How it works
How SettlePair matches bank deposits to invoices
SettlePair is a browser-based invoice matching tool. You supply two CSV exports — one of open invoices, one of bank transactions — and it proposes the likely payment for each invoice, shows the evidence behind every score, and leaves the decision to you. Nothing is uploaded: parsing, scoring and export all happen in the tab you have open.
1. Import the invoice CSV
Export open invoices from your accounting or invoicing system as CSV. SettlePair reads invoice number, customer, amount, issue date and due date, and auto-maps those columns from the header row. You can correct any mapping before continuing. Amounts are converted to integer cents on import, so no rounding drift is introduced later. Importing your own files requires a free beta account (email address only, and the file still never leaves your browser); the sample demo is open to everyone.
2. Import the bank transactions CSV
Download the statement period from your online banking as CSV. SettlePair reads transaction date, description or reference, and amount. Before reconciliation runs, an import summary states how many rows were accepted, how many were rejected and why, how many duplicates were found, and the total value read. Where a date could be read as either MM/DD/YYYY or DD/MM/YYYY, you choose the format explicitly; unambiguous dates are inferred.
3. Read the deterministic match evidence
Matching is rule-based, not statistical, and not AI. The same two files always produce the same scores. Each suggestion carries a 0–100 confidence built from named signals, all of which are visible in the row's evidence panel:
| Signal | Basis | Points |
|---|---|---|
| Invoice number in the bank description | The full invoice reference appears in the memo, ignoring case, spaces and punctuation. | +55 |
| Invoice digits in the bank description | The invoice's numeric core (at least 4 digits) appears as its own run of digits — "1042" in "PMT 1042". | +45 |
| Exact amount match | The deposit equals the invoice total to the cent. | +30 |
| Amount close | The deposit is within 1% of the invoice, or within $1.00 — typically a card or wire fee. | +15 |
| Customer name similarity | Word overlap and edit distance between the customer name and the bank description, above a 55% floor. | +10 to +20 |
| Amount printed in the description | The memo itself quotes the invoice amount. | +12 |
| Payment date is plausible | Deposits close to the invoice date score higher; anything more than 60 days away scores nothing. | +1 to +10 |
| Payer you've matched before | A rule you saved on this device links this bank description to this customer. Ignored when the memo references a different invoice. | +35 |
| Ambiguity penalty | Applied when a runner-up scores within 15 points, unless the winner carries an invoice reference. The result is never pushed below the review threshold. | −20 |
Scores of 80 and above open as approved, 45–79 enter the review queue, and anything lower is not suggested at all. Automatic matching is strictly one payment to one invoice.
4. Review the work queue
Review-needed suggestions come first. Search by invoice number, customer or bank description, filter by status, and sort by confidence, amount, date or invoice number. Approve or reject each row, or approve every visible suggestion scoring 80+ in one confirmed action that tells you exactly how many rows it affects. The most recent approve, reject or allocation can be undone within the session.
5. Allocate partial and grouped payments
Real remittances rarely line up one to one. The allocation sheet lets you split one deposit across several invoices, apply several deposits to one invoice, record a part payment, and leave a remainder unapplied. Allocations are held in integer cents and can never exceed the invoice's remaining balance or the payment's unapplied balance. Each row shows the original amount, the allocated amount and what remains, so a partly paid invoice is never shown as settled.
6. Export the reviewed reconciliation
The completion summary separates value that is allocated in full, partially allocated, still unpaid, and still unapplied — and names what remains instead of calling the session complete. Export writes settlepair-reconciliation.csv, one row per record with record type, invoice number, customer, invoice amount, payment date, bank description, payment amount, allocated amount, remaining invoice balance, unapplied payment balance, confidence, decision, evidence summary, and whether the match was automatic or manual.