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the exact sentence from the reel

The one-sentence invoice prompt

Copy the sentence, grab the free guide and 30 sample invoices, and turn a folder of invoice PDFs into one Excel sheet with Claude Code on Windows. No code, no formulas.

The sentence (type or paste it exactly)

Read all 30 invoice PDFs in this folder and put them in one Excel sheet with vendor, invoice number, date, due date and amount, and flag any duplicates or overdue ones.

How to run it

  1. 0

    What you need

    • Windows 10 (version 1809 or newer) or Windows 11. No administrator rights needed.
    • A paid Claude plan (Pro, Max, Team or Enterprise) or a Claude Console account. The free plan doesn't include Claude Code.
    • The 30 sample invoices above.
  2. 1

    Install Claude Code (once)

    Open PowerShell (Start menu, type "PowerShell"), paste this line and press Enter:

    irm https://claude.ai/install.ps1 | iex

    Then open a new PowerShell window and check it worked:

    claude --version

    'irm' is not recognized? You're in Command Prompt, not PowerShell. 'claude' is not recognized? Close the window and open a new one.

  3. 2

    Open the invoice folder

    Right-click the zip, choose Extract All, and set the destination to your user folder (C:\Users\<your name>). That gives you an invoices folder. Then in PowerShell:

    cd $HOME\invoices
    claude

    The first time, claude opens your browser so you can log in.

  4. 3

    Paste the sentence

    Paste the sentence and press Enter. Claude reads each PDF, then asks before it creates files or runs commands. Read what it wants to do and choose Yes. On a fresh PC it may ask to install a helper (such as Python) to write the .xlsx file, or offer a CSV instead. Either works. Open the file in Excel when it's done.

  5. 4

    The 10-second check (never skip it)

    AI can misread a number. Before you trust the sheet, open two random PDFs and compare them with their rows, ask Claude for the total, and check it against the answer key. One invoice is a crooked phone scan, and some list sales tax, so the amount should be the total, not the subtotal.

Answer key

Files
30 PDFs, 29 unique invoices
Total of the 29 unique invoices
$44,396.66 ($44,783.16 if the duplicate is counted twice)
Duplicate
Bluecap Printing BP-2207 ($386.50) appears twice. Bluecap Printing - Invoice BP-2207 (1).pdf is a second copy.
Overdue
Tallow Freight TF-6757: $2,052.83, due 2026-09-13
Sable Coffee Service SCS-9271: $198.49, due 2026-09-10

"Overdue" means the due date has passed today. Until 2 December 2026 you'll see exactly these two. After that, more due dates pass, so Claude correctly flags more invoices.

Sample data The 30 invoices are fictional, made by Simply Put Tech for practice: made-up vendors and amounts, no real companies or bills. Claude can make mistakes, so check its work. For your own invoices, work on copies and check your company's rules before sending business documents to an AI service.

Want the full walkthrough?

The step-by-step video covers the install, a first safe session, this exact build and the check.

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