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Accounts payable (AP) processes are often tedious and time-consuming for finance teams. Yet they are a crucial part of maintaining cash flow and relationships with vendors. Invoice approvals, PO matching, vendor payments, and more all take considerable manual effort. This ties up staff resources that could be better utilized on more strategic tasks.
To optimize AP, leading companies are turning to automation solutions integrated with their NetSuite ERP. When properly implemented, AP automation for NetSuite accelerates workflows, increases visibility across the procure-to-pay process, reduces costs through improved efficiency, and boosts staff productivity.
In this guide, we’ll cover:
- Key benefits of AP automation for NetSuite
- Must-have functionality in a leading solution
- The top 11 AP automation tools for you to consider
Why Automate Accounts Payable Processes for NetSuite?
Manual AP methods like paper invoices and spreadsheet-based payments mean lots of repetitive administrative work for your staff. This busywork takes away from more impactful analysis they could be doing to add value. What’s more, manual processes inevitably lead to human errors that delay payments, hurt supplier relationships, and reduce employee productivity.
Automating AP distills your procure-to-pay workflows into unified digital systems. This eliminates bottlenecks and liberates your finance personnel from mundane data tasks. Key benefits you can expect from AP automation for NetSuite include:
Accelerated invoice processing
AP automation immediately captures invoice data as it arrives and routes it for digital approval workflows. This slashes the time needed for approvals from weeks to hours or minutes.
Improved visibility
With a unified platform, teams have real-time insights and reminders into all AP activity. Real-time dashboards make the status of invoices, payments, budgets, and more readily transparent across departments.
Enhanced collaboration
Shared platforms connect teams and systems in a centralized digital environment optimized for communication and transparency. AP activity is visible to all stakeholders, enabling cross-departmental collaboration.
Greater accuracy
Automating data capture and approvals minimizes manual errors stemming from paper files or Excel. Validations further enhance accuracy while exception reports identify outliers needing review. This boosts the integrity of your financial data.
Lower AP costs
By eliminating paper and manual work, AP automation massively cuts labor and operating costs associated with legacy invoice processing. Long term productivity gains free up finance staff for strategic initiatives.
Clearly, AP automation yields major benefits as part of an integrated NetSuite solution. But all tools are not made equal. You want advanced functionality that can freely scale with complexity as your company grows.
Key Capabilities to Look for in an AP Automation Solution
With manual AP so inefficient yet so critical, you need an automation solution that comprehensively digitizes workflows while integrating smoothly across your technology environment.
Here are key features your AP automation system must have to deliver maximum value:
Comprehensive capture
Smart automation begins by digitally capturing invoices from any channel—email, mailroom, EDI—automatically storing them for instant access enterprise-wide.
Accelerated approvals
Sophisticated tools immediately validate invoices against PO data, budget limits, and more upon capture. They then route them digitally to streamline approval workflows.
Seamless ERP sync
To maximize benefits, the solution should directly integrate with your NetSuite platform, syncing validated transaction data in real time for smart end-to-end automation.
Payment flexibility
Leading solutions support ACH, virtual cards, multiple currencies, and other payment types to enable the flexible vendor payment strategies that work for your company.
Vendor self-service
An integrated portal lets suppliers directly submit invoices, correct errors, manage payment details, and track status without your staff’s help. This further optimizes efficiency
Mobility
Modern tools allow anytime-anywhere access and approvals via intuitive web and mobile apps. This empowers employees and executives outside the office to move invoices forward.
Ongoing optimizing
Look also for built-in analytics that provide real-time dashboards plus AI that learns patterns in your data. These drive continuous recommendations to optimize workflows over time.
When aligned to your specific needs, these elements transform AP efficiency. Now let’s explore top solutions to propel your NetSuite performance.
Top 11 AP Automation Tools for NetSuite
1. Paramount WorkPlace
Paramount WorkPlace integrates directly with NetSuite to streamline even the most complex AP workflows. Smart OCR automatically ingests data from both paper and digital documents, auto-populating into custom approval workflows. Rule-based workflows route invoices to correct personnel while real-time analytics provide actionable insights.
An intuitive interface consolidates AP visibility and control into simplified dashboards—accessible online or via mobile devices. With Paramount Workplace, your team cuts invoice processing costs by over 80% while payment cycle times fall by half.
Key Features:
- AI-powered smart OCR capabilities
- Single platform visibility
- Real-time mobile access
- Rules-based routing
- Custom reporting
Pricing: Contact for quote
2. AvidXchange
The AvidXchange platform completely automates invoice receipt through payment—integrating directly with NetSuite for real-time syncing and status updates. Upon receipt, AvidXchange digitizes and enriches invoice data using OCR and machine learning. An online portal gives you control over custom rules and role-based approval chains that speed invoice processing by 60%.
Once approved, invoices directly integrate into your NetSuite account. Meanwhile, AvidXchange supports a range of payment options including ACH, wire, card, and check—all from its centralized interface. Compliance tools ensure adherence to budgets, contracts, and payment schedules enterprise-wide.
Key Features:
- 60% faster invoice processing
- Centralized AP synced with NetSuite
- Range of flexible payment options
- Cloud-based for enterprise access
Pricing: Contact for quote
3. Beanworks
Beanworks is a popular companion for NetSuite, delivering AP automation alongside advanced functionality like configurable workflows, robust reporting, and AI-optimization. Invoices are automatically captured and coded based on intelligent algorithms. Beanwork‘s dashboards present real-time process visibility to increase collaboration across stakeholders involved in approvals, reconciliation, and exception processing.
Meanwhile, Beanworks direct integration with NetSuite means all invoices and transaction data flow seamlessly into your live ERP environment with no manual exporting or importing required. This eliminates siloed financial data pools. Custom validations and rules guarantee accuracy and adherence to budgets or payment guidelines.
Key Features:
- AI-powered invoice coding/data capture
- Real-time dashboards
- Intuitive interface and workflows
- Seamless, real-time NetSuite integration
- Configurable rules for accuracy
Pricing: Contact Beanworks for a quote
4. Tipalti
Tipalti delivers comprehensive, global AP automation capable of managing all supplier payment complexities thrown at growing multinational companies. AP teams can pay any supplier in 130 currencies across 196 countries—all through Tipalti’s integrated payables platform.
Sophisticated workflows automate tax and supplier verification workflows while POs easily integrate for intelligent two and three-way invoice matching. Real-time reporting provides spend visibility across locations and suppliers with drill-down for deeper insights into AP activity. To drive even more efficiency, Tipalti’s self-service supplier portal lets vendors directly manage invoices, profiles, and payments themselves.
Key Features:
- Pay bills in 130 currencies / 196 countries
- Advanced matching and validations
- Supplier self-service management portal
- Automates supplier onboarding / verification
Pricing: Starts at $2000/month
5. Vision360
Vision360 Enterprise streamlines even the most chaotic AP workflows using advanced OCR technology, smart coding, validations, and intuitive workflows—directly within your NetSuite dashboard. Paper or emailed invoices are automatically captured, enveloped, sorted and intelligently coded based on customizable business rules.
Transactions are automatically matched against open purchase orders or non-PO options and routed for approvals. Finalized invoices integrate in real time with your live NetSuite AP system. Meanwhile, mobile and personalization features drive staff efficiency by cutting approval times up to 80%.
Key Features:
- Native within NetSuite (no API)
- Visibility across AP workflows
- 80% faster approvals
- Auto-coding and validations
- Interfaces with your existing customizations
Pricing: Starts at $850/month
6. Stampli
Stampli enhances productivity for NetSuite customers via AI-powered automation across the procure-to-pay process. Emails and attachments with invoices are smoothly ingested using machine learning for rapid data recognition. Validated transactions auto-sync directly into your NetSuite instance, eliminating manual data entry and validation—and slashing processing times by 50-80%.
Meanwhile, automated reporting eliminates spreadsheet-based analytics while giving real-time visibility into budgets, cash flow, and more. Stampli’s range of payment tools with support virtual cards, ACH, and checks provides the flexible disbursement options growing businesses need.
Key Features:
- 50-80% faster invoice processing
- AI-powered data capture
- Flexible payment options
- Real-time reporting/analytics
- Direct API integration
Pricing: Contact Stampli for quote
7. Fast Four AP
Fast Four AP provides intelligent automation directly within your NetSuite dashboards—eliminating the need for complex third party tools. Leveraging AI and machine learning, Fast Four automatically creates bills, credits memos, and other transactions after digitally capturing paper or electronic invoices.
It seamlessly integrates with your existing workflows and reporting—no reconfiguration required. All transaction data including line item details are auto-populated using Fast Four’s autonomous document processing. Approvals, reconciliations and more all occur natively within familiar NetSuite screens using Core transaction capabilities.
Key Features:
- Native within NetSuite
- Leverages AI for touchless processing
- Extends existing workflows and customizations
- Real-time sync into AP modules
- Cloud-based with unlimited users
Pricing: Starts at $0.38 per transaction after volume discounts
8. FileBound
Filebound AP automates document capture through digital envelope creation, OCR-driven data extraction, and workflows—directly interfacing with NetSuite for end-to-end automation. Integration eliminates manual re-keying of data between systems while machine learning continuously improves document processing accuracy over time.
Configurable rules route invoices to necessary staff while KPI dashboards track AP performance. FileBound checks all the compliance boxes as well with SOC2 certification, ISO 27001 information security standards, and features like audit trail tracking.
Key Features:
- Over 200 ERP integrations
- Advanced OCR and validations
- Compliance ready
- Customizable workflows and rules
- AP analytics/reporting
Pricing: Contact for quote
9. Yooz
Yooz provides intelligent AP automation tightly integrated with leading ERPs like NetSuite using its unique HyperView visual process creation environment. Drag-and-drop workflows auto-configure document capture, data extraction, custom validations, and bi-directional syncing within AP modules—no complex coding required.
Yooz empowers both technical and non-technical users to build workflows aligned to existing processes within minutes. Meanwhile, machine learning continuously enhances automation accuracy over time for touchless invoice processing at scale. With over 180 certified ERP integrations, Yooz ensures your solution fits seamlessly into existing tech.
Key Features:
- Easy drag-and-drop workflow builder
- 180+ ERP integrations
- Machine learning engine
- Real-time customizable dashboards
- Modern cloud-based interfaces
Pricing: Contact Yooz for quote
10. Medius AP Automation
Designed specifically for NetSuite integration, Medius provides automation with baseline functionality like high-volume invoice capture, OCR-based data extraction, and two-three way matching against POs or non-PO options. It shines brightest, however, in optimizing backend workflows to enhance automation leverage across your existing AP system.
Sophisticated algorithms sequence workflow steps based on interdependencies and employee bandwidth/capabilities to ensure rapid processing. Rules-driven exception management automatically escalates invoice issues to proper resolvers while reminders keep humans on task. Extensive analytics identify patterns that enable ongoing optimization recommendations.
Key Features:
- Advanced backend workflow optimization
- Runs natively within NetSuite
- Scales across business units
- Extensive analytics for process improvement
- Configurable rules and policy enforcement
Pricing: Contact Medius for quote
11. Kofax ReadSoft Online
Kofax provides market-leading capture driven process automation tightly integrated with major ERPs like NetSuite. Its ReadSoft Online platform ingests high volumes of both paper and electronic documents, digitizing them for instant, unlimited access. OCR technology extracts key data with up to 99% accuracy which seamlessly populates corresponding fields within your live NetSuite account in real time—no manual rekeying required.
Beyond baseline capture and sync, Kofax applies robotic process automation to further eliminate repetitive human tasks in your workflows. Machine learning also discovers patterns and exceptions in your AP data, driving continuous recommendations to improve cycle times.
Key Features:
- Scales to enterprise invoice volumes
- Over 99% data accuracy via AI
- Identifies optimization opportunities
- Paper + electronic document ingestion
- Real-time sync into ERP
Pricing: Contact Kofax sales for quotes
Which Tool is the Best Fit?
With so many choices on the market, identifying your optimal AP automation solution involves aligning capabilities to your specific needs and NetSuite environment. Smaller firms may prioritize ease of use and implementation whereas enterprise players demand tools to support global payment complexity at scale.
Begin by documenting your key AP pain points and bottlenecks. Compare them against solution strengths outlined above to narrow down top contenders. Reach out for custom quotes and demos from this shortlist before deciding on a platform. Integrating the right automation solution into your NetSuite ERP drives efficiencies across procure-to-pay—freeing up staff to focus on more rewarding initiatives.