The best invoice scanning software for an Australian business is the one that gets a supplier bill into Xero or MYOB coded and checked, not just read. Reading the invoice is now the cheap part. Xero includes capture at no extra charge, MYOB lists no separate charge for its version and most paid tools here charge under a dollar a document. What separates them is what happens after the scan.
We make Pulsify, which is on this list. Every other tool is described from its own website, with prices checked in October 2026.
Who should pick what:
- Mostly one-line bills such as rent, phone and software: start with the capture built into Xero or MYOB.
- A bookkeeper or practice collecting paperwork from lots of clients: Dext or AutoEntry.
- Bills with many lines that need coding, checks and approval before they reach the ledger: Pulsify, Lightyear or EzzyBills.
- Already approving bills in ApprovalMax on Xero? Its Capture add-on keeps scanning and approval in one place.
Invoice scanner or AP tool?
An invoice scanner is software that reads a supplier invoice (an emailed PDF or a photo) and turns it into a draft bill so nobody types it. It reads the supplier, ABN, invoice number, dates, GST and total. Some read every line too. Under the hood it’s OCR for invoice processing, usually with an AI model on top that works out which number is the total and which is a unit price.
An AP tool does the same reading and then keeps going. It codes each line, checks the bill, sends it for approval and posts it to the ledger. Invoice capture is the first step of accounts payable automation, not the whole of it.
You’ll see the same job sold as invoice capture software, automated invoice scanning or AP scanning. An invoice scanning service is something else: you post your paper to a provider who scans it for you. And despite the name, you rarely need a physical scanner. Most invoices reach Australian businesses as PDFs on email.
The split that matters is header versus lines. Header capture puts the whole invoice on one bill line, which is fine for a phone bill. Line capture reads each product as its own row. You need that once one invoice touches more than one account or GST treatment.
How we judged them: what happens after the scan
We judged each tool on five jobs that decide whether the bill in your ledger is right. Most tools read a clean PDF well now. Where they differ is coding, GST, checks, approvals and posting.
Line-item coding is assigning each line on an invoice to the right account. Good tools learn it from history: if a supplier’s packaging went to Packaging Materials last month, it goes there again. Without it someone splits the bill by hand. Two people will split the same supplier differently. Our guide to line-item coding for mixed GST and split invoices shows how that works in Xero and MYOB.
GST has to be right on every line. The ATO’s tax invoice rules say an invoice that mixes taxable and non-taxable items must show which items are taxable. Get that wrong and the input tax credits you claim are wrong too. In our guide to uploading invoices to Xero, a 14-line food wholesaler bill coded as one taxable line records $108.75 of GST instead of $54.91.
Then come the checks. A duplicate check catches the same bill entered twice. Changed bank details are the expensive one. Payment redirection scams cost Australians $166.8 million in 2025, according to the National Anti-Scam Centre’s Targeting Scams report. A fake invoice with new bank details scans perfectly, because nothing on the page is wrong. The check that catches bank account change fraud compares the bank details on the invoice with the supplier’s details already held in your ledger.
Approval is where someone other than the person entering the bill agrees it should be paid. Xero lets a bill sit as awaiting approval until someone with permission approves it. Rules such as “anything over $5,000 goes to the finance manager” need a tool that routes the bill and records who said yes. Last comes posting: does the bill land in Xero or MYOB with every line, account and tax code, matched to the existing supplier?
The scorecard we used is below. Score every row 0, 1 or 2 on ten of your own messiest invoices.
| What to test | 0 | 1 | 2 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Reads every line | Header only | Lines on some documents or at extra cost | Every line, included |
| Codes each line to an account | You code it | Supplier default account for the whole bill | Each line coded from that supplier’s history |
| GST per line | Total GST only | GST per line, you fix mixed invoices | Taxable and GST-free lines split correctly |
| Duplicates | No check | Same file uploaded twice | Same bill under a new number or from a statement |
| Supplier checks | None | ABN read and matched | ABN, GST registration and changed bank details flagged |
| Approvals | None or by email | One approval step | Rules by amount and supplier, with a record of who approved |
| Posting to Xero or MYOB | Export file | Direct, header only | Direct bill with lines and tax codes |
| Right with no edits (of your 10) | 0 to 2 | 3 to 7 | 8 or more |
Weight the rows that matter for your bills. If you never get mixed GST invoices, the GST row barely counts. If you pay large supplier bills by bank transfer, the supplier checks row matters more than the rest put together. Run the built-in option through the same ten first. If it scores the same as a paid tool on the rows you care about, keep the money.
The best invoice scanning software for Xero and MYOB in 2026
Nine tools made the list, in three groups. Two are built into the ledger. Three are capture tools that feed your ledger. Four scan the bill and then carry it through to approval. Prices are list prices as of October 2026. For an AP-team view of the OCR layer, see our OCR software for accounts payable comparison.
Xero Smart Document Capture
Xero’s own Smart Document Capture is included in Xero’s small business plans at no extra charge. You forward a document to your Xero email address, drag it in or photograph it in the Xero app. Xero reads it, can match it to an existing transaction and warns you when the same document is uploaded twice.
Xero’s 2 July 2026 update added line by line reading for itemised documents, in beta for Australia and New Zealand at the time. Its 18 September update renamed Files to Documents and made automatic tax extraction live. Tax number validation is due in the coming months and creating bills straight into awaiting approval is further out. On Xero’s Australian plan page, Grow lists basic extraction while Comprehensive and Ultimate list the full feature.
Hubdoc, Xero’s older capture app, is still listed in the Xero App Store as included with Xero’s older Starter, Standard and Premium plans. We couldn’t find an announced end date as of October 2026. The 2026 capture updates we found from Xero were all in Documents.
Best for: Xero businesses with simple bills that want to start at no extra cost.
MYOB Uploads and In Tray
MYOB’s capture is called Uploads in MYOB Business and the In Tray in AccountRight, where the company file needs to be online. Each business gets its own uploads email address. You can also drag files in or photograph a bill with the MYOB Assist app.
Per MYOB’s help page, MYOB Business pre-fills the supplier, dates, quantities and amounts. AccountRight’s In Tray uses the ABN to pick the supplier, then takes the layout and expense account from the supplier card, with the invoice number and amounts filled in. Files can be PDF, JPG, TIFF or PNG up to 10 MB. The help page lists no separate charge.
Best for: MYOB businesses whose suppliers bill to the same account every time.
Dext
Dext is a capture tool for bookkeepers, practices and businesses. You snap, upload or email receipts and invoices and Dext publishes them to your ledger. It connects to MYOB as well as Xero. Supplier rules set a default category, tax rate and due date for each supplier. Its duplicate check flags invoices with the same supplier, total and reference number.
The business plan is $33.58 a month ex GST billed annually ($403 a year) for 250 documents and five users. Line-item extraction is an add-on from $28.50 a month or $0.70 a document, with five line-item documents included free.
Best for: practices and businesses that mostly need header data captured from lots of documents.
AutoEntry
AutoEntry is a Sage-owned capture tool that reads invoices, receipts, supplier statements and bank statements. It suggests tax codes and supplier accounts and learns as you use it. It can also sync invoices to open purchase orders. MYOB lists it in the MYOB app marketplace as working with AccountRight. It connects to Xero too.
Pricing is by credits. The smallest plan is AUD 23.40 a month, excluding tax, for 50 credits. An invoice costs one credit. With line items it’s two. Unused credits roll over for 90 days and every plan has unlimited users.
Best for: practices with uneven monthly volumes that want to pay per document.
Datamolino
Datamolino reads bills and receipts as totals only or with full line items. It remembers how you coded a supplier’s first invoice (account, tax code and tracking) and applies that to the next one. Its duplicate check catches the same file uploaded twice and bills with the same invoice number and supplier. Approvals are included on every business plan.
Business plans start at £17 a month (ex VAT) for 100 documents, one company and unlimited users. The page didn’t show AUD prices when we checked. It lists Xero, QuickBooks Online and FreeAgent. MYOB isn’t listed.
Best for: a single Xero business that wants line items and approvals at a low monthly price.
Pulsify
Pulsify is accounts payable software for Australian businesses on Xero and MYOB. You forward invoices to a Pulsify address, upload them or snap them on your phone. It reads every line and codes each one to an account and GST code from that supplier’s history and the rate printed on the line.
It then checks the bill. Pulsify flags a possible duplicate when the supplier and invoice number match, even if the number is spaced or punctuated differently. It compares the BSB and account number with the supplier contact in Xero or MYOB. ABNs that are invalid or not registered for GST get flagged too. It also runs two-way PO matching. Approved bills are created in Xero or MYOB with every line and tax code.
Get Control is $69 a month ex GST for 100 documents, with $1 per extra document and line items included. Multi-step approvals are a $40 per entity a month add-on.
Best for: any business on Xero or MYOB whose supplier bills carry lines that need coding and checking before they’re paid.
Lightyear
Lightyear is AP and purchasing software. Line-item extraction is included, along with purchase orders, approval workflows and supplier statement reconciliation. Its Xero listing says each line goes to Xero with its account, tax and tracking. Its feature list describes approvals in one to three levels, with approval by value sent to up to eight users. Lightyear flags bank details that differ from the supplier’s stored details and flags duplicates by supplier and bill number. It also connects to MYOB (AccountRight, MYOB Business and MYOB Acumatica).
Essentials is $155 a month for 125 credits. Standard is $255 a month for 250 credits and adds goods received notes and three-way PO matching. The page doesn’t say whether prices are AUD or ex GST, and Lightyear says some accounting integrations can add a monthly fee.
Best for: purchasing-led businesses that raise POs and receive goods against them.
EzzyBills
EzzyBills is an Australian tool that captures bills, extracts line items and codes them. It connects to Xero, MYOB and QuickBooks. Every plan includes an approval workflow with up to five stages. Higher tiers add links to job and inventory systems such as Simpro and Cin7, plus PO matching (beta) from the E10 plan.
Plans are annual only. Light is A$132 a year including GST for 450 documents a year and one company. Standard is A$297 for 1,200 documents. Premium is A$605 for 2,500 documents across unlimited companies.
Best for: small Xero or MYOB businesses that want line items and approvals at the lowest yearly cost.
ApprovalMax Capture
ApprovalMax is approval software for Xero, QuickBooks Online and NetSuite. ApprovalMax Capture reads the supplier, invoice number, amounts and tax from uploaded or emailed bills and drops them into an approval request. For Xero, it detects line items and learns which line item each supplier product code maps to.
On ApprovalMax’s Xero pricing page, Capture is an add-on sold in tiers from 25 documents a month. The page didn’t show prices when we checked. MYOB isn’t listed.
Best for: Xero businesses that already run approvals in ApprovalMax.
Invoice scanning software compared
This table lines up the invoice scanning software above against the after-the-scan scorecard. “Not listed” means the vendor’s own pages didn’t say, not that the feature is missing.
| Tool | Reads every line | Codes each line | Duplicate check | Bank detail check | Approvals | Xero / MYOB | Starts at (Oct 2026) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Xero Smart Document Capture | Itemised documents (beta in AU) | Not listed | Same document uploaded twice | Not listed | Xero bill approval | Xero only | Included in Xero |
| MYOB Uploads / In Tray | Line amounts pre-filled | Supplier card default account | Not listed | Not listed | Not listed | MYOB only | No separate charge listed |
| Dext | Add-on | Supplier rules | Supplier, total and reference | Not listed | Not listed | Both | $33.58/month billed annually, 250 documents |
| AutoEntry | 2 credits per invoice | Suggested supplier account | Not listed | Not listed | Not listed | Both (AccountRight) | AUD 23.40/month excl. tax, 50 credits |
| Datamolino | Optional | Remembered per supplier | Same file or same invoice number and supplier | Not listed | Included | Xero (MYOB not listed) | £17/month, 100 documents |
| Pulsify | Included | Each line from supplier history | Supplier and invoice number | Against the Xero or MYOB contact | Default approve included; steps and routing $40 per entity a month add-on | Both | $69/month, 100 documents |
| Lightyear | Included | Each line with tax and tracking | Supplier and bill number | Against stored supplier details | 1 to 3 levels, by value to 8 users | Both (AccountRight) | $155/month, 125 credits (currency not stated) |
| EzzyBills | Listed | Automated coding | Not listed | Not listed | Up to 5 stages | Both | A$132/year inc GST, 450 documents |
| ApprovalMax Capture | Xero line items | Item mapping per supplier code | Not listed | Not listed | Core product | Xero (MYOB not listed) | Add-on, price not shown |
Check the current price on each vendor’s page before you buy.
What does invoice scanning software cost in Australia?
Invoice scanning software in Australia costs anywhere from nothing to a few hundred dollars a month. Built-in capture comes with your Xero or MYOB plan. Entry plans for the paid tools on this list run from A$132 a year for EzzyBills to $155 a month for Lightyear, as of October 2026. They aren’t like for like: currency, GST and what counts as a credit differ by vendor.
Two things move the price more than the headline. The first is how line items are charged: included on some plans, an add-on on Dext and double credits on AutoEntry. The second is whether approvals are part of the price or extra. Count your bills with more than one line before you compare.
The subscription is still the small number. In Ardent Partners’ 2026 benchmark, almost one invoice in five hits an exception for the average AP team (19.9%), against about one in nine for the best teams (11.8%). On 300 bills a month that’s about 24 extra bills someone stops to fix. Average teams spend US$9.90 handling each invoice and the best spend US$2.67.
For the full cost of invoice automation beyond capture, our invoice automation guide breaks it into price bands. Our invoice processing software comparison covers the wider workflow. The AP automation software comparison covers full AP platforms.
Where Pulsify fits
On the scorecard, Pulsify should score 2 on most feature rows. Duplicates is the exception. The check needs the same invoice number, so it scores 1 and won’t catch the same bill under a new number. Approval routing is a paid add-on. Test it on these:
- Reads every line on every plan, not as an add-on.
- Codes account and GST per line from that supplier’s history, so taxable and GST-free lines split on the same bill.
- Flags duplicates that share an invoice number, changed bank details, ABNs that are invalid or not registered for GST and totals that don’t add up.
- Routes approvals by supplier, amount, GL account or job with a record of who approved. Steps are a $40 per entity a month add-on.
- Creates the bill in Xero or MYOB with every line and tax code, for one company file or a group.
Then check the last row yourself. Run your ten messiest invoices through the trial and count how many come out right with no edits. We see it used most in wholesale, logistics, manufacturing, retail and construction, but it’s built for anyone on Xero or MYOB whose bills carry lines.
Pulsify connects to Xero and MYOB only, so QuickBooks, Sage or NetSuite users should look at other tools. And if you process fewer than about 50 bills a month and they’re mostly one line, Xero or MYOB’s own capture will do. See how the scan works on our invoice scanning page. The wider workflow is on AP automation.
To try it on your messiest supplier, start a free 30-day trial or book a demo.
Sources: ATO: Tax invoices · National Anti-Scam Centre: Targeting Scams · Xero Blog: Files now called Documents · MYOB: Working with In Tray documents · Ardent Partners, AP Metrics that Matter in 2026 (Medius)
Also comparing: Dext vs Pulsify · Lightyear vs Pulsify · EzzyBills vs Pulsify
Further reading: Invoice fraud detection software in Australia · Invoice automation in Australia: what it costs and how to start · How to upload invoices and receipts to Xero