Files

Managing Files and Receipts in Prosaic

Prosaic provides a central place to store, search, and attach supporting documents — receipts, invoices, bank statements, and more — directly alongside your accounting records. No more digging through email or filing cabinets at year-end.

This guide covers everything you need to know about working with files in Prosaic, whether you're an accountant managing multiple clients or a business owner keeping on top of your own records.

Uploading Files

There are three ways to get files into Prosaic.

Drag and drop from the Files tab

Open the Files tab from the main navigation. Drag one or more files anywhere onto the page to upload them. You can also click the Upload files button to open the upload dialog, where you can:

• Upload multiple files at once
• Assign each file to a specific entity (client or business)
• Preview files before confirming the upload

Upload during reconciliation

When you're reconciling a bank transaction, you can upload a file directly from the transaction panel. The file is uploaded and attached to the transaction in one step — no need to visit the Files tab first.

Forward by email

Each entity in Prosaic has a unique inbound email address. Forward receipts, invoices, or statements to that address and the attachments are automatically uploaded and linked to the entity. See Email Forwarding below.

Supported file types

The maximum file size is 20 MB.

Email Forwarding

Email forwarding is the easiest way to build up a library of supporting documents without logging into Prosaic at all.

How it works

1. Open the entity you want to receive files for
2. Find the inbound email address in the entity settings (it looks something like acme-ltd-a1b2c3@inbound.prosaic.works )
3. Copy the address and forward emails with attachments to it

Prosaic extracts the attachments, uploads them, links them to the entity, and indexes their contents for search. The email body itself is not stored — only the attachments.

Setting it up

Inbound email is enabled per entity. Once enabled, the unique address is shown on the entity page with a copy button.

Tips

• Forward supplier invoices as soon as they arrive — they'll be waiting when you reconcile
• Share the address with clients so they can forward their own receipts directly into Prosaic
• Save it as a contact in your email client for quick forwarding
• Attachments go through the same processing pipeline as manual uploads, so they're fully searchable

How Prosaic Processes Your Files

When a file is uploaded (by any method), Prosaic extracts key information

• PDFs — text is extracted directly from the document
• Scanned documents and images — optical character recognition (OCR) reads the text from the image

The extracted text is indexed for full-text search and used for automatic file matching. This processing usually completes within a few seconds of upload.

Automatic File Matching

Prosaic automatically suggests which files might belong to which bank transactions. When you open an unreconciled transaction, you may see suggested file matches ready to attach.

How matching works

Prosaic looks at three signals to find likely matches:

1. Supplier name — the merchant name on the bank transaction appears in the file name or contents
2. Amount — a dollar amount in the file matches the transaction amount exactly
3. Date — a date in the file falls within 7 days of the transaction date

Files are scored and ranked, with the best matches shown first (up to three suggestions per transaction).

When matching won't find a file

Suggestions won't appear if:

• The transaction has no merchant name
• The transaction is a credit (money in) — matching currently covers debits only
• The file hasn't finished processing yet (text not extracted)
• The file is already attached to a different transaction

If a file isn't suggested automatically, you can always find it using search or browse it manually.

⚙️ Coming soon: Invoice matching

Invoices created and sent from Prosaic will be automatically matched to incoming payments. When a bank transaction matches an outstanding invoice, Prosaic will suggest the match and automatically update the invoice payment status on reconciliation — closing the loop between invoicing and bank reconciliation without manual bookkeeping.

Browsing, Searching, and Previewing Files

The Files tab

The Files tab shows all files in your workspace in a sortable, filterable grid. You can sort by name, date, size, or entity, and page through large collections.

The Attached to column shows where each file is linked — click through to jump straight to the related transaction, journal, or entity.

Searching file contents

Use the search bar on the Files tab or within the transaction panel to search across file contents — not just file names. This searches the extracted text from PDFs and OCR'd images, so you can find a receipt by searching for a supplier name, amount, or reference number.

Previewing files

Select any file to open the preview pane. Prosaic renders:

• PDFs — full inline viewer
• Images — displayed directly
• CSV and plain text — rendered as formatted text

Other file types offer a download button. Use the previous/next controls to step through files without leaving the preview.

Attaching Files to Records

Files can be attached to several types of records in Prosaic.

Bank transactions

Attach files during reconciliation. You can:

• Accept a suggestion — Prosaic surfaces likely matches automatically
• Search — search file contents from the transaction panel
• Browse — scroll through recent files
• Upload — add a new file directly, which attaches it immediately

When you reconcile a transaction with a file attached, the file is linked to both the bank transaction and the resulting journal entry.

Journal entries

Attach files when creating, editing, or viewing a journal entry. Use the upload button or browse existing files. Attached files appear in the journal view and can be previewed inline.

Entities

Files are linked to an entity when you assign one during upload or when a file arrives via email forwarding. Entity-scoped files are prioritised in matching suggestions for that entity's transactions.

Removing an attachment

You can detach a file from a journal or transaction without deleting the file itself. The file remains in your workspace and can be reattached elsewhere.

Tips for Accountants and Bookkeepers

• Set up email forwarding early. Enable the inbound address for each entity as soon as you create them. The sooner files flow in, the more matches you'll have waiting at reconciliation time.
• Encourage clients to forward receipts as they go. Share the entity's email address with your client — they can forward invoices and receipts directly from their inbox without needing a Prosaic login.
• Use content search during reconciliation. If a match isn't suggested automatically, search for the supplier name or amount — Prosaic searches inside the document, not just the file name.
• Review suggestions before reconciling. The suggested matches are ranked by confidence. A quick glance confirms the right receipt is attached before you complete the reconciliation.
• Attach at reconciliation time. This keeps your audit trail clean — every reconciled transaction has its supporting document linked from the moment it's processed.

Tips for Clients

Your accountant may ask you to forward receipts and invoices to a specific email address. Here's what to know:

• Just forward the email. You don't need to download and re-upload anything. Forward the email with the attachment and Prosaic handles the rest.
• Use descriptive file names. If you're attaching files manually, names like Bunnings-Receipt-2025-03-15.pdf  help with search and matching. Forwarded email attachments keep their original names.
• Supported formats. PDF is best. Photos of receipts (JPEG, PNG) also work — Prosaic can read text from images. Spreadsheets (CSV, Excel) are supported too.
• 20 MB limit. Most receipts and invoices are well under this. If you have a large bank statement, check the file size before sending.

Frequently Asked Questions

What file types can I upload? PDF, JPEG, PNG, CSV, Excel (.xls, .xlsx), and Outlook email (.msg).

What's the maximum file size? 20 MB per file.

Can I attach the same file to multiple transactions? A file can only be attached to one bank transaction at a time. It can, however, be attached to multiple journal entries or other record types.

Why isn't my file showing as a suggested match? The most common reasons: the file is still being processed (give it a few seconds), the transaction is a credit, the transaction has no merchant name, or the file is already attached to another transaction.

How does Prosaic read the contents of my files? PDF text is extracted directly. For scanned documents and images, Prosaic uses optical character recognition (OCR) to read the text. This extracted text powers both search and automatic matching.

Are my files secure? Files are stored in encrypted cloud storage (AWS S3) and access is controlled by your workspace membership. Only users with access to the workspace can view or download files.

Can my clients upload files without a Prosaic account? Yes — clients can forward emails with attachments to the entity's inbound email address. No login required.