Invoice Processing Cost Statistics
Last updated: 2026-10-28 · 9 sourced statistics
Processing an invoice costs money on both sides: the seller has to create, send and reconcile it, and the buyer has to receive, check, approve and pay it. APQC's open benchmarking data puts the median accounts payable cost at $6.00 per invoice. Government estimates show how much the format matters. The Australian Taxation Office's eInvoicing assessment uses Deloitte Access Economics figures of A$30.87 to process a paper invoice, A$27.67 for a PDF and A$9.18 for a structured eInvoice. APEC puts the productivity gain from structured e-invoicing at US$14.84 per invoice, 60% to the buyer's payables team and 40% to the seller's receivables team. Every figure below was traced to the publisher's own page; vendor estimates that could not be traced were removed.
Key takeaways
- The median total cost to process an accounts payable invoice is $6.00 in APQC's cross-industry open benchmarking data (4,823 organizations).
- In Australia, a paper invoice is estimated to cost A$30.87 to process, a PDF A$27.67 and an eInvoice A$9.18 (ATO, using Deloitte Access Economics 2016 estimates).
- Structured e-invoicing saves an estimated US$14.84 per invoice: US$8.90 for the buyer and US$5.94 for the seller (APEC, 2025).
- The ECB cited staff costs of €2.50 to €10 to compile and send a paper invoice and €5 to €15 to receive and settle one (2016).
- Public-sector buyers in four EU countries reported an average 31% cut in processing costs from e-invoicing in 2019 (European Commission).
At a glance.
Every figure on this page in one table, each linked to its named source. Scroll down for the full context behind each number.
| Figure | What it measures | Source | Year |
|---|---|---|---|
| $6.00 | The median total cost to perform the accounts payable process is $6.00 per invoice processed, across 4,823 organizations in APQC's cross-industry Open Standards Benchmarking data (personnel, systems, overhead, other and outsourced costs). | APQC, Open Standards Benchmarking: Total cost to perform the process "process accounts payable (AP)" per invoice processed | 2026 |
| A$30.87 | The Australian Taxation Office's eInvoicing value assessment uses an average processing cost of A$30.87 for a paper invoice, based on Deloitte Access Economics estimates. | Australian Taxation Office, eInvoicing value assessment report: Cost calculations (Deloitte Access Economics estimates) | 2016 |
| A$27.67 | A PDF invoice costs almost as much to process as paper, A$27.67 on average, because the data still has to be keyed in, approved and corrected by hand. | Australian Taxation Office, eInvoicing value assessment report: Cost calculations (Deloitte Access Economics estimates) | 2016 |
| A$9.18 | A structured eInvoice costs an estimated A$9.18 to process, about 70% less than a paper invoice; the ATO treats this as a cost shared between sender and receiver. | Australian Taxation Office, eInvoicing value assessment report: Cost calculations (Deloitte Access Economics estimates) | 2016 |
| US$14.84 | Deloitte Access Economics estimates the productivity benefit of structured e-invoicing over paper or PDF invoices at US$14.84 per invoice, from savings in labour, storage and error correction. | APEC, Interoperability of Electronic Invoicing Systems in the APEC Region (February 2025) | 2025 |
| US$5.94 | Of that per-invoice gain, accounts payable captures 60% (US$8.90) and accounts receivable, the seller's side, 40% (US$5.94). | APEC, Interoperability of Electronic Invoicing Systems in the APEC Region (February 2025) | 2025 |
| €2.50 to €10 | Reports cited by the European Central Bank estimated the direct staff cost of compiling and sending a paper invoice at €2.50 to €10 per invoice. | European Central Bank, E-invoicing: bringing the payment process fully into the digital age (MIP OnLine, 2016) | 2016 |
| €5 to €15 | Receiving and settling a paper invoice was estimated at €5 to €15 per invoice, because reconciliation is done by hand. | European Central Bank, E-invoicing: bringing the payment process fully into the digital age (MIP OnLine, 2016) | 2016 |
| 31% | Public contracting authorities in France, Greece, Slovenia and Sweden reported an average 31% reduction in invoice processing costs in 2019 after adopting e-invoicing under Directive 2014/55/EU, mainly from automation and fewer staff hours. | European Commission (DG DIGIT), Updated Benefits Analysis on the implementation of Directive 2014/55/EU (December 2020) | 2020 |
The statistics
The median total cost to perform the accounts payable process is $6.00 per invoice processed, across 4,823 organizations in APQC's cross-industry Open Standards Benchmarking data (personnel, systems, overhead, other and outsourced costs).
The Australian Taxation Office's eInvoicing value assessment uses an average processing cost of A$30.87 for a paper invoice, based on Deloitte Access Economics estimates.
A PDF invoice costs almost as much to process as paper, A$27.67 on average, because the data still has to be keyed in, approved and corrected by hand.
A structured eInvoice costs an estimated A$9.18 to process, about 70% less than a paper invoice; the ATO treats this as a cost shared between sender and receiver.
Deloitte Access Economics estimates the productivity benefit of structured e-invoicing over paper or PDF invoices at US$14.84 per invoice, from savings in labour, storage and error correction.
Source:APEC, Interoperability of Electronic Invoicing Systems in the APEC Region (February 2025)2025
Of that per-invoice gain, accounts payable captures 60% (US$8.90) and accounts receivable, the seller's side, 40% (US$5.94).
Source:APEC, Interoperability of Electronic Invoicing Systems in the APEC Region (February 2025)2025
Reports cited by the European Central Bank estimated the direct staff cost of compiling and sending a paper invoice at €2.50 to €10 per invoice.
Receiving and settling a paper invoice was estimated at €5 to €15 per invoice, because reconciliation is done by hand.
Public contracting authorities in France, Greece, Slovenia and Sweden reported an average 31% reduction in invoice processing costs in 2019 after adopting e-invoicing under Directive 2014/55/EU, mainly from automation and fewer staff hours.
When these numbers don't apply
Aggregate statistics hide a lot. Read these caveats before quoting a figure as if it describes your specific situation.
- Cost per invoice depends on what is counted. APQC includes personnel, systems, overhead and outsourcing for the whole accounts payable process; the Australian and APEC estimates cover the work of entering, approving and correcting invoices on both sides of the transaction.
- The Australian figures are Deloitte Access Economics estimates from 2016, in Australian dollars. The ATO still uses them in its eInvoicing value assessment and says they align with a 2024 APEC report, but wages and software have changed since.
- The ECB's ranges come from a 2016 article that cites earlier reports, and the European Commission figure covers public-sector buyers in four member states in 2019. Treat both as orders of magnitude, not current prices.
- APQC's median is drawn from organizations that submit data to its open benchmarking database, which skews toward larger organizations with formal AP teams. A small business paying a handful of bills a month has very different costs.
- Savings estimates describe structured e-invoicing exchanged between systems (for example over Peppol). Emailing a PDF is not e-invoicing in this sense, and the ATO's own figures show a PDF costs almost as much to process as paper.
How we compiled this data
Reviewed 28 October 2026. Each figure was read on the publisher's own page or document: APQC's Open Standards Benchmarking measure page (Internet Archive capture of 6 February 2026, because APQC blocks automated requests; the industry-specific benchmark reports are members-only and were not used), the ATO's eInvoicing cost calculations page (last updated 17 October 2025, read through the Internet Archive capture of 15 April 2026), the APEC report PDF (section 5.2.2), the ECB's 2016 MIP OnLine article and the European Commission's 2020 benefits analysis (section 3.2). The 70% figure is our own comparison of the ATO's paper and eInvoice costs. Earlier figures attributed to an Ardent Partners report landing page and to the Billentis homepage were removed because neither page states them; Ardent's freely published accounts payable benchmarks are covered on the accounts payable statistics page.
We hand-collected each figure from its original publisher rather than recycling secondary round-ups, cross-checked the headline numbers against the source documents in 2026-10-28, and link every statistic to the report it came from so you can verify it yourself. Where a publisher issues annual updates, we cite the report edition and flag the year inline.
Frequently asked questions
How much does it cost to process an invoice?
It depends on format and scope. APQC's cross-industry median for the whole accounts payable process is $6.00 per invoice. Australia's ATO uses A$30.87 for a paper invoice, A$27.67 for a PDF and A$9.18 for a structured eInvoice, based on 2016 Deloitte Access Economics estimates that cover both sender and receiver.
Is a PDF invoice cheaper to process than paper?
Only slightly. The ATO's figures put a PDF at A$27.67 against A$30.87 for paper, because someone still has to type the data in, route it for approval and fix errors. The large drop comes with structured eInvoices, at A$9.18.
How much can e-invoicing save per invoice?
APEC's 2025 report, using Deloitte Access Economics estimates, puts the productivity benefit at US$14.84 per invoice. In the EU, public-sector buyers in four member states reported an average 31% cut in processing costs in 2019 after adopting e-invoicing.
Does the seller save money too, or only the buyer?
Both. APEC attributes 60% of the per-invoice gain (US$8.90) to accounts payable and 40% (US$5.94) to accounts receivable. On the seller's side, the ECB cited staff costs of €2.50 to €10 to compile and send a paper invoice, against €5 to €15 for the buyer to receive and settle one.
Why do invoice processing cost figures vary so much?
Sources count different things: some include systems, overhead and outsourcing, others only staff time; some measure one side of the transaction, others both. They also span different years and currencies. Compare figures only when they use the same definition, and use your own staff time and volumes for a decision.
Put these figures to use
- Invoicing hub: Guides on creating, sending and tracking invoices.
- Accounts payable automation guide: How AP automation works, with a worked cost-per-bill example.
- Cost of manual invoice processing: A seller's worked model with every input stated, so you can use your own numbers.
- Calculating ROI on automation: How to measure minutes, price your time and test whether automation pays.
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