The complete guide to Hubdoc's unique email address, OCR extraction, the #note annotation syntax, file formats, publishing to Xero or QuickBooks, and how to automate the whole process.
By ilios Galil · Founder, Expensent
Updated March 6, 2026
Hubdoc is a document collection and data extraction service owned by Xero. It captures bills, receipts, and invoices from email, uploads, and direct vendor connections, then uses OCR to extract key financial data — vendor name, date, total amount, tax, and currency.
Once extracted, documents can be published directly to your accounting software: Xero, QuickBooks Online, or Bill.com. The data maps to the appropriate fields — supplier, date, line items, tax codes — so you don't have to enter anything manually.
Hubdoc is included free with all Xero subscriptions, making it the default document management tool for Xero users. It is also available as a standalone product for users of other accounting platforms.
Every Hubdoc organization has a unique email address in the format:
[custom]@app.hubdoc.comWhere [custom] is a unique identifier assigned to your organization
Any document emailed to this address is automatically ingested into your Hubdoc account and processed by OCR. Unlike tools that require email verification, Hubdoc accepts emails from any sender to your organization's unique address.
You can also find it by clicking the Upload Documents button — the email address is shown in the upload dialog.
Important:Verify your receipt email address in your Hubdoc dashboard before forwarding. Using the wrong address means your documents won't arrive. Each organization has exactly one unique address — there is no generic @hubdoc.com address that works for everyone.
Before emailing your first receipt to Hubdoc, make sure these requirements are met.
You need an active Hubdoc account. If you use Xero, Hubdoc is included free with your subscription — just activate it from your Xero dashboard. If you use QuickBooks or another platform, you'll need a standalone Hubdoc account.
To find the unique email address, you need access to your Hubdoc organization settings. If you're not an admin, ask your organization administrator or accountant to share the @app.hubdoc.com email address with you.
To publish processed documents, connect Hubdoc to your accounting platform (Xero, QuickBooks Online, or Bill.com) under Settings > Connected Apps. This isn't required for receipt ingestion, but it's needed for the full workflow.
Once you have your Hubdoc email address, here's how to submit a receipt:
Go to Settings > Organization in Hubdoc and copy your unique [custom]@app.hubdoc.com address. Save it as a contact in your email client for easy access.
Option A: Forward the original email. Forward the receipt email directly to your Hubdoc address. Hubdoc processes both file attachments (PDF, images) and HTML email body content.
Option B: Compose a new email. Create a new email to your Hubdoc address and attach the receipt file. The subject line is used as the document name in Hubdoc.
Include #note Your annotation text #note in the email body to add a note to the document in Hubdoc. This is useful for adding project codes, client names, or descriptions. See Section 6 for details.
Open Hubdoc. Your document should appear within 1-3 minutes with extracted data:
Hubdoc accepts a range of file formats and also processes email body content.
Multiple attachments per email are supported
These are silently ignored
OCR processing time: Hubdoc typically processes documents within 1-3 minutes. Complex multi-page PDFs may take slightly longer. Each attachment in a multi-attachment email is processed as a separate document.
Hubdoc has a unique feature: you can add annotations to emailed documents by including special syntax in the email body. This is useful for adding context that helps with categorization and reporting.
#note Your annotation text goes here #noteEverything between the opening #note and closing #note is added as a note on the document in Hubdoc. The note appears in the document details alongside the OCR-extracted data.
#note Project: ACME-2026-Q1 #noteAdds “Project: ACME-2026-Q1” as a note, making it easy to search and filter documents by project.
#note Client dinner with Acme Corp, 4 attendees #noteAdds context for expense categorization and audit trail.
#note Marketing department, campaign launch event #noteTags the document with department information for reporting.
Note: The #note syntax must appear in the email body text, not in the subject line or attachment. Make sure to include both the opening and closing #note markers — if you omit the closing marker, the annotation may not be captured correctly.
Hubdoc works well with email auto-forwarding rules. Since Hubdoc accepts emails from any sender to your unique @app.hubdoc.com address, you can set up rules in Gmail, Outlook, or any email client to automatically forward invoices from specific senders.
In Gmail, create a filter matching from:billing@vendor.com and set the action to “Forward to” your Hubdoc email. Every email from that sender is automatically forwarded to Hubdoc as it arrives.
In Outlook, create a rule matching emails from specific senders or with specific subject keywords and redirect them to your Hubdoc address. The forwarded email retains all attachments.
Limitation:Email rules are per-sender and static. They don't distinguish between invoices and marketing emails from the same sender, and they can't detect invoices from new vendors. For intelligent, AI-powered auto-forwarding, see Section 11.
One of the simplest ways to get invoices into Hubdoc is to give your [custom]@app.hubdoc.com address directly to vendors and ask them to send invoices there. This eliminates the forwarding step entirely.
Caveat:Vendor direct-send works best for recurring invoices from trusted vendors. For one-off purchases or vendors you don't control, you'll still need to forward receipts manually or use an automation tool.
Email is just one way to get documents into Hubdoc. Here's the full picture:
| Method | How It Works | Best For |
|---|---|---|
Forward to @app.hubdoc.com | Invoices received by email | |
| Web Upload | Drag and drop files in the Hubdoc web app | Scanned paper receipts |
| Mobile App | Take a photo with the Hubdoc mobile app | In-person purchases, paper receipts |
| Vendor Connections | Auto-fetch from vendor portals (banks, utilities) | Recurring bills from supported vendors |
| Vendor Direct-Send | Give vendors your Hubdoc email address | Recurring invoices from trusted vendors |
If your receipts aren't appearing in Hubdoc, work through these checks in order:
Most common cause.Double-check that you're sending to your organization's exact [custom]@app.hubdoc.com address. There is no generic Hubdoc email — every organization has a unique address. Verify it in Settings > Organization.
Some Hubdoc organizations restrict which email addresses can submit documents. Ask your organization admin to check whether your sending address is authorized, or whether the organization accepts emails from any sender.
Verify the attachment is in a supported format (PDF, JPG, PNG, or HEIC). Word documents, spreadsheets, and password-protected PDFs are not processed.
OCR processing takes 1-3 minutes. Complex multi-page documents may take longer. Wait at least 5 minutes before troubleshooting further. Check the Hubdoc inbox — the document may have arrived but still be processing.
Hubdoc may suppress documents it identifies as duplicates of existing entries. If you're re-sending a receipt that was already processed, check whether it already exists in your Hubdoc account.
If the file is corrupted, very low resolution, or the OCR engine cannot extract any text, the document may appear in Hubdoc but with blank extracted fields. Try re-scanning or taking a clearer photo of the receipt.
Expensent eliminates manual forwarding entirely. Connect your email once, and every invoice email is automatically detected and forwarded to your Hubdoc address.
Link your work email using secure OAuth — we never see your password. Gmail, Outlook, and IMAP supported.
Enter your [custom]@app.hubdoc.com address as your forwarding destination.
When a new invoice arrives that you've set to auto-forward, it goes straight to Hubdoc automatically.
Want to see how the integration works in detail? See the Hubdoc Integration Page →
Using Xero directly? Read the Xero receipt forwarding guide →
Set up Expensent in 5 minutes. Every invoice email flows to Hubdoc automatically — detected by AI, forwarded without lifting a finger.
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