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17 best practices to optimize your accounts payable in 2025

Learn how top finance teams enhance accounts payable for speed, accuracy, and compliance using automation, standardization, and e-invoicing.
Thursday, July 10, 2025
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Bring order and automation to your AP process

Every organization has bills to pay. Your accounts payable (AP) process is important—it can impact your finance department's efficiency and affects your cash flow and relationships with vendors. 

Manual approvals, paper invoices, and separate systems don't cut it anymore. This is especially true in a world where automation and following rules are increasingly important. 

The good news? You don’t need to overhaul your entire AP department overnight. Here are 17 best practices to make your invoice processing easier and more efficient than ever. 

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Dynamics 365 Business Central – connect your business

Why AP automation matters

Manual invoice handling slows everything down—and it’s easy to make mistakes. A missed due date here, a duplicate payment there—it adds up.

With automation, you spend less time on paperwork and more time on what really matters. It keeps things moving, improves accuracy, and gives your team a clear view of what’s been paid and what’s still pending.

In short: it helps your finance team breathe a little easier.

17 best practices to optimize your AP

  • 1. Map your current accounts payable workflow

    Before making changes, document every step of your AP process. Identify how invoices are received, processed, approved, and archived. Understanding your workflow helps reveal bottlenecks, duplication, or manual handoffs that automation could eliminate. 

     

  • 2. Measure AP performance with key metrics

    Track how much time each process takes and whether different people handle them in different ways. Use clear KPIs to measure efficiency and identify areas for improvement. Key metrics include:  

    • Average cost to process an invoice 
    • Time to process a single invoice  
    • Late payment frequency  
    • Duplicate payment rate  

    If your finance team is spending too much time on accounts payable, it might be time to reassess your current processes. Monitoring these indicators can help you spot inefficiencies and make a strong case for investing in accounts payable software. 

     

  • 3. Standardize your AP procedures

    Inconsistent invoice handling across teams or entities leads to confusion and mistakes. Establish standard operating procedures (SOPs) for every part of your process—from invoice receipt to approval and payment. This creates consistency, reduces onboarding time for new employees, and strengthens internal controls.

     

  • 4. Centralize invoice management

    Centralize invoice intake and processing within one system. Invoices may come in by email or via a portal. By routing all of them into a single ERP system—like Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central—you reduce confusion and speed up processing.

     

  • 5. Digitize all paper-based documents

    A paper invoice is a liability. It’s easy to lose, damage, or misfile. There’s also a risk of data theft—plus added drawbacks like high printing and storage costs and limited team collaboration.

    Switch to e-invoicing or digital capture of paper invoices using OCR (Optical Character Recognition). This enables your team to work faster and collaborate from anywhere. Plus, you can eliminate paper documents and filing cabinets from your office!

     

  • 6. Automate data entry with OCR technology

    Manual data entry is one of the top causes of errors and inefficiencies in AP. Using an OCR engine helps by automatically reading and extracting information from invoices. This automatic data extraction significantly reduces errors, saves time, and frees staff to focus on higher-value tasks. Make sure your OCR tool supports header, line, and VAT detail recognition.

     

  • 7. Implement an ERP system with built-in AP automation

    Choosing an ERP system like Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central, combined with embedded AP automation software like Continia Document Capture, gives you everything in one place. You can:

    • Capture invoices
    • Route for approval
    • Match against POs
    • Archive documents securely

    ...all without switching platforms or systems.

     

  • 8. Embrace e-invoicing to modernize your AP workflow

    One of the most important accounts payable best practices today is adopting electronic invoicing. Not just scanning paper invoices into PDFs, but securely exchanging structured, machine-readable invoice data between systems. Exchanging electronic documents enables faster, more secure, and compliant invoice handling across the entire supply chain.

    Implementing e-invoicing helps your AP team:

    • Eliminate manual input and reduce errors from retyping data
    • Accelerate invoice validation and approval processes
    • Ensure compliance with tax regulations and B2G/B2B mandates across Europe and beyond
    • Boost traceability and transparency with digital audit trails
    • Support ESG and paperless initiatives with fully digital workflows

     

  • 9. Establish an automated approval workflow

    Manual approval chains often lead to delays and confusion. Define clear approval hierarchies and automate routing based on invoice type, value, or department. Built-in reminders and escalation protocols help speed up processing and avoid payment delays.

     

  • 10. Use three-way matching

    Three-way matching automatically compares invoice details against purchase orders and goods receipts. This process verifies:

    • Was the correct item ordered?
    • Was it received?
    • Is the invoice accurate?

    Automated three-way matching is one of the best practices for reducing fraud and improving financial accuracy.

     

  • 11. Avoid duplicate payments and fraud

    Automated AP systems can detect potential duplicates or unusual payment patterns. This reduces fraud risk and prevents overpayments. Some solutions also flag invoices from unknown vendors or mismatched bank details.

     

  • 12. Strengthen internal controls and compliance

    Use audit trails, role-based access, and digital timestamps to track all actions taken on an invoice. This increases transparency, improves audit readiness, and helps meet compliance requirements or local financial regulations.

     

  • 13. Embrace cloud-based document archiving

    Secure cloud archiving enables finance teams to access invoice histories anytime, anywhere. No more searching through filing cabinets or shared drives. Plus, cloud systems offer better version control, data backups, and disaster recovery than traditional storage.

     

  • 14. Enable mobile and remote access

    In today’s hybrid work environment, AP automation tools must support remote approval and mobile access. Whether a manager is traveling or working from home, being able to review and approve invoices on the go keeps payments on schedule.

     

  • 15. Improve vendor onboarding and communication

    Start by using online forms to collect things like payment details or tax ID numbers. It’s an easy way to keep vendor info up to date and avoid last-minute payment issues.

    Make sure you can also set up automatic messages to let vendors know when their invoices are received, approved, or scheduled for payment. This builds trust—and saves you from a flood of follow-up emails.

     

  • 16. Regularly audit and optimize vendor terms

    Review payment terms regularly and negotiate discounts for early payments or volume orders. A streamlined AP process lets you take advantage of these opportunities without missing deadlines.

     

  • 17. Upskill and empower your AP team

    Finance automation isn’t about replacing people—it’s about empowering them. Train your AP team to use automation tools, analyze data, and collaborate with other departments. Free from manual data entry, your finance staff can focus on strategy, not just transactions.

     

Transform your AP process—one best practice at a time

Modernizing your accounts payable function doesn’t have to be overwhelming. By following these 17 best practices—focusing on automation, compliance, and digital transformation—you can reduce processing time, improve accuracy, and empower your finance team to become a strategic force in your organization. 

Ready to give your AP department a digital makeover? 

Learn more about Continia Document Capture ⟶

Built for Business Central. Trusted by 12,000+ customers.

Continia Document Capture is the go-to AP automation solution for Business Central—built directly inside your ERP. Cut costs, boost compliance, and free up your finance team—without ever leaving the tools they already use.

No integration hassle. No new systems to learn. Seamless automation within Business Central.

Learn how Miedema Groep saved 10-15 hours/week!