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César Freitas
César Freitas

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Parse receipts into structured JSON with a simple API

#api #python #pdf #rag

As a developer, you've likely encountered your fair share of receipts that are more trouble than they're worth to parse manually. Whether it's for business expense tracking, inventory management, or simply keeping organized records, extracting data from receipts can be a tedious and time-consuming task.

However, with the rise of digital documentation and automation, there is a solution available that can simplify this process. Document Intelligence API uses advanced technologies like OCR (Optical Character Recognition) to turn any PDF into clean, machine-readable text. This means you can take a scanned or digital receipt, and have it converted into a format that's easily understandable by artificial intelligence models.

This API also has the ability to extract specific data from receipts, such as invoice numbers, dates, and amounts. It does this by analyzing the layout and structure of the receipt, using machine learning algorithms to identify relevant information and separating it from the rest of the text.

So, what happens when you send a request to the Document Intelligence API? You'll typically receive a response that includes the extracted data in JSON format. This means the API has taken the raw text output and reformatted it into a structured, machine-readable format that's easily accessible for analysis or further processing.

The typical response might include fields such as:

  • Invoice number
  • Date of invoice
  • Total amount due
  • Items purchased (with quantities and prices)
  • Payment method

This data is presented in a clear, concise manner that's easy to work with. Whether you're building an application for tracking business expenses or simply need a convenient way to process receipts, the Document Intelligence API can help.

One of the benefits of using this API is its ability to handle a wide range of receipt formats and layouts. This means you don't have to worry about formatting issues or specific file types – just send in your receipt, and let the API do the rest.

If you're interested in giving it a try, Document Intelligence API offers a free tier that allows you to access its features without committing to a paid plan. This is a great way to get started with testing out the API's capabilities and seeing how it can fit into your workflow.

Quick example 

curl -X POST 'https://document-intelligence3.p.rapidapi.com/v1/pdf-to-markdown' \
  -H 'X-RapidAPI-Key: YOUR_RAPIDAPI_KEY' \
  -H 'X-RapidAPI-Host: document-intelligence3.p.rapidapi.com' \
  -H 'Content-Type: application/json' \
  -d '{"url":"https://example.com/file.pdf"}'
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Try it: the Document Intelligence API is live on RapidAPI with a free tier — get your key here.

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