Ocado EDI Requirements and Compliance Guide
Ocado's TRADACOMS order and invoice files, and the documents that stay off EDI
Ocado trades with suppliers in TRADACOMS. The messages to plan for are TRADACOMS ORDHDR (Order File), TRADACOMS INVFIL (Invoice File).
Ocado Retail exchanges orders and invoices with suppliers in TRADACOMS, as ORDHDR and INVFIL files, over OpenText's Business Network. Credit and debit notes do not go through EDI, so plan a separate process for them.
Ocado's EDI Messages
These are the TRADACOMS messages Ocado exchanges with suppliers. Where we have a guide, the card links to a segment-by-segment breakdown. New to the standards? Start with the EDIFACT guide or the TRADACOMS guide.
Ocado-Specific Message Requirements
- TRADACOMS ORDHDR (Order File): Ocado sends test orders over a test connection first. Return the documents that cover each delivery and messaging scenario your account will use.
- TRADACOMS INVFIL (Invoice File): Invoices go by EDI; credit and debit notes do not. Keep a separate route for credits so they are not lost between systems.
Compliance Requirements
Here is what Ocado expects from EDI-compliant suppliers:
- Receive purchase orders as TRADACOMS ORDHDR files
- Send invoices as TRADACOMS INVFIL files
- Handle credit and debit notes outside EDI, as Ocado does not accept them by EDI
- Connect to OpenText Business Network, directly or through a connected provider
- Work through Ocado's test connection and a parallel phase before go-live
- Ask Ocado whether your category also needs advance shipping notices
How to Set Up EDI with Ocado
- Ocado's EDI team contacts your EDI provider or in-house team to set up the connection.
- Connect to OpenText Business Network.
- Process the test orders Ocado sends over the test connection and return the matching documents.
- Once the documents validate, run the parallel phase.
- Go live after a successful parallel phase.
Sources for Ocado's EDI Requirements
Ocado issues its message specifications to suppliers during onboarding, so confirm the current version with Ocado's EDI team before you build. These are the public sources this page draws on:
- ecosio: Setting up an EDI connection with Ocado: Third-party guide from EDI provider ecosio covering Ocado's TRADACOMS files, network and onboarding phases.
How to Achieve Ocado EDI Compliance
Getting compliant with Ocado takes three things: an EDI setup that sends and receives the TRADACOMS messages Ocado uses, validation that catches errors before a message reaches Ocado, and a connection to your ERP so orders flow through without re-keying.
UK grocery and health and beauty retail runs on two standards. UN/EDIFACT, usually in the GS1 EANCOM subset, is the international standard and the one GS1 recommends for new EDI users. TRADACOMS is the older UK-only standard. GS1 UK stopped supporting it in 2017, but many UK retailers still trade in it. Products are identified by GS1 barcodes, and pallets carry a GS1-128 logistics label with an SSCC that the despatch advice references.
OrderSync processes EDIFACT, EANCOM, and TRADACOMS orders in the same pipeline as your X12, PDF, CSV, and email orders. Our purchase order automation checks each order against your product catalogue, pricing, and Ocado's requirements before it syncs to your ERP. To check a message by hand, paste it into the free EDIFACT inspector.
Only trading with one or two retailers and no ERP to connect? Web EDI, or an agent that runs it for you, may be enough to meet Ocado's requirements.
Related Guides and Articles
Learn more about Ocado EDI requirements and compliance best practices:
Related Resources
How to Answer "Are You EDI Capable?"
A buyer asked, and you need to answer this week. The four things they are checking, what you can say yes to today, and a realistic date for the rest.
- What a buyer is really asking when they ask this
- The minimum set-up that makes the answer yes
- What you can answer today versus what needs building
- Rough timelines, so you can give a date rather than a maybe
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Check Your EDIFACT Messages
Paste an EDIFACT message into our free inspector and read it segment by segment before it goes to Ocado.
Open EDIFACT InspectorTrading with US customers in X12 as well? The EDI Inspector reads 850s, 856s and 810s.
Frequently Asked Questions
Ocado trades in TRADACOMS. The messages on this page are TRADACOMS ORDHDR (Order File), TRADACOMS INVFIL (Invoice File). Ocado's EDI team issues the specification for each one during onboarding, and the version you are given is the one to build to.
The first cost is operational. A delivery that arrives without a matching despatch advice has to be receipted by hand, and an invoice that does not match the order gets queried before it is paid. Any charges for non-compliance are set in your supply agreement with Ocado, so check the terms you signed.
Yes. OrderSync processes EDIFACT, EANCOM, and TRADACOMS orders alongside X12, PDF, CSV, and email orders, checking each one against your catalogue and pricing before it reaches your ERP. Book an intro call to walk through Ocado's message set with us.
No. Ocado takes orders and invoices by EDI but does not accept credit or debit notes that way. Agree the credit note process with your Ocado contact during onboarding.