Blake Oliver, CPA

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Bill.com off to a great start with new iOS app


Bill.com is cloud accounting software that automates accounts receivable and payable approval and processing. It eliminates paper invoices and checks, replacing them with cloud document storage and electronic check payments. Bill.com integrates with all the major accounting systems to sync data and save time by reducing duplicate data entry. Check out PC Magazine's excellent review of Bill.com for more info.


Yesterday Bill.com released their new iOS app. Until now, the only way to access Bill.com on a mobile device was through a web browser (such as Safari). It wasn't an ideal system because users had to type in their email and password every time to log in—and if you have a secure password, that can be a real pain. With the new app users can now log in with Touch ID or a passcode, making getting into Bill.com a breeze.

I'm happy to report that the Bill.com app has an excellent user interface. I had no problem setting up my passcode, logging into my company, and viewing and approving a bill in my queue. It's also really easy to switch between Bill.com companies, which will be great for those of us with multiple entities to manage.

Screenshot of the Bill.com iOS app dashboard

The only downside is that functionality is limited to the approval process. For now you can review, approve, or deny bills, but you can't pay them. Let's hope that Bill.com adds the ability to pay very soon. For business owners such as myself who both approve and pay, the app is of limited usefulness because I still have to log into the website on my laptop to complete the payment process. 

Right now the Bill.com app is most appropriate for businesses with workflows where the approval process is separate from the payment process. For example, multiple managers approve bills, which are then paid by the CFO. In this case, the new app could greatly speed up approvals since managers can now approve bills easily from their mobile devices.

Here's a list of everything you can do with the app from Bill.com's email about the release:

  • Review digital images of original bills and all attached documents
  • Quickly approve a bill by swiping right or deny by swiping left
  • See notifications of new bills pending approval
  • Use your dashboard to track information about each bill, including the due date, amount due, and the trail of approvers
  • View detailed vendor information and the last five bills for each vendor
  • Sort bills by due date, vendor name, amount or time pending in your queue
  • Ensure app security with support for TouchID and passcode authentication
  • Switch between multiple organizations without having to log out

The Bill.com app is free, so download it today from the App Store.