Three-Way Match: PO, GRN & Supplier Invoice Reconciliation
Before you pay: every invoice line against its PO and goods receipt, with what to hold.
Try before you buy.
- Free preview: the counts of matched lines, exceptions by kind and invoices ready or on hold, with the first rows of each table (up to 10) and every amount hidden.
- Locked until you unlock it: download and copy.
- Unlock: Premium pass, ₹799 for 30 days or ₹249 for 1 week, a one-time payment that never renews. Unlock: Premium pass, $19.99 for 30 days or $7.99 for 1 week, a one-time payment that never renews.
Ways to unlock shows how to get the full result.
Printing this result is locked in the free preview.
Purchase orders
PO lines from your ERP or Tally (CSV or Excel): PO number, item, quantity ordered and unit price — or purchase orders saved by the Purchase Order Generator (.json).
Goods receipts
GRN or receipt lines: PO number, item and quantity received (accepted and rejected if you have them) — the register of the Goods Received Note Generator works as it is. Without receipts the match is two-way.
Supplier invoices
Invoice lines: invoice number, supplier, the PO it is for, item, quantity and unit price or amount before tax — your purchase register exported as CSV or Excel.
Tolerances and rules quantity and price tolerances, what to hold, dates
A difference is within tolerance when it is no more than every limit you set; with none set, quantities must match exactly and prices to the cent. These settings are kept in this browser.
The match
Exceptions and the amount to hold
Invoices
Ready to pay
Received but not invoiced, or not received in full
Rows left out or read with a note
Matches are made by rules from your own files. Check each exception with the supplier, the store and the PO before you hold or release a payment.
Locked in the free preview. Opens the ways to unlock this result.
Locked in the free preview. Batch runs unlock with a pass.
Locked in the free preview. Query results unlock with a pass.
About the Three-Way Match: PO, GRN & Supplier Invoice Reconciliation
An accounts-payable check before you pay a supplier: is every invoice line ordered, received and priced as agreed? Bring in your purchase-order lines, your goods-receipt lines and your supplier invoices — CSV or Excel exports of your ERP, Tally or accounting software, the register of the Goods Received Note Generator, or purchase orders saved by the Purchase Order Generator — and each invoice line is matched to its PO line by PO number and item, then checked against what was received and what was ordered, with the tolerances you set.
You get the lines that match, and every exception with the amount to hold: invoices without a PO, items that are not on the PO, goods billed but not received, more billed than received or ordered (counting earlier invoices of the same PO line), prices above the PO, duplicate invoice numbers (also written another way, such as INV-045 and INV/45) and bills that look entered twice under two numbers. Each invoice is marked ready to pay, on hold or — if you choose — to be paid in part. Receipts not yet invoiced and short receipts are listed too. Without receipts the match is two-way: PO and invoice.
Without a pass the result is a free preview: every count shows, with the first rows of each table and the amounts hidden; the exception report, the workbook, the ready-to-pay list and the summary unlock with a Premium pass. Your tolerances are kept as settings, and nothing you open is uploaded.
How to use it
- Drop your purchase-order lines in step 1 (PO number, item code or description, quantity ordered, unit price), and check under “Columns used” that each column was found.
- Drop your goods receipts in step 2 (PO number, item, quantity received; accepted and rejected if you record them). Leave it empty for a two-way match.
- Drop your supplier invoices in step 3 (invoice number, supplier, PO number, item, quantity, unit price or amount before tax). An invoice line without a PO is matched to the one open PO of that supplier with that item, when there is exactly one.
- Under Tolerances and rules, set how much quantity and price may differ (in % or units and amounts), whether an invoice with an exception is held whole or paid in part, and how your dates are written.
- Read the exceptions, the invoices and the ready-to-pay list. The exception report (PDF), the workbook and the CSV lists unlock with a Premium pass; without one the match stays a free preview.
Examples
PO-101: 40 reams at 265 · GRN: 40 received, 38 accepted, 2 rejected · invoice KS/0457: 40 reams at 265
Billed more than received: 40 billed against 38 accepted; hold 2 × 265 = 530 (or the whole invoice, if that is your rule).
PO-102: 60 box files at 62 · GRN: 50 received · invoice MOS-881: 60 at 64
Billed more than received: hold 10 × 64 = 640; price above the PO on the 50 received: hold 50 × 2 = 100. To hold on the line: 740.
Invoice KS/0457 and, a week later, KS/457 from the same supplier for the same 500 pens
Duplicate invoice number (the two numbers are the same once the zero is dropped), and the pens are billed beyond what was received and ordered: hold the second invoice in full.
Common uses
- An accounts-payable clerk checking this week’s supplier invoices before the payment run.
- A small manufacturer or retailer checking deliveries and bills against purchase orders kept in a spreadsheet.
- Month-end: the goods received but not invoiced yet, to accrue, and the short receipts to chase.
- An internal auditor sampling payments for duplicates and prices above the agreed rates.
How lines are matched
- The PO: the PO number on the invoice line, else on another line of the same invoice, else the only open PO of that supplier that has the item. PO and invoice numbers are compared without spaces, punctuation or leading zeros of their numbers, so “PO/24-25/012” matches “po 24-25 12”.
- The item: the same item code, else the same description (ignoring case and punctuation), else the PO’s only line.
- Received: the quantity accepted when the receipt gives it, else received less rejected, else received.
- Earlier invoices count: an invoice line may bill only what is received and ordered and not yet billed by an earlier invoice (in date order) of the same PO line.
- Prices are compared before tax: the invoice’s unit price (or its amount ÷ quantity) against the PO price.
What is held
- Billed more than received or ordered: the excess quantity × the invoice price.
- Price above the PO: the price difference × the quantity billed within what was received.
- No PO, item not on the PO, not received at all: the whole line.
- Duplicate invoice number, possible duplicate, a line repeated on one invoice: the whole invoice, or the repeated line.
- With Hold the whole invoice (the default) any exception keeps the whole invoice from the ready-to-pay list; with Pay the matched part only the amount to hold stays back.
Tolerances
Set a quantity tolerance in % of what is received (or ordered) and/or in units, and a price tolerance in % of the PO price and/or as an amount a unit. A difference is within tolerance only when it is no more than every limit you set; with none set, quantities must match exactly and prices to the cent. Small tolerances absorb rounding and weighing differences without letting real over-billing through.
Limitations
- Each file must give the PO number on its lines (receipts) or let the PO be found (invoices); unit conversions (a box of 10 against units) are not made.
- Prices are compared before tax; tax amounts and rates are not checked.
- Invoices in another currency than the PO are not converted.
- It reads your files as they are: it does not post, approve or pay anything, and it cannot see what your software has already paid.
Privacy
On this device; its files download once
Your purchase orders, receipts and invoices stay in this browser on this device; nothing you open is uploaded.
Frequently asked questions
What do I get without a pass?
Without a pass, Three-Way Match: PO, GRN & Supplier Invoice Reconciliation shows the counts of matched lines, exceptions by kind and invoices ready or on hold, with the first rows of each table (up to 10) and every amount hidden. Until you unlock it, the result can’t be downloaded or copied. A Premium or Ultimate pass, a one-time payment that never renews, unlocks the full result. The pricing page lists the passes and their prices.
What does the free preview show?
The whole match is made on your files, and every count shows: invoices and lines, lines matched, exceptions of each kind, invoices ready to pay and on hold. Each table shows its first rows (up to 10) with the amounts and worked-out quantities hidden. The exception report (PDF), the workbook, the ready-to-pay list, the exceptions list and the summary unlock with a Premium pass. Your tolerances and the blank lists are never locked.
What is a three-way match?
A check before a supplier is paid that three documents agree: the purchase order (what was ordered, at what price), the goods receipt (what arrived and was accepted) and the supplier’s invoice (what is billed). An invoice that bills more than was received, more than was ordered, or at a higher price than agreed is held until it is explained.
Can I match without goods receipts?
Yes. Leave step 2 empty and the match is two-way: each invoice line against its PO line, for the quantity ordered and the price. That suits services, where there is nothing to receive into the store.
Which files can I use?
Any CSV or Excel file with one row per line: columns are found by their names (PO number, item code or description, quantity, rate or amount…), and you can choose any column by hand under “Columns used” — the choice is remembered for files of the same layout. The Goods Received Note Generator’s register (CSV) and purchase orders saved by the Purchase Order Generator (.json) are read as they are.
How are duplicate invoices found?
The same invoice number from the same supplier appearing again (in another file or with another date) is a duplicate, also when it is written another way (“INV-045”, “inv/45”). An invoice with another number but the same supplier, date and amount as an earlier one is flagged as a possible duplicate, and a line repeated on one invoice is flagged too.