The C# Invoice OCR API for High-Accuracy Data Extraction

Extract structured JSON from unstructured invoices in seconds.

Why Invoice OCR Fails with Generic Tools

Generic OCR tools like Tesseract fail on invoices due to their high layout variance. Parsing fails when confronted with multi-page documents, complex table structures with hidden lines, skewed scans, and low-resolution photos. The engineering overhead to maintain template-specific RegEx patterns for each vendor becomes unsustainable. Developers are forced to build and maintain complex pre-processing pipelines for denoising and deskewing, only to achieve mediocre accuracy that still requires manual review, defeating the purpose of automation.

Structured Data Extraction with StructOCR

StructOCR utilizes a suite of pre-trained Deep Learning models, purpose-built for financial documents. Our API handles image pre-processing automatically, including deskewing, glare removal, and noise reduction. Unlike Tesseract, which returns an unstructured dump of text coordinates, StructOCR provides a standardized JSON output with logically grouped entities such as invoice line item ocr, vendor details, and tax summaries. This eliminates the need for any post-processing logic, allowing you to integrate directly into your AP system and achieve seamless ERP integration.

Production Use Cases

  • Accounts Payable Automation: Eliminate manual data entry. Ingest vendor invoices from any format (PDF, JPG) and automatically populate your ERP system.
  • Expense Management Automation: Streamline expense reporting by allowing employees to simply photograph receipts and invoices, with all data extracted instantly.
  • Three-Way Matching: Automatically verify invoice data against purchase orders and goods receipt notes to detect discrepancies and prevent fraud.
Need more testing? Create a free account to get 200 free credits (equals 66 Invoice scans).

Implementation: Raw C# (HttpClient)

The following C# code demonstrates a complete flow using `System.Net.Http`. It properly sets the `x-api-key` header and deserializes the nested JSON response (including line items and financials) into strong-typed objects.

Prerequisite: .NET Core 3.1+ or .NET 5/6/7+

CSHARP EXAMPLE
// Get 200 free credits:
// 👉 https://structocr.com/register

using System;
using System.IO;
using System.Net.Http;
using System.Net.Http.Json;
using System.Text.Json;
using System.Text.Json.Serialization;
using System.Threading.Tasks;
using System.Collections.Generic;

public class InvoiceOcrExample
{
    // 🔑 Need a key? Get 200 free credits instantly (No Credit Card required):
    // 👉 https://structocr.com/register
    private const string ApiKey = "YOUR_API_KEY_HERE";
    private const string ApiEndpoint = "https://api.structocr.com/v1/invoice";

    private static readonly HttpClient client = new HttpClient();

    public static async Task Main(string[] args)
    {
        // Note: Currently supports image inputs (JPG, PNG)
        string imagePath = "invoice.jpg";

        if (!File.Exists(imagePath))
        {
            Console.WriteLine($"Error: File not found at {imagePath}");
            return;
        }

        try
        {
            // 1. Prepare Payload
            byte[] imageBytes = await File.ReadAllBytesAsync(imagePath);
            string base64Image = Convert.ToBase64String(imageBytes);
            var payload = new { img = base64Image };

            // 2. Setup Request
            // Important: Clear headers to avoid duplication if reusing client
            client.DefaultRequestHeaders.Clear();
            client.DefaultRequestHeaders.Add("x-api-key", ApiKey);

            // 3. Send POST Request
            Console.WriteLine($"Sending invoice to {ApiEndpoint}...");
            HttpResponseMessage response = await client.PostAsJsonAsync(ApiEndpoint, payload);

            // 4. Handle Response
            string responseBody = await response.Content.ReadAsStringAsync();

            if (!response.IsSuccessStatusCode)
            {
                Console.WriteLine($"API Error ({response.StatusCode}): {responseBody}");
                return;
            }

            // 5. Deserialize JSON to Objects
            var options = new JsonSerializerOptions { PropertyNameCaseInsensitive = true };
            var result = JsonSerializer.Deserialize<ApiResponse>(responseBody, options);

            if (result?.Success == true && result.Data != null)
            {
                var data = result.Data;
                Console.WriteLine("✅ Extraction Successful!");
                Console.WriteLine($"Invoice #: {data.InvoiceNumber}");
                Console.WriteLine($"Date:      {data.Date}");
                Console.WriteLine($"Vendor:    {data.Merchant?.Name} (Tax ID: {data.Merchant?.TaxId})");
                Console.WriteLine($"Total:     {data.Financials?.TotalAmount} {data.Currency}");

                Console.WriteLine("\n--- Line Items ---");
                if (data.LineItems != null)
                {
                    foreach (var item in data.LineItems)
                    {
                        Console.WriteLine($"- {item.Description}: {item.Quantity} x {item.UnitPrice} = {item.Amount}");
                    }
                }
            }
            else
            {
                Console.WriteLine($"Extraction Failed: {result?.Error}");
            }
        }
        catch (Exception e)
        {
            Console.WriteLine($"Unexpected Error: {e.Message}");
        }
    }
}

// --- Data Models ---
public class ApiResponse
{
    public bool Success { get; set; }
    public InvoiceData Data { get; set; }
    public string Error { get; set; }
}

public class InvoiceData
{
    [JsonPropertyName("invoice_number")]
    public string InvoiceNumber { get; set; }
    public string Date { get; set; }
    public string Currency { get; set; }
    public MerchantData Merchant { get; set; }
    public FinancialData Financials { get; set; }
    
    [JsonPropertyName("line_items")]
    public List<LineItem> LineItems { get; set; }
}

public class MerchantData
{
    public string Name { get; set; }
    [JsonPropertyName("tax_id")]
    public string TaxId { get; set; }
}

public class FinancialData
{
    [JsonPropertyName("total_amount")]
    public decimal? TotalAmount { get; set; }
    [JsonPropertyName("tax_amount")]
    public decimal? TaxAmount { get; set; }
}

public class LineItem
{
    public string Description { get; set; }
    public decimal? Quantity { get; set; }
    [JsonPropertyName("unit_price")]
    public decimal? UnitPrice { get; set; }
    public decimal? Amount { get; set; }
}

Technical Specs

  • •Latency: < 4s (Average)
  • •Availability: Served from Cloudflare's global edge network
  • •Security: AES-256 Encryption & SOC2 Compliant
  • •Input: JPG, PNG, WebP (Base64 Encoded)
  • •Max File Size: 4.5MB
  • •Output: JSON (Nested Structure)

Key Features

  • •Table Extraction Engine: Accurately parses complex line items and tables without manual templating.
  • •Financial Validation: Cross-validates subtotals, taxes, and grand totals to ensure mathematical accuracy.
  • •Vendor Normalization: Automatically identifies merchants and extracts standardized tax IDs (VAT/EIN).

Sample JSON Output

StructOCR returns a clean, normalized JSON object, regardless of the input invoice's layout, language, or quality.

{
  "success": true,
  "data": {
    "type": "invoice",
    "invoice_number": "INV-2026-001",
    "date": "2026-01-15",
    "due_date": "2026-02-15",
    "currency": "USD",
    "merchant": {
      "name": "AWS Web Services",
      "address": "410 Terry Ave N, Seattle, WA",
      "tax_id": "EIN-12-3456789",
      "iban": null
    },
    "customer": {
      "name": "Acme Corp Inc.",
      "tax_id": "987654321"
    },
    "financials": {
      "subtotal": 100,
      "tax_amount": 10,
      "total_amount": 110
    },
    "line_items": [
      {
        "description": "EC2 Instance Usage",
        "quantity": 1,
        "unit_price": 80,
        "amount": 80
      },
      {
        "description": "S3 Storage",
        "quantity": 1,
        "unit_price": 20,
        "amount": 20
      }
    ]
  }
}

Frequently Asked Questions

How does StructOCR compare to AWS Textract or Google Vision?

General-purpose OCR services return raw text blocks and coordinates, leaving you to write and maintain complex parsing logic. StructOCR is a specialized model trained exclusively on invoices. It returns a structured JSON with pre-identified fields like `invoice_number`, `line_items`, and `total_amount`, eliminating post-processing.

Do you store the uploaded invoice images?

Only briefly. Uploaded images and results are kept for at most 24 hours for quality spot-checks, then deleted. We do not persist customer data.

How do you handle blurry or low-quality scans?

Our API includes an automatic, server-side image enhancement engine. It performs deskewing, denoising, and contrast correction before the data extraction process begins, maximizing accuracy on suboptimal inputs.

You May Also Like

Related tutorials, platform guides, and comparisons

Tutorial

Node.js Invoice Parsing API

High-accuracy Node.js invoice parsing API for accounts payable automation. Upload an image for a free test! Extract line items, merchants, and financials into structured JSON output instantly.

Node.js · Invoice
Tutorial

Go Invoice OCR API

Upload an image for a free test! High-accuracy Go invoice OCR API. Automate AP by converting unstructured invoices to structured JSON output. Eliminate manual entry and Tesseract errors.

Go · Invoice
Tutorial

Python Invoice Line Item OCR API

Struggling with invoice line item extraction? Our Python OCR API delivers structured JSON in seconds, backed by SOC 2 Type II. Upload an image for a free test! Secure your data.

Python · Invoice
Tutorial

PHP Invoice Line Item OCR API

Struggling with manual invoice data entry? Our PHP invoice line item OCR API processes documents in <3s, outputting structured JSON. Upload an image for a free test! SOC2 compliant & AES-256 encrypted.

PHP · Invoice
Tutorial

Java OCR Invoice API

Upload an invoice to try our live demo. High-accuracy Java OCR invoice API for accounts payable. Extract line items directly into JSON.

Java · Invoice
Tutorial

C# Vehicle Registration OCR API

C# Vehicle Registration OCR API tutorial. Upload an image for a free test! Accurately extract standardized fields like VIN, make, and model, along with dynamically localized data for global documents.

C# · Vehicle Reg.
Tutorial

Java National ID Parser API

Upload an image for a free test! Eliminate manual data entry for national IDs. Our Java ID card parsing API provides AES-256 encrypted JSON output in <4s average latency, ensuring SOC2 compliant verification.

Java · National ID
Tutorial

Java Passport OCR API

Extract passport MRZ and VIZ data in Java. Upload an image for a free test! Our API provides structured JSON output, handling glare and blur automatically.

Java · Passport
Tutorial

Java Weighbridge Ticket OCR API Tutorial

Integrate a weighbridge ticket OCR API in Java. Extract ticket, vehicle, material, gross, tare, net, and review signals from images or PDFs.

Java · Weighbridge Ticket
Tutorial

Java Receipt OCR API

Tutorial: Integrate StructOCR's Receipt API into your Java enterprise applications. Upload an image for a free test! Extract line items, merchants, and taxes from POS receipts into structured JSON.

Java · Receipt

Technical Comparisons & Integrations

Explore platform integrations and competitive analysis

From tutorial to production in 5 minutes.

You've seen the code. Now get your API key, grab your 200 free credits, and see it work with your own images. No credit card required.

Instant Access Cancel Anytime No Credit Card