A purchase order is the written order you send a supplier before they deliver, so the bill can be checked against it later.
What Sage 50 does on its own
Sage 50 Accounts Professional has Purchase Order Processing for raising orders to suppliers. In the US edition every edition raises purchase orders from Vendors & Purchases. An order is turned into a bill or invoice once goods or the supplier invoice arrive.
What you need in Sage 50
- Sage 50 Accounts Professional (UK) or any Sage 50 (US) edition
Setting it up in Sage 50
Where to find it: US: Vendors & Purchases > Purchase Orders > New Purchase Order
- Open Purchase Orders and choose New Purchase Order.
- Enter the supplier, the items or services and the PO No.
- Save the order or print it for the supplier.
- When goods arrive, record the receipt against the order.
- Turn the order into the bill or invoice when the supplier invoice comes in.
Good to know in Sage 50
- In the US edition a bill can be made from a purchase order only if the order has a PO number.
- There is no approval step. Sage UK staff say authorisation is not available.
- Approval add-ons named by users: Compleat, PaperLess and Codeless Platforms.
How to do it in Sage 50
How to raise a purchase order and get it approved in Sage 50
Sage 50 Accounts has no purchase order approval step. In the UK you can separate the New/Edit and Place Order user rights. Approval add-ons include Compleat, PaperLess and Codeless Platforms.
How to match a purchase invoice to a purchase order in Sage 50
In Sage 50, open the purchase order, compare each purchase invoice line to the purchase order line on quantity and unit price and query any difference before you approve.
How to handle a partial delivery against a purchase order in Sage 50
In Sage 50, keep the purchase order open, check each purchase invoice against what has been billed so far and close the purchase order only when the last delivery is invoiced.
What Pulsify adds
- Raise and approve the purchase order in Sage 50 as you do now.
- Open purchase orders come into Pulsify from Sage 50.
- When the purchase invoice arrives, Pulsify matches it to the purchase order line by line and flags differences.
- A panel shows how much of the purchase order has been billed and what is left.
Pulsify connects to Sage 50. We set up the connection for you. More about purchase orders in Pulsify.
What Pulsify does not do
- Raising purchase orders in Pulsify is for Xero only. In Sage 50 you raise them in Sage 50.
More help
- Supplier statement reconciliation for Sage 50
- Invoice approvals for Sage 50
- Invoice capture for Sage 50
- All Sage 50 how-to guides
Sources
Last checked 2026-10-19.
Common questions
Which Sage 50 edition has purchase orders?
In the UK you need Sage 50 Accounts Professional. In the US every Sage 50 edition has purchase orders. Entry-level UK editions do not include Purchase Order Processing.
Do Sage 50 purchase orders need approval before they go out?
No approval step exists. A forum tip is to split the New/Edit right from the Place Order right between two users. Add-ons such as Compleat add a proper approval route.
Does a Sage 50 purchase order post to the ledger?
A Sage learning page says the ledger updates only when the related invoice is saved, not when the order is entered. The order is a commitment record until then.
Should every purchase have a purchase order?
Most teams set a dollar amount or a supplier list. Regular small bills such as power often skip a PO and go through approval instead.
Pulsify setup guides
Want this done for you?
Book a call to see how Pulsify handles purchase orders in Sage 50.