What is EDI 810? A Complete Guide to Electronic Invoices

EDI 810 is the electronic invoice — the document that tells your retail customer how much they owe you and for what. It's the final step in the order-to-cash cycle before payment, and getting it right is the difference between getting paid on time and having your invoice rejected, disputed, or delayed for weeks.

If you're a supplier working with major retailers, the 810 isn't just a bill you send. It's a document that gets automatically matched against two other documents — the purchase order (850) and the advance ship notice (856) — and any discrepancy, no matter how small, can trigger a rejection or chargeback.

What an EDI 810 Contains

An electronic invoice carries the same information as a paper invoice, but in a structured format that the retailer's accounts payable system can process automatically:

Header Information

• Invoice number — your unique identifier for this invoice
• Invoice date
• Purchase order number — ties this invoice back to the original order
• Payment terms — NET30, NET60, 2/10 NET30, etc.
• Bill-to and remit-to addresses
• Buyer and seller identifiers (DUNS numbers, GLNs)

Line Items

• Product identifiers — UPC, GTIN, buyer's item number, or vendor's item number
• Quantity invoiced — must match what was shipped (per the 856)
• Unit price — must match the agreed price on the PO (850)
• Unit of measure — cases, eaches, pallets
• Extended amount — quantity x unit price
• Department or category codes (retailer-specific)

Summary

• Total invoice amount
• Allowances and charges — freight, discounts, co-op advertising deductions
• Tax amounts (if applicable)

Optional but Common

• Lot numbers and expiration dates — required for food, pharma, perishables
• Reference numbers — BOL numbers, carrier references, department numbers
• Allowance/charge detail — volume discounts, promotional allowances, defective goods credits

Three-Way Matching: Why Accuracy Matters

This is the concept that makes the 810 so critical. Most major retailers don't just receive your invoice and pay it. They run a three-way match:

| Document | What It Says | |----------|--------------| | 850 (Purchase Order) | "We ordered 100 units at $5.00 each" | | 856 (Advance Ship Notice) | "We shipped 100 units in 10 cartons" | | 810 (Invoice) | "You owe us $500.00 for 100 units at $5.00" |

If all three agree — quantities match, prices match, items match — the invoice is approved for payment. If they don't agree, the invoice goes into a dispute queue.

What Triggers a Mismatch

Quantity discrepancies: You invoiced for 100 units but the ASN says you shipped 95. Or the PO was for 100 but you shipped 80 and invoiced for 80 — acceptable, but only if you sent an updated PO acknowledgment (855) first.

Price discrepancies: The PO says $5.00/unit but your invoice says $5.25. Even a one-cent difference can trigger a hold. This often happens when pricing updates aren't synced between your system and the retailer's.

Item mismatches: The UPC on the invoice doesn't match the UPC on the PO. Or you used your internal SKU instead of the retailer's item number.

Missing references: The invoice doesn't include the PO number, or includes the wrong one. The retailer's system can't match it to anything.

The Cost of Mismatches

Invoice discrepancies don't just delay payment. They can result in:

• Deductions: Retailers deduct disputed amounts from future payments
• Chargebacks: Formal penalties for compliance failures
• Payment delays: Disputed invoices sit in a queue for 30-90+ days
• Strained relationships: Chronic invoice issues erode buyer confidence

For a mid-size supplier, invoice discrepancies can easily cost tens of thousands of dollars per year in deductions and delayed cash flow.

How EDI 810 Fits in the Order-to-Cash Flow

1. Retailer sends EDI 850 (Purchase Order) — order placed
2. You send EDI 997 (Acknowledgment) — received
3. You send EDI 855 (PO Acknowledgment) — confirmed/adjusted
4. You pick, pack, and ship
5. You send EDI 856 (ASN) — here's what shipped
6. Retailer receives goods and reconciles against ASN
7. You send EDI 810 (Invoice) — here's the bill
8. Retailer runs three-way match (850 vs 856 vs 810)
9. Retailer sends EDI 820 (Payment) — payment sent

The 810 should be sent after the goods are delivered and the retailer has confirmed receipt. Sending it too early (before delivery) can cause issues. Most retailers expect the invoice within 48 hours of delivery confirmation.

Common EDI 810 Challenges

Getting Prices to Match

The most frequent issue. Prices on the invoice must match the PO exactly. This sounds simple, but complications arise from:

• Promotional pricing that wasn't reflected in the PO
• Price increases that took effect after the PO was placed
• Volume discounts that change the effective unit price
• Currency or rounding differences

The fix: always generate your 810 line item prices from the original PO data, not from your current price list.

Handling Partial Shipments

If you only shipped 80 of 100 ordered units, the invoice should be for 80 units. But you also need to handle the remaining 20 — will there be a backorder and second invoice? Or was the PO reduced via an 860 (PO Change Request)? Each scenario requires different handling.

Allowances and Deductions

Retailers often negotiate allowances — co-op advertising, slotting fees, defective goods allowances, volume rebates. These appear as deductions on the 810 or as separate credit/debit memos (EDI 812). Getting the allowance codes and amounts right is complex and retailer-specific.

Timing

• Too early: Invoice arrives before the goods. Retailer's system can't match it.
• Too late: Misses the payment cycle. Payment delayed by 30+ days.
• Retailers have specific windows — Walmart expects invoices within 48 hours of delivery. Missing the window can trigger late-invoice chargebacks.

Duplicate Invoices

Accidentally sending the same invoice twice — or sending one with the same invoice number but different amounts — causes immediate disputes. Invoice numbers must be unique and never reused.

Retailer-Specific Requirements

Walmart:

• Invoice must match PO and ASN exactly
• Department number required on every line item
• Must include allowance/charge information for any negotiated deductions
• Late invoices (beyond 48 hours) incur chargebacks
• Walmart's APIN (Accounts Payable Invoice Number) system tracks everything

Target:

• DPCI codes required for product identification
• Specific formatting for allowances and promotional pricing
• Invoices reconciled through Target's Partners Online portal

Amazon Vendor Central:

• Invoices submitted through Vendor Central portal or EDI
• Strict matching to PO and shipping confirmation
• Amazon frequently disputes even minor discrepancies

Kroger:

• Scan-based trading (pay-on-scan) for some vendors — no traditional 810 needed
• Standard invoicing for warehouse-delivered goods
• Specific department and commodity code requirements

Best Practices

1. Generate Invoices from PO Data

Don't create invoices from your price list or order management system independently. Pull prices, quantities, and item identifiers from the original PO (850) so they match by definition.

2. Reconcile Against the ASN Before Sending

Before transmitting the 810, compare it to the 856 you sent. If the ASN says you shipped 95 units, the invoice should be for 95 units. Catching this mismatch before the retailer does saves you a chargeback.

3. Automate the Three-Way Match Internally

Don't wait for the retailer to find discrepancies. Run your own PO → ASN → Invoice match before sending. Flag and fix issues before they become disputes.

4. Use Unique Invoice Numbers

Establish a clear numbering convention and never reuse numbers. Include safeguards against duplicates in your system.

5. Send on Time

Automate invoice generation so it triggers from delivery confirmation. This ensures you're within the retailer's invoicing window without relying on someone remembering to send it.

6. Track Payment Status

Monitor which invoices have been accepted, which are in dispute, and which have been paid. Aging disputes need attention — they don't resolve themselves.

Simplifying EDI 810 Management

The 810 is where money meets compliance. Errors here directly impact your cash flow. The most effective approach is to automate the entire chain — from receiving the PO (850), to generating the ASN (856), to creating the invoice (810) — so data flows through consistently and discrepancies are caught before documents are sent.

OrderSync automates this end-to-end. Purchase orders are parsed and matched automatically. When goods ship, the ASN is generated from shipping data. The invoice is then created from the same PO and shipment data, ensuring a clean three-way match before it ever reaches the retailer.

Ready to see what's inside an EDI document? Try our free EDI Inspector to visualize and understand EDI formats.

---

Related Resources:

• The Essential Guide to EDI
• What is EDI 850? Purchase Orders
• What is EDI 856? Advance Ship Notices
• Walmart EDI Requirements
• Target EDI Requirements
• Free EDI Inspector Tool