Skip to content
OrderSync LogoOrderSync
Order Ops

Three-Way Match

A three-way match is an accounts-payable control that compares three documents before an invoice is paid: the purchase order, the receiving record, and the supplier invoice. The quantities, prices, and terms must agree across all three. If they match, payment is approved. If they do not, the invoice is held for review.

How the three-way match works

The purchase order says what was ordered and at what price. The receiving record, often a packing slip or the EDI 856, says what physically arrived. The invoice, sent as an EDI 810, says what the supplier is billing. Matching the three catches over-billing, short shipments, and price discrepancies before any money leaves.

Why it matters for order accuracy

In distribution, a mismatch usually points to a keying error or a substitution. Reconciling the three documents by hand is slow, so most lines get rubber-stamped and the real exceptions slip through. Matching against structured order data flips that: clean lines clear automatically and only genuine discrepancies surface for a human to review.

Related Free Tools

3-Way Match Checker
Match a PO, goods receipt and invoice from PDF, Excel or EDI: every quantity, price and freight exception, with what to do.
Compare EDI Documents (3-Way Match)
Check a PO against its change, acknowledgment, ship notice and invoice line by line: quantities, prices and missing lines.

Related Terms

Purchase Order (PO)
A purchase order (PO) is a buyer's official offer to purchase goods, listing items, quantities, prices, delivery dates, and ship-to location. It becomes a binding contract once the seller accepts it. In EDI it is the 850 transaction, the document that starts most B2B order flows.
Retail Chargeback
A retail chargeback is a financial deduction a retailer takes from a supplier's payment for failing to meet a compliance rule, such as a late shipment, a missing or wrong ASN, a bad label, or an inaccurate invoice. Chargebacks erode margin and are usually preventable with accurate, on-time EDI.
EDI (Electronic Data Interchange)
EDI (Electronic Data Interchange) is the computer-to-computer exchange of business documents like purchase orders and invoices in a standard electronic format. It replaces paper, fax, and email so two trading partners' systems can transact directly, without anyone re-keying the data.
Goods Received Note (GRN)
A goods received note (GRN) is the buyer's record that a delivery arrived, listing what was received, in what quantity and condition, against which purchase order. Receiving staff create it at the dock. Accounts payable uses it as the second document in the three-way match, so an invoice is only paid for goods actually received.
Invoice
An invoice is the seller's request for payment. It lists what was sold, quantities, prices, taxes, the total due, and the payment terms, and it references the buyer's purchase order. The buyer matches it against the PO and the goods received before paying. In EDI the invoice is the 810 transaction.

Learn More

EDI 810 Invoice GuideEDI 850 Purchase Order GuideEDI Document Types ReferenceOrder Processing Automation

Related Resources

Blog PostAccounts Payable Automation: How It WorksBlog PostGoods Receipt: The Missing Leg of 3-Way MatchE-Invoicing GuideUBL vs X12 vs EDIFACT: How the Three Standards Map onto Each Other

Frequently Asked Questions

The purchase order, the receiving report or packing slip, and the supplier invoice. All three must agree on quantity, price, and terms before payment is released.

A two-way match compares only the purchase order and the invoice. A three-way match adds the receiving record, so it also confirms that what was billed was actually delivered.

Sources: ASC X12 standards body

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

One email with the download. Unsubscribe any time.

Automate every order format

OrderSync processes EDI, PDF, email, and fax orders into your ERP with AI extraction and validation. No VAN middleware.

Book My Intro CallTry Free EDI Inspector