What this guide covers
This guide is designed for small business owners and finance teams who want to transition from physical filing cabinets to a cloud-based system. You will learn how to digitize paper invoices, upload them to FilePile, and utilize the auto-sorting features to organize your digital archives efficiently.
Before you begin
To successfully digitize paper invoices, you must have an active FilePile account. The Free plan supports up to 25 invoices per month, while the Pro and Business plans offer higher limits and advanced features. Ensure you have your paper invoices ready and a device capable of creating PDF files.
For the best results when you digitize paper invoices, we recommend using a dedicated document scanner or a high-quality mobile scanning app. Hardware such as the Fujitsu ScanSnap or Brother ADS series is excellent for high-volume batch scanning. If you are using a mobile device, apps like Adobe Scan or the native iOS Notes scanner can produce clear PDFs. Ensure your scans are high resolution (at least 300 DPI) and have good contrast to ensure the OCR (Optical Character Recognition) software can read the text accurately. FilePile accepts PDF files only, including scanned PDFs.
Step-by-step instructions
Follow these detailed steps to scan, upload, and organize your documents.
- Log in to your account at filepile.co/login.
- Click Dashboard in the left dark sidebar to navigate to the main workspace.
- Click the Process tab located at the top of the Dashboard view.
- Prepare your paper invoice by placing it face down in your scanner or opening your mobile scanning app.
- Scan the document and save it as a PDF file to your computer or mobile device.
- Return to the FilePile Process tab in your web browser.
- Drag and drop the PDF file from your computer into the central upload zone, or click the upload area to open your file selector and choose the file manually.
- Wait for the file to upload and appear in the processing queue. FilePile will automatically extract data such as Vendor Name, Invoice Date, Due Date, Total Amount, and Line Items.
- Once processing is complete, click the Tasks tab on the Dashboard to review any invoices that may be missing required fields.
- If an invoice appears in Tasks, click on the invoice row to open the details panel and manually enter any missing information, such as the Vendor Name or Invoice Number.
- After reviewing, click the Browse tab on the Dashboard to view your sorted files.
- Locate the specific vendor folder to confirm your invoice has been auto-sorted into the correct digital archive.
- To manage payments, click Business HQ in the left sidebar.
- Click the Vendor Payment Command Center panel to view open bills and total due amounts based on your uploaded invoices.
- If you have one-off bills you want to clear, locate the Upcoming vendor payments card on the Dashboard and optionally click Mark paid to remove them from the open list. Note that for recurring products, uploading the invoice itself confirms payment.
What you should see
After uploading, you should see a success message indicating the file was received. In the Browse tab, you will see a folder structure organized by Vendor Name, followed by subfolders for Year and Month. Inside these folders, your uploaded PDF will be visible. In the Vendor Payment Command Center at /account/business, you should see the invoice amount reflected in the total due and the 30-day outlook. If you upload invoices for the same vendor twice, the Recurring products section on the Dashboard will begin to track that vendor automatically.
Tips and common issues
- Optimize scan quality: If FilePile fails to extract data or auto-sort your invoice, the scan quality might be too low. Ensure the text is sharp and the background is clean. Avoid dark shadows or wrinkles in the paper.
- Handling recurring vendors: You do not need to manually set up recurring vendors. FilePile auto-detects them after you upload two monthly invoices for the same product. Simply upload this month's PDF when it arrives to confirm the status.
- Troubleshooting failed uploads: If a PDF fails to process, check that the file is not corrupted and that it is a valid PDF format. If the issue persists, try re-scanning the original document using a different resolution or contrast setting.
- Missing invoices in Recurring products: If you expect a bill from a regular vendor but do not see it in the Recurring products section, check your Reminders at /account/reminders. FilePile sends emails for recurring gaps when an expected invoice is missing.
Why FilePile
FilePile simplifies the way you manage business expenses by automating the tedious task of data entry and filing. When you digitize paper invoices with our platform, you eliminate the risk of losing physical documents and gain instant access to your financial history. Our auto-sorting technology ensures that every invoice is filed correctly, saving you hours of administrative work each month.
Getting started with FilePile
Ready to streamline your workflow? Sign up today to start digitizing your paper invoices and take control of your business archives.