based on prior transactions. Users can review this information at the bottom of the proposed bill and make any necessary corrections (i.e., changing an entry incorrectly identified as an expense into a line item). After the vendor bill is created, Bill Capture will remember this decision and apply it to future scanned bills.

3. Create vendor bill record and process bill

Once the user reviews the proposed bill and makes any corrections, they click Create Bill to create a new vendor bill record in NetSuite. From there, they can perform two- and three-way matching to verify the bill details further and flag the bill for approval and payment.

Benefits of NetSuite Bill Capture

NetSuite Bill Capture provides businesses with significant benefits compared to the manual bill entry process in NetSuite Accounts Payable.

Streamline your business processes

By eliminating the manual process of entering and processing vendor bills, Bill Capture reduces AP staff workload and frees employees to work on higher-value strategic tasks.

Stay in the NetSuite environment

As part of the NetSuite Applications Suite, Bill Capture lets customers keep their bill processing within their NetSuite environment.

Simple invoice management interface

The Bill Capture interface in NetSuite is simple and easy to use for processing digital invoices with a straightforward and simple process .

Disadvantages of NetSuite Bill Capture

Despite its strengths, there are some potential drawbacks for businesses choosing to use NetSuite Bill Capture.

Lack of end-to-end invoice automation

The standalone Bill Capture feature only automates invoice capture and data entry tasks. Other AP processes in NetSuite accounts payable, such as three-way matching, approval, and payment processing, are still manual. Customers wanting to automate AP workflows in NetSuite have two choices: add additional NetSuite modules like SuiteApprovals or SuiteFlow or purchase the complete NetSuite AP Automation package.

One user on the NetSuite subreddit explains that the lack of automation is why they chose not to use NetSuite AP Automation: “The AP automation isn’t really automated. You still have to manually upload the PDF of your bill. The OCR and data entry from that point is basically the same. The vendor payments however are also cumbersome and you have to sign up for a bank account with HSBC to act as your bill payment clearing account which you don’t need to do with bill.com.”

Limits for document understanding

In its documentation for Bill Capture, NetSuite warns that its invoice capture capabilities are limited. For example, it can only interpret bills written in English, only process bills in USD, can’t process multiple bills on one PDF, and can’t process PDFs larger than 5 pages or image files (JPG, PNG) larger than one page.

One NetSuite reviewer said the page limit was a show-stopper for them: “I was surprised to see that they only allow five pages for invoices. So I really want more than five pages. I want it unlimited.”

Complicated implementation

Implementing NetSuite Bill Capture isn’t an easy process. It requires customers to change their NetSuite configuration and permissions and install additional features and SuiteApps. For example, to allow vendors to email invoices directly to Bill Capture, NetSuite customers must add the Transaction Email Capture SuiteApp and File Cabinet feature. For companies without deep IT knowledge and NetSuite experience, making these changes may require hiring expensive outside consultants.

In a recent Capterra review, one NetSuite customer complained about the impact NetSuite’s complexity has had on their business: “What I liked least about NetSuite was its initial complexity and the learning curve associated with setting up and customizing the system to meet our specific business needs. Additionally, the cost of implementation and ongoing maintenance could be prohibitive for some businesses.”

NetSuite Bill Capture is a good invoice capture process automation tool, especially for businesses who want to remain in the NetSuite infrastructure. However, its drawbacks limit its effectiveness in streamlining the overall accounts payable process. Using a third-party AP automation SuiteApp may be a better choice for companies wanting a more comprehensive AP automation solution that integrates with NetSuite. Let’s look at some of your options.

Top NetSuite invoice processing SuiteApps

Among the hundreds of financial automation SuiteApps, three stand out for AP automation: AvidXchange, Tipalti, and Stampli.

AvidXchange

AP automation provider AvidXchange offers its AP Automation for NetSuite (Classic) SuiteApp to automate invoice capture in NetSuite. AvidXchange is Built for NetSuite certified and has been a NetSuite partner for over 10 years. However, AvidXhange relies on human indexers to verify its OCR invoice scans. It also requires customers to use its AvidPay payment network to pay vendors.

“I would have given 5 stars, but their customer service support and communication are lacking.”
— AvidXchange customer

See what real NetSuite customers say about AvidXchange AP Automation for NetSuite.

Tipalti

Global payment provider Tipalti offers invoice capture and data entry services, NetSuite integration, and Built for NetSuite certification. However, Tipalti’s invoice capture solution isn’t fully automatic as the provider relies on third-party outsourcers to manually verify scanned invoices.

Read what NetSuite customers have to say about Tipalti’s SuiteApp.

Stampli

Stampli’s financial automation solution for NetSuite uses Cognitive AI™ technology to streamline invoice capture, coding, and processing. Its pre-built integration supports NetSuite’s full native functionality without development work, changing existing processes, or compromising how customers use NetSuite.

“Stampli has been the best AP processing tool I’ve ever used.”
— Stampli customer

See what real NetSuite customers are saying about Stampli for NetSuite.

Why use third-party SuiteApps to automate AP processing in NetSuite

Leading third-party AP automation SuiteApps let you maximize your NetSuite investment by augmenting NetSuite’s power with seamless end-to-end AP processing. They integrate with NetSuite to automate vendor bill capture, GL coding, invoice matching, approval routing, and payment processing — freeing AP teams from manual tasks and ensuring vendors are paid on time.

Here are the main benefits of using an integrated SuiteApp to automate bill capture in NetSuite:

Improved capture efficiency and accuracy

SuiteApps designed with advanced OCR, machine learning, and intelligent document management capabilities interpret, capture, and categorize invoice data more efficiently and accurately. For example, Billy the Bot, Stampli’s AI co-pilot, uses cognitive AI to correctly identify and capture invoice details like vendor names, even if they’re slightly misspelled, preventing delays and errors.

“We have been using Stampli for close to three years now, and we’ve literally had zero issues,” says a financial controller in a G2 review. “The connection with Netsuite is seamless, any updates/upgrades we want to do are easy to implement, and everyone in the company is very happy with the approval process.

“Overall, it’s a great product that does exactly what’s advertised — make the AP function more efficient and easier for everyone!

“…We automated our invoice processing and approving process.

“After implementing Stampli, invoices are processed within one day and sent for approval. Integration with Netsuite is automatic, and the fact that you can record invoices as payments just makes things ever easier for us; all we have to do is reconcile our banks.”

Faster processing with end-to-end AP automation

Companies have two choices for automating invoice processing workflows in NetSuite. The first option involves automating workflows in NetSuite Accounts Payable. However, this approach can be expensive, as it often requires reworking existing workflows and implementing additional SuiteApps like SuiteFlow or SuiteApprovals. Additionally, it may not be possible to fully automate tasks like invoice coding or matching, leaving AP departments with a complex hybrid solution that is hardly better than manual processing.

The second option is to subscribe to NetSuite AP Automation. It provides end-to-end automation but has some potential hidden costs and limitations. Customers complain that NetSuite charges a per-invoice processing fee and ties customers to HSBC for vendor payments. It’s also limited to US-only companies, can only process USD invoices, and can only handle single subsidiaries.

Leading AP automation SuiteApps automate AP processes from invoice capture to vendor payment. They integrate with NetSuite to synchronize AP data and communications, streamlining the overall financial process and ensuring a single source of truth for financial data. However, these solutions can be slow to refresh and update data across systems. Stampli offers the fastest NetSuite data sync in the industry. NetSuite customers can implement and begin using Stampli in days, not months, with no need to rework workflows, change AP processes, or add additional software.

“Stampli AP Automation is worth every penny!” said an accountant in a recent review. “We use Stampli to have a more robust and meaningful invoice approval process than we had prior. We also use Stampli Direct Pay, which has saved us hours of time each week that had been spent printing, signing, stuffing, and stamping vendor payments.

“We were doing AP entry in Netsuite. Netsuite was a step up from our previous system (Accounting Seed in Salesforce) because it allowed us to easily attach a PDF to the invoice entry. But Netsuite wasn’t fast, it was difficult to track invoice approvals, and getting to that attached PDF was not intuitive.

“All the other AP automation software that we looked at all did the same basic functions. Stampli had the cleanest, easiest to use user interface, and we needed to be sure our non-Accounting staff would be able to use it effectively to approve invoices…It’s a modern product with easily recognizable functionality. The user interface was the main factor in our decision of Stampli over its competitors.”

Integration with NetSuite and other systems

The best SuiteApps offer seamless integration with NetSuite and any other systems your business might be using, like document management or expense management software. This ensures data integrity across your organization and eliminates time spent manually entering data from one system to another.

While other financial automation SuiteApps promise NetSuite integration, they often fail to deliver full functionality, forcing customers to find workarounds and compromise their NetSuite environment. Stampli’s pre-built integration supports all NetSuite fields, functions, and use cases, so you can be sure bill details are accurate in both Stampli and NetSuite.

“What I appreciate most about the Stampli system is its user-friendliness,” said one Stampli customer. “It allows for seamless access to invoices from various vendors, with the added convenience of always having these invoices available on NetSuite, simplifying the process of searching for information. The automation feature is particularly impressive, as it eliminates the need to manually review all invoices — Stampli takes care of this, which is fantastic! Additionally, the ability to write comments, request information, and obtain approvals from one or more individuals enhances the collaborative and efficient nature of the system.”

Stampli: The leading invoice management solution for NetSuite

Stampli is the only financial automation platform designed for accounts payable. Built by AP professionals for AP professionals, Stampli features an intuitive user interface, available Cognitive AI™ for PO matching and superior invoice processing, and seamless NetSuite integration.

Maximize your NetSuite investment

Only Stampli’s integration with NetSuite is built in-house, built in advance, and built to completion. With Stampli, NetSuite customers get the expertise level of a consultant without the huge price tag. Its pre-built NetSuite integration helps you avoid project-based implementations and IT involvement. Stampli supports the full range of native functionality for NetSuite, now and in the future.

Easy implementation

Integrate Stampli with NetSuite in days, not weeks, with no need to reconfigure your ERP or change AP policies.

Future proof

Stampli doesn’t constrain your future growth. You can add or change NetSuite functionality anytime, and Stampli is fully backward compatible if you choose not to change.

Rapid response

Never worry about a NetSuite update breaking your AP workflows. Stampli supports new versions of NetSuite as soon as they’re released and is very responsive to future requests.

Optimize vendor bill capture in NetSuite today. Contact one of Stampli’s AP experts to set up a free demo.