
G2 takes pride in showing unbiased reviews on user satisfaction in our ratings and reports. We do not allow paid placements in any of our ratings, rankings, or reports. Learn about our scoring methodologies.
Invoice management software is responsible for processing, managing, and paying invoice documents from suppliers and vendors. This software helps to automate the processes of extracting invoice information, verifying and validating the information, approving or processing payments, and securely storing all relevant information either in the cloud, or on the vendors’ servers. It is important to have this data easily accessible for audits, compliance, and forecasting. Invoice management software sometimes provides features of finance and accounting software, including billing, procurement, accounts payable (AP) automation, and accounting software; integration with these other software types is also common.
Key Benefits of Invoice Management Software
Faster invoice processing — Invoice management systems can speed up invoice processing times, reduce accounts payable expenses, and minimize human error. This can lead to lower costs per invoice, improved supplier relations, and fewer vendor payments issues. This can be accomplished by digitizing invoice processing, such as scanning or emailing invoices, and automatically matching purchase orders (POs) to invoices.
Quicker approvals — When an invoice is digitized and added to a predetermined workflow, invoice management software can confirm which manager has the authority to approve the payment. This cuts down on wasted time from invoices being sent to supervisors who aren’t authorized to approve them and streamlines the approval process.
Real-time reporting — Another value-added feature of invoice management software is its ability for managers to create and view analytical reports for further visibility into the volume of invoices, statuses, and any bottlenecks in the process. These reports can give teams insight into overdue payments, productivity, supplier payment tracking, and audit-related information.
Rapid PO reconciliation — Invoice management technology tracks down missing invoices, receipts, shipping orders, etc., making it easier to reconcile multiple invoices, credit memos, and receipts from the same supplier. This software can also flag fraudulent invoices and incorrect pricing.
Document capture and storage — This software sometimes allows the user to scan, fax, or take pictures of invoices for documentation and storage. It is helpful to have all documents digitized before any processing takes place, allowing easy access to all stakeholders.
Security — Cloud-based invoice management software stores all documents and data in the cloud so everything is accessible from anywhere and data is not lost or misplaced. User access is customizable, ensuring only authorized employees can view confidential documents.
Invoice management software can be used by any employee or team involved with receiving, approving, or paying invoices. This software can also be used by teams associated with items or services that the invoices are referencing. The teams that use this invoice the most are listed below.
Accounting/finance departments — Accounting departments usually receive invoices and put them through an approval process, which includes matching the invoice information with the correct sales and purchase orders as well as making the payment. Invoice management software helps this workflow by scanning invoices, analyzing and importing data into the system, and transferring payments electronically. It also eliminates the need for paper records, manual data entry, and mailing checks.
Procurement — Procurement teams are involved in purchasing items for their company, and therefore need to be involved with approving POs related to their purchases. Invoice management software helps to reduce the time and effort spent managing tasks such as receiving and matching orders and invoices, making payments and improving relations with vendors.
Accounts payable teams — Sometimes part of the accounting team, AP teams are involved in managing invoices and financial transactions between a company and its suppliers. These teams can deal with large volumes of invoices, and invoice management software can assist them in not only monitoring AP processing activities, but also in reducing manual work and avoiding human errors.
Mobile — Mobile invoice management software is an application designed to be downloaded and accessed on a smart device. It gives employees the functionality to access data on the go and also enables managers to review and approve payments, and run various reports outside of working hours and an office environment.
Online (or cloud-based) — Online software requires users to access the software dashboard via the vendor’s website so they can obtain information and leverage the functionalities offered by the vendor. This type of interface is good for companies and employees that can easily access a computer with internet to add or edit data, approve or reject payments, and run various reports.
Invoice management software provides numerous features and functions. These systems automate most of the unproductive and costly steps in invoice processing, which help streamline processes, increase employee productivity and efficiency, and lower processing costs. Below are some of the most important features of this software.
Intelligent capture and digitalization of invoice receipts — Users leverage invoice management software to automatically capture and digitize invoices. The software also includes features for downloading emails and attachments, while obtaining relevant information such as supplier names, invoice numbers, and PO numbers. This process reduces paperwork and eliminates the chore of manually downloading attachments and extracting data from the documents.
Payment facilitation — With invoicing platforms, managing and processing payments has become easier as organizations have the option to pay via credit card, or integrate with online payment platforms. Invoicing software usually has features to handle multiple languages, multiple currencies, and tax adjustments. There is also the functionality to track offline payments.
Reports generation — Invoice management software can generate reports that assist companies in tracking their finances and monitor which invoices are currently outstanding. Employees can also automate reports generation, export them as PDF files, and share or receive them by email. Reports are generated and data is analyzed to get relevant insights from invoicing operations, such as the number of outstanding invoices, average time for a payment cycle, and how many payments are late.
Workflow management — Companies use invoice management software to route invoices to the appropriate department or manager within a company for approval or denial, or flag for further research. This software also allows managers to create an approval workflow that will electronically confirm whether a manager has the authority to approve a specific invoice. If not, the workflow will route the invoice to a more senior supervisor.
Other features of invoice management software: Cashflow, ERP Capabilities, KPI Capabilities, Recurring Invoices, and Templates.