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Bills of lading
Typical fields
bl_number · shipper · shipped_on_board_date · cargo_lines
Output
JSON · Excel · CSV
Plans
$0 · $9.90 · $100 · Custom

Bills of lading in.
Cargo lines out.

A bill of lading parser for shipping and forwarding desks: each straight, order, house or master B/L is read into parties, ports, vessel, dates and cargo lines for your TMS or a spreadsheet.

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SampleRESULT · bill-of-lading-hbl.pdfJSON
{  "extracted_data": [    {      "bl_number": "HBL-778104",      "shipper": "Acme Supplies Inc.",      "consignee": "Orion Ltd.",      "notify_party": "Harbor Coffee Co.",      "carrier": "Sample Ocean Lines",      "port_of_loading": "Savannah, US",      "port_of_discharge": "Rotterdam, NL",      "vessel_voyage": "MV Example Star 026E",      "shipped_on_board_date": "2026-06-18",      "freight_terms": "Prepaid",      "cargo_lines": [        {          "marks": "ORION 1-40",          "packages": 40,          "description": "Pallets of ceramic tiles",          "gross_weight_kg": 9600,          "volume_cbm": 18.4        },        {          "marks": "ORION 41-52",          "packages": 12,          "description": "Pallets of tile adhesive",          "gross_weight_kg": 8400,          "volume_cbm": 14.2        }      ],      "total_gross_weight_kg": 18000    }  ]}

Fictional bill of lading; values are illustrative. Only the extracted_data of a result is shown.

What changes at the shipping desk.

01
Process
How the work changes

Done by hand

  • A clerk opens each bill of lading and types the shipper, consignee, notify party and B/L number into the TMS or a spreadsheet.
  • Marks, package counts, weights and volumes are copied line by line from the B/L, often checked against the packing list.
  • The cargo weights are added up by hand and held against the total on the bill before the shipment is booked.

With Parser

  • Each bill is uploaded, e-mailed or sent through the API, and its parties, ports and vessel are read into fields.
  • Each cargo line comes back with its marks, packages, description, weight and volume. A validation rule you define can hold the line weights to the gross weight on the bill.
  • The B/L number, freight terms and cargo lines reach your TMS by webhook or API, or as a JSON, Excel or CSV file.
02
Fields
Typical fields and a sample

Fields come from your extraction template.

A bill of lading usually carries these fields, and its cargo lines often match the packing list. The template you write decides which ones come back.

  • bl_number
  • shipper
  • consignee
  • notify_party
  • carrier
  • port_of_loading
  • port_of_discharge
  • vessel_voyage
  • shipped_on_board_date
  • freight_terms
  • cargo_lines
  • total_gross_weight_kg

Field names are set in the template and come back as the keys of the result. Define your own fields in the API guide.

03
Solutions
Where to look next

Related solutions.

  • 3.1

    Logistics & freight

    Bills of lading, freight invoices, rate confirmations and delivery receipts, read into shipment fields.

    Fields bol_number shipper consignee gross_weight_lb

    Logistics & freight, see industry
  • 3.2

    Invoice processing

    Vendor, tax ID, line items, taxes and due date from invoices and bills.

    Fields vendor tax_id line_items total

    Invoice processing, see use case

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