Forward vendor PDFs to your FilePile inbox address and they are queued for processing automatically. This is ideal when invoices arrive by email and you want them in the same sorted archive as uploads from the dashboard.
What this guide covers
How to find your inbox address, what happens when you forward a bill, and how to keep forwarding secure for your team.
Before you begin
- Pro or Business plan (Email Invoice Inbox is a Business HQ panel).
- Vendor bills must be PDF attachments (scanned PDFs are supported).
Step-by-step: find your inbox address
- Log in at /login.
- Open Business HQ (/account/business).
- Scroll to the Email Invoice Inbox panel.
- Copy the unique forwarding address shown.
- Save it in your email client or vendor portal profile.
Step-by-step: forward a vendor bill
- When a vendor emails a PDF invoice, forward the message to your FilePile inbox address.
- FilePile extracts each PDF attachment and places it in your Processing queue.
- Open Dashboard (/dashboard) and click the Processing tab to watch status.
- When complete, open Browse to see the sorted folder path.
What happens when you forward a bill
FilePile accepts messages with PDF attachments. Each attachment is extracted and placed in your processing queue using the same AI sorting as dashboard uploads. Scanned PDFs are supported. You can also forward links to hosted invoices when vendors send download URLs instead of attachments.
What you should see
- New rows in Processing shortly after forwarding.
- Sorted files under Browse matching dashboard uploads (vendor / month folders).
- The same ledger entries whether you uploaded manually or forwarded by email.
Keep your inbox secure
- Only forward messages from trusted senders.
- Your address is unique to your account.
- If you believe it was exposed, contact support to rotate it.
Tips for AP teams
- Ask vendors to email invoices directly to your FilePile address.
- Combine with Approval Workflows so managers can sign off after auto-queued bills are processed.
- Pair with Payment due reminders so due dates on forwarded bills still trigger alerts.
Related guides
Tip: Add the inbox address to your vendor portal profiles to cut out manual downloads.
Frequently asked questions
Can I forward non-PDF attachments?
Only PDF attachments queue automatically. Download other formats from your vendor and upload on Dashboard.
Will duplicates forward twice?
Yes, if you forward the same PDF repeatedly. Duplicate detection warns you on the second upload.
Who can see inbox activity?
Anyone with upload access on the profile receives processed files in Browse.
Auto-forward setup (generic)
- Copy your FilePile inbox address from Business HQ.
- In Gmail or Outlook, create a rule: when subject contains "Invoice" from trusted domains, forward to your inbox address.
- Test with one vendor PDF and confirm Processing shows a new job.
Scenario walkthrough
Imagine it is the 28th of the month. You log in at /login, land on Dashboard (/dashboard), and scan the stat tiles: Tracked spend, Estimated tax (if on Business), Account credit, and Open invoices for your FilePile subscription. You open the Upload tab, add any PDFs that arrived today, then switch to Processing until each row shows completed. You check Ledger for amounts and Browse for folder paths. If Business HQ (/account/business) applies to your plan, you open the relevant panel next. Finally you visit /docs if you need a deeper guide.
Glossary (FilePile terms)
- Dashboard: main workspace at /dashboard with Upload, Processing, Ledger, Tasks, Browse tabs.
- Business HQ: owner tools at /account/business including Payment Command Center, Email Invoice Inbox, Spend Budgets, Approval Workflows, Bank Reconciliation, Tax estimates, Executive P&L, and Accounting export/import.
- Profile: separate business archive under one login; see /account/profiles.
- Ledger: searchable table of processed vendor invoices.
- Tasks: review queue for missing fields or billing mismatches.
Keyboard and navigation habits
Use the left sidebar consistently: Dashboard for daily PDF work, Business HQ for payables and reporting, Reminders at /account/reminders for email preferences, Help center at /docs for articles like this one. The Invoice workspace never uses a tab named Process; uploads always start on Upload.
When to contact support
Contact support if a valid PDF fails after three retries on Processing, if team invites never arrive, if billing charges look incorrect on /account/invoices, or if Business HQ panels stay locked after a confirmed upgrade. Include your account email, active profile name, and screenshot of the error row.
Record-keeping reminder
FilePile sorts and extracts PDFs you provide. It does not replace professional tax, legal, or accounting advice. Keep original vendor emails and bank records alongside your FilePile Browse archive for audit readiness.
Processing visibility
After forwarding, always confirm jobs on the Processing tab rather than re-forwarding the same attachment. Duplicate forwards waste queue time and may trigger duplicate detection.
Quick reference card
| Item | Value |
|------|-------|
| Login | /login |
| Register | /register |
| Dashboard | /dashboard |
| Business HQ | /account/business |
| Company | /account/company |
| Reminders | /account/reminders |
| Help | /docs |
| Plans | Free (25/mo), Pro, Business |
| Upload types | PDF only on Dashboard |
| Workspace tabs | Upload, Processing, Ledger, Tasks, Browse |
Keep this table handy when onboarding teammates so nobody searches for a Upload tab that does not exist.