App of the Month: Hubdoc
Each month at Withers Tsang we take a look at the various applications and digital programs that are available and designed to help your business thrive.
This month it’s Hubdoc
Hubdoc is a Document Collection and Management Software platform. Hubdoc collects and stores all your documents (bills, statements, invoices and receipts) and converts them to data you can use, eliminating manual data entry to save you time for more important things in your business.
Key features:
Paperless
Scan or upload documents, take photos or use email to capture all your data.
Using the mobile app, Hubdoc allows users to take photos of receipts and upload them on the go, eliminating the need to keep track of physical receipts on hand.
Hubdoc offers a wide range of supported suppliers/accounts in which users can link their Hubdoc account with – once connected/link is established, it will allow invoices from suppliers to flow directly into Hubdoc, skipping the process of importing documents. This works particularly well with your phone bills, subscriptions, and frequent purchases.
Similar to Xero, an automatic forward function can be set up within your email, allowing invoices that are emailed to you to be forwarded directly into Hubdoc using a unique email address.
Data Storage
Ability to easily organize documents with folders and tags, also allows users to add notes to each document.
Gives duplicate alert – using extracted key data such as date, invoice number and dollar amount, Hubdoc catches when two of the same documents are uploaded and raises an alert, preventing the possibility of duplicated entry.
All files that are uploaded onto Hubdoc are securely stored in the cloud.
Data capture
Scans over the imported documents to extract and prepopulate relevant key data such as supplier details, date, invoice number, dollar amount, and currency. Ready to be reviewed and published into Xero, reducing both time and human error.
Once pushed to Xero, all supporting documentations for that transaction will also be attached in Xero, making admin tasks easier to perform.
Transactions that are published to Xero automatically match up with the suggested existing record in Xero, allowing reconciliation tasks to be performed within a matter of a few clicks.
To find out whether Hubdoc’s right for you we’ve curated a list of Pros and Cons:
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| Simple layout and easy to use interface. | Unable to publish refund documents onto Xero, user would have to process these from Xero. |
| Reuses information based on previous transaction records, improving efficiency and saving time on repeated manual data entry. | Unable to copy and paste from the PDF documents that are uploaded to Hubdoc – will have to publish as draft in Xero and copy and paste from there. |
| Keeps archived files on storage until user deletes it. | Using the transaction link in Hubdoc which redirects you to Xero, only displays the transaction in a read only format where you can’t edit/approve. |
| Upload documents with the easy drag and drop function, or simply take a photo on the app while you’re on the go. | Not 100% automated – still requires users to review and manually publish transactions to Xero. |
| Once the document has been uploaded onto Hubdoc with all relevant fields filled in, users can simply publish it to Xero and get the payment approved within a matter of a few clicks. | May not always be able to extract key information from uploads if the documents are of low resolution or poor quality. |
| When a transaction is published to Xero, all supporting documents attached to the transaction, such as your invoices, will also be attached within Xero. | |
| If you make a mistake when publishing to Xero, for example, choosing the wrong account code, you can simply re-publish it from Hubdoc. The transaction will be updated within Xero and linked to the correct code. | |
| Hubdoc allows users to split items within the same document into multiple lines, and allocate each line to the appropriate Xero account code prior to publishing it. | |
| Hubdoc allows you to create new contacts in Xero within the app, eliminating the need to go back and forth between the two systems. |
Our verdict:
Although there are still some functionalities that require manual processes, the automated features that Hubdoc offers alongside the smooth integration with Xero may bring several benefits for your business - be it reducing time spent for document uploads, increasing efficiency with data entry, or storing documents on the cloud and improving accessibility whilst reducing paper usage.
Businesses that transition over to Hubdoc may only notice small benefits in the beginning, but with machine learning processes performed by Hubdoc, these benefits will gradually become more apparent overtime as the system learns the appropriate account codes and configurations for your documents, making imports into Xero more seamless, streamlined, and error free.
Furthermore, if you have multiple repeated purchases or invoices from the same suppliers, then the automated functions on Hubdoc may be hugely beneficial in reducing time spent on manual data entries when integrated with your Xero account.
It is worth noting that although Hubdoc does the heavy lifting parts of extracting key information from your documents, it may not always be accurate and correct. It would be worthwhile to quickly review any prepopulated data prior to approving the transaction.
