Invoices and receipts
Inbox Ledger stores invoices and receipts as one record type, marked by a document-kind field. See how the two compare and share fields.
Inbox Ledger stores invoices and receipts as one kind of record. A field called the document kind marks which one it is. Both share the same extracted fields, and what differs is the meaning: an invoice is a request for payment, a receipt is proof that payment happened. A third kind, the credit note, covers the money a supplier gives back.
How the two compare
| Aspect | Invoice | Receipt |
|---|---|---|
| Represents | A request for payment | Proof of payment |
| Has a due date | Yes | No |
| Default status | Open, until you mark it paid | Paid |
| Typical detail | Itemized line items | Often one total, sometimes itemized |
| Used to match | An outgoing payment | An outgoing payment, as the proof |
Credit notes
A credit note is the supplier credit that reduces what you owe, and Inbox Ledger stores it as a third document kind. Its totals stay positive on the record, exactly as printed, while a separate Signed Total carries the negative figure. Spend in Insights, on the vendor list, on the dashboard, and in the monthly summary email is therefore net of credits.
Two things a credit note does not do today. It never enters bank reconciliation, and it is not pushed to QuickBooks, Xero, or Dynamics 365 Business Central.
The credit notes page covers the fields, the exports, and the webhook events in full.
What the AI extracts
The AI reads each document and fills in these fields. You can edit any of them on the detail view.
Type and status
- Document kind: invoice, receipt, or credit note.
- Status: draft, open, paid, void, or unknown. The AI sets it and you can change it.
- Subscription flag, set when the charge looks like a recurring software bill.
Vendor
- Vendor, linked to the vendor record.
- The raw vendor name as printed on the document, kept for reference.
- A separate merchant name, for receipts where the merchant differs from the vendor.
Numbering and dates
- Invoice number, which also holds a credit note's own number.
- Receipt number.
- The related invoice number, on a credit note that names the invoice it corrects.
- Purchase order reference, when the buyer supplied one.
- Issue date.
- Due date, on invoices.
- Payment date, on receipts and paid invoices.
Amounts
- Subtotal, tax, discount, and total.
- Signed total, which repeats the total for an invoice or a receipt and negates it for a credit note.
- Currency, as a three-letter code such as USD, EUR, or GBP.
Payment
- Payment method, such as card, bank transfer, or cash, when the document states it.
- Last four digits of the card, when present.
Once a payment clears your bank, you can reconcile the invoice against a bank statement to mark it paid.
Recipient (Bill To)
The AI captures five recipient fields when the document includes them: name, email, address, country, and VAT ID.
Store details
- Store location, the physical address printed on a receipt.
Line items
When a document has an itemized breakdown, each line carries a description, quantity, unit price, and amount. A receipt often has a single line, while a business invoice can run to dozens. The line items show in their own section on the detail view.
Tags
Invoices and receipts can hold any number of tags. You can add them by hand, in bulk from the list, or with AI rules.
Editing a field on the detail view saves it right away. Your edits also survive a reprocess, except when you run Reprocess yourself, which re-extracts the whole document and replaces the fields.
Related
Credit notes
The supplier credit that subtracts from spend.
Detail view
Inspect and edit any field.
Vendors
The vendor records linked to every invoice.
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Credit notes
A credit note is a supplier credit that reduces what you owe. See how Inbox Ledger stores it, how totals subtract it, how it reaches your accounting system, and how to fix a wrong document type.