Scenario 1
Price variance within tolerance
What Glimps checks
Variance percentage, amount, and supplier policy.
Action
Auto-approve and post.
Automated order matching
Automatically match purchase orders, receipts, and invoices in Exact Online
Matching purchase orders in Exact Online becomes truly valuable when invoices are automatically checked against what was ordered and received. Glimps supports automated order matching at header and line level, with clear exceptions for finance and purchasing.
AP cockpit
Live overview
2-way match
PO + invoice
Checks whether the invoice fits the purchase order.
3-way match
PO + receipt + invoice
Also checks whether goods or services were actually received.
Tolerances
Rules per variance
For example, approve price variance under 2 percent automatically and block larger differences.
Benchmark: Ardent Partners (2024) reported $9.40 average cost per invoice, 9.15 days processing time, 32.6% straight-through processing. Source
Does this match your situation?
Where this solution fits — and where it doesn't
Good fit
- You have PO-driven purchasing or goods receipts.
- You want invoices posted automatically only when price and quantity match.
- You want to automate small tolerances and escalate real variances.
Less relevant
- You do not use a PO process and only have non-PO expense invoices.
- PO or receipt data is not digitally available anywhere.
Process design
From intake to controlled posting
Glimps handles the routine so finance can focus on the exceptions — not the data entry.
01
1. Find PO reference
Glimps finds PO numbers on the invoice and can also match by supplier, lines, and amounts when the reference is missing.
02
2. Compare line data
Item, description, quantity, price, VAT, and total are compared with PO and receipt data.
03
3. Apply tolerance
Small differences can be processed automatically. Variances outside policy are blocked.
04
4. Assign exception owner
Price variances go to purchasing, receipt issues to operations or warehouse, coding questions to finance.
Where things get stuck
The real value is in the exceptions
High-volume AP automation only pays off when it is clear what can flow through safely — and what must be reviewed by a human.
Focused on exceptions, not data entry
Line level matters
The total can match while individual lines are wrong. For trading and manufacturing companies, line level is necessary.
PO is not always cleanly shown
Suppliers sometimes use their own references, multiple POs, or different item codes.
Not every variance is wrong
A small price variance, partial receipt, or accepted freight line should not be handled like a real mismatch.
Concrete exceptions
How Glimps handles the cases that would otherwise stall
Scenario 2
Receipt is missing
What Glimps checks
PO status, goods receipt, and open quantity.
Action
Hold until receipt is posted.
Scenario 3
Invoice references multiple POs
What Glimps checks
Line split, supplier, amounts, and open PO lines.
Action
Match lines by PO or send to review.
Exact Online setup checklist
The prerequisites to get this solution into production.
- PO and receipt data is digitally available.
- Suppliers include PO numbers on invoices where possible.
- Tolerances are defined by category or supplier.
- Exception owners are clear: finance, purchasing, warehouse, operations.
What Glimps automates for you
The concrete parts of the process Glimps takes off your hands.
- PO recognition from invoices.
- Header and line-level matching.
- 2-way and 3-way matching with tolerances.
- Exception routing with audit trail.
FAQ
Frequently asked questions
Specific questions about this solution for match purchase orders in exact online.
Want to see it yourself?Open the demo
2-way compares invoice with PO. 3-way compares invoice, PO, and goods receipt, so you also know whether goods were actually received.
Yes. You can configure tolerances so small differences flow through and larger variances are blocked.
Matching can sometimes still use supplier, amounts, and lines. If the match is uncertain, the invoice goes to review.
Read next
Related solutions
Manufacturing
Raw materials, components, partial deliveries, and quality checks.
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Trading & wholesale
High supplier volume, PO lines, freight, and partial receipts.
View solution
High-volume invoice processing
For teams where manual AP capacity no longer scales.
View solution
Ready to automate match purchase orders in exact online?
Open the demo to see Glimps in action, or check what a Professional plan looks like for your volume.