Rename invoices automatically on a Mac
Invoices arrive as invoice.pdf, INV-000123.pdf or Download (3).pdf. Six months later nobody knows what is inside. A fixed naming scheme fixes that.
A naming scheme that lasts
Use invoice date, sender, amount, currency, for example 2026-10-12 Nordlicht Hosting 12,34 EUR.pdf.
- Date first, as year-month-day, so Finder sorts by time automatically.
- Use the date on the invoice, not the download date.
- Keep the sender short and always spelled the same, so search finds it.
- Amount and currency in the name save you opening the file.
By hand in Finder
Select the files, control-click and choose “Rename…”. You can replace text, add text or apply a format with a counter or date. Finder only knows the name and file dates, though: sender, invoice date and amount you have to copy from the PDF yourself.
Half automatic with Shortcuts
Shortcuts can get text from a PDF (“Get Text from PDF”), find a date and amount with “Match Text” and a regular expression, and rename the file with “Rename File”. That works well for one sender whose invoices always look the same. Ten senders need ten patterns, and scans without a text layer drop out.
Automatically with Letterslot
Letterslot watches your Downloads folder. When a PDF arrives, it reads the text (scans and photos with Apple's text recognition) and uses Apple's on-device language model to recognize whether it is an invoice, from whom, from when and for what amount. The receipts template renames it to date, sender, amount and currency, for example 2026-10-12 Nordlicht Hosting 12,34 EUR.pdf, and files it by year and month, for example in ~/Documents/Belege/2026/10.
- Amounts and dates are also read with fixed patterns. If they don't match, the file waits as “Please check” instead of being filed wrongly.
- A dry run shows what would happen to the newest 50 files before a rule runs.
- Every rename is in the journal, with Undo.
Recognizing kind, sender, date and amount needs a Mac with Apple silicon and Apple Intelligence turned on (macOS 26 or later). Without it, rules by name, type and text keep working.
Letterslot is a file autopilot for the Mac: it reads new files, understands them with Apple's on-device language model and files them by your rules, with a journal and Undo. 14 days of everything free, then free with 2 rules or Pro for €24 once.
See Letterslot