A purchase register tells a reader who a client buys from, how much and on what terms. A firm that handles it for dozens of clients is therefore choosing, each month, where those files travel. This page is about that choice and about the routine around the tool. The calendar and the triage of many clients are in the guide for accountants with 20 to 50 clients; the kinds of software on the market are in the software guide. Here the question is narrower: what to ask of the tool, what our tool does and does not do, and how a firm can use it without adding risk.
Five questions to ask before a client file touches any tool
The scored version, with red flags, is in the free tool checklist. These five matter most to a firm, with what gstr2bmatch.in does for each.
| Question | Why a firm cares | gstr2bmatch.in |
|---|---|---|
| Where does the file go? | Client confidentiality and your own exposure if a vendor is breached | The two files are read in your browser and never uploaded to any server. Close the tab and the data is gone. |
| Which GSTR-2B parts does it read? | Credit notes and amendments change the credit | B2B and B2BA invoices, credit and debit notes (including amended ones) and ISD credits, from the portal's Excel or JSON. Notes are listed, not matched two-way. |
| How does it decide a match? | You must be able to explain a result to a partner or a client | Same supplier GSTIN and invoice number (spaces, symbols and leading zeros ignored). Tax within ₹1 is Matched; a larger difference is a Value mismatch. |
| What do you get out of it? | The output goes into the client's file | Five buckets, two rupee totals, a By supplier list, a CSV and an Excel workbook. |
| What does it not do? | A gap you did not know about becomes your gap | No portal login, no reading of the live IMS dashboard, no GSTR-2A, no filing, one client per run. |
What the privacy sentence covers, and what it does not
We use one sentence and nothing stronger. Your GSTR-2B and purchase register files are read in your browser and never uploaded to any server. For a firm it helps to be exact about the edges.
- Covered: the two input files. They are opened and matched inside the browser tab.
- Not covered by that sentence: the site uses standard analytics (Google Tag Manager and Umami) to count visits.
- Your own copies: the CSV and Excel files you export are saved on your computer. From then on the firm's normal handling applies: where they are stored, who can open them, when they are deleted.
- The follow-up email: the By supplier list has a Copy follow-up email button. It copies plain text to your clipboard; nothing is sent from the page. You paste it into your own mail and decide who gets it.
You do not have to take our word for the first point. Open your browser's developer tools, go to the Network tab, run a match, and read what each request carries. You will see the page's own files and visit counting; what you should not see is a request carrying your spreadsheet. Have the firm's IT person do this once and write the date down.
Professional obligations. This page does not interpret what your firm owes its clients on confidentiality. Check your engagement terms and the ICAI's current guidance. The longer argument for keeping registers off other people's servers is in the client-side privacy guide.
A firm workflow, one client at a time
The steps below are what a junior does per client. The firm-level layer on top (tracker, tiers, who calls whom) is in the 67 guide.
- Intake. Ask the client for the purchase register as exported from their software, not retyped. The tool's mapping step needs supplier GSTIN, supplier name, invoice number, invoice date, tax amount and total invoice value; taxable value is optional. Default Zoho Books and Busy exports are mapped automatically; for other layouts, check the mapping screen before you run.
- Run. Load the client's GSTR-2B in slot A and the register in slot B, check the column mapping, and run the reconciliation. Use the Excel or JSON GSTR-2B you downloaded for that GSTIN; the steps are in how to download GSTR-2B.
- Read the two totals. ITC at risk is buckets C and E. IMS Pending is bucket E, which the tool labels IMS Pending because the supplier has other invoices in the GSTR-2B but not this one. Treat it as likely IMS Pending until the IMS dashboard confirms it; the IMS Pending guide shows a case where more than a third of the flagged amount was not Pending at all.
- Go to By supplier. It ranks suppliers by ITC at risk, highest first, and shows how many invoices each has to follow up. For suppliers with no filing at all, the supplier-not-filing guide covers the chase.
- Export Excel for the file. One workbook per client, saved with the GSTIN and month in the name.
- Partner review. Three questions: was every bucket E invoice checked on the IMS dashboard, has every bucket C supplier been asked, and is anything being claimed above what GSTR-2B shows?
- Recompute and re-run if IMS changed. The GSTN IMS FAQ allows a recompute of GSTR-2B at the time of filing GSTR-3B after actions change. Download again, re-run that client, and file by the 20th for monthly filers. See how to recompute GSTR-2B.
- Clean up. Delete the working exports from shared Downloads folders once they are in the client's folder.
Why the review step has teeth
Credit is allowed only if the supplier's invoice details appear in GSTR-2B (section 16(2)(aa); Rule 36(4)). A claim above that figure is the situation behind a DRC-01C intimation. The GSTN advisory says it is issued when the difference between ITC in GSTR-2B and ITC claimed in GSTR-3B exceeds a pre-defined limit, and Rule 88D allows seven days to pay or explain. If a client pushes you to claim a held invoice, the bucket report is your written reason not to. For the reply process, see the DRC-01C guide.
Worked example: five clients, one morning
An illustrative practice, not a statistic. After the first pass on five monthly clients, the junior copies two totals per client into the tracker.
| Client | Likely IMS Pending (E) | Missing from 2B (C) | ITC at risk (C + E) | Next step |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| K-01 | ₹1,26,000 | ₹18,000 | ₹1,44,000 | Partner calls the client; dashboard check today |
| K-02 | ₹0 | ₹62,500 | ₹62,500 | Supplier chase; hold the credit until it appears in GSTR-2B |
| K-03 | ₹41,400 | ₹0 | ₹41,400 | Client to confirm receipt of goods |
| K-04 | ₹9,000 | ₹5,400 | ₹14,400 | One batch message |
| K-05 | ₹0 | ₹0 | ₹0 | Review, then file |
| Total | ₹1,76,400 | ₹85,900 | ₹2,62,300 |
Check: 1,26,000 + 0 + 41,400 + 9,000 + 0 = ₹1,76,400 and 18,000 + 62,500 + 0 + 5,400 + 0 = ₹85,900, and 1,76,400 + 85,900 = ₹2,62,300, the same as the column of row totals (1,44,000 + 62,500 + 41,400 + 14,400 + 0). K-01 alone carries a little over half of the practice's rupees at risk, so it gets the partner's first hour.
For K-01 the junior opens the Suppliers sheet of the Excel export, which is sorted with the highest ITC at risk first. The real sheet lists every supplier of the client; the three with credit at risk are shown here.
| Supplier | Invoices | To follow up | ITC at risk (C + E) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Supplier A | 14 | 3 | ₹81,000 |
| Supplier B | 6 | 1 | ₹45,000 |
| Supplier C | 9 | 2 | ₹18,000 |
| These three | 29 | 6 | ₹1,44,000 |
81,000 + 45,000 + 18,000 = ₹1,44,000, matching K-01's row above. Supplier A's three invoices are checked on the client's IMS dashboard first; whatever is Pending is the client's to accept, and whatever is not there goes into the follow-up email for Supplier A.
Limits to tell your team
- One client per run. There is no client list and no multi-client dashboard. The tracker is yours.
- It cannot see IMS. It flags invoices absent from the GSTR-2B you downloaded. Confirm on the dashboard.
- Credit and debit notes are listed, not matched against your register. Full two-way credit note matching is not built yet. Handle credit notes by hand, using the credit note guide.
- GSTR-2B only. It does not reconcile GSTR-2A, connect to the portal or file returns.
- Several GSTINs for one client: run each GSTIN separately; the cross-charge side is in the multi-GSTIN guide.
Try it on one client's last month
Take a closed month for one client and run it: the report is the quickest test of whether the buckets match what you already know about that file. gstr2bmatch.in is free and needs no login. Your GSTR-2B and purchase register files are read in your browser and never uploaded to any server.
Related guides
- GST Reconciliation in Tally ERP 9: step-by-Step Workflow
- How to use a GSTR-2B reconciliation tool
- GSTR-2B matching in SAP S/4HANA: ingestion, BAPI reconciliation, and GR/IR clearing
- How accountants can automate GSTR-2B reconciliation
- GSTR-2B reconciliation for travel agencies and tour operators
Frequently asked questions
Are my clients' files uploaded when I use gstr2bmatch.in?
Your GSTR-2B and purchase register files are read in your browser and never uploaded to any server. The site does use analytics to count visits, and anything you export is saved on your own computer, so your firm's usual file handling applies to the exports.
Can a firm reconcile many clients in one run?
No. The tool reads one GSTR-2B (Excel or JSON) and one purchase register per run, and it has no client list. A firm runs it once per GSTIN and keeps its own tracker.
Can the tool tell me whether an invoice is IMS Pending?
Not for certain. It cannot read the IMS dashboard. It labels an invoice as likely IMS Pending when it is missing from the GSTR-2B but the supplier has other invoices in it, so confirm each one on the dashboard.
What does the Excel export contain?
A Summary sheet with the totals and bucket counts, one sheet for each bucket, a Duplicates sheet, a Suppliers sheet with ITC at risk per supplier, and sheets for credit and debit notes and ISD credits. A CSV export is also available.
Last checked: 30 September 2026. Sources: CGST Act section 16, Notification 40/2021-CT (Rule 36(4)), GSTN DRC-01C advisory, Notification 38/2023-CT (Rule 88D), GSTN GSTR-3B user guide, GSTN IMS FAQ.