> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.mercora.io/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Matching documents to trades

> How Mercora links a document to its trade, and how to match, move or unmatch one yourself.

A document has to be on the right trade before Mercora can check it and you can approve it. Mercora does most of the finding; this page shows how to read its suggestion and settle the trade yourself.

> [!NOTE]
>
> Matching needs the **Trades** module and a role with access to trades. Without the module, documents complete on their own and there's nothing to match.

## What Mercora does

* **Links it itself** when it's sure: a trade reference, contract number, deal reference or B/L number that identifies exactly one trade, or strong evidence across the parties, product, quantity, vessel and dates. The panel says why, for example "B/L RCLLCH2607841 on the document", and the checks run straight away.
* **Recommends a trade** when it's less sure. The trade is pre-selected with a **Recommended** label and a reason, but nothing is linked until you click **Match**.
* **Doesn't guess** when a reference fits more than one trade, or when it has nothing to go on. The document waits under **Match** in **Needs you** as **Unmatched**.

Either way, you still approve the document, and you can change the trade.

![The Match step with a recommended trade and the Match button](https://mintcdn.com/placeholder-f4ffdeec/22McaegbdDRSI41b/images/documents/match-step-recommended.png?fit=max\&auto=format\&n=22McaegbdDRSI41b\&q=85\&s=02a8088829f6d0daa68f1aa1f8624703)

Purchase contract VCS-P-2026-0688 arrives unmatched, and Mercora recommends sugar trade VCS-S-2026-0714.

## Match a document yourself

**1. Open the document**

Unmatched documents are in the [Inbox](https://docs.mercora.io/documents/inbox.md), under **Needs you** › **Match**.

**2. Choose the trade**

Click the **Trade** field. **Suggested** trades come first, then trades with the **Same vessel** or **Same product**, then **Other trades**. Type to search by trade, contract, counterparty, product or vessel.

**3. Click Match**

Mercora links the document and checks it against the trade. The step then shows **✓ Match** and **Checked**, with the number of differences.

**Several at once:** in the **Match** section, tick the documents (shift-click for a range), choose the trade in **Assign selected documents**, and click **Assign N documents**. <kbd>Esc</kbd> cancels.

**No trade:** for a document that belongs to no trade, choose **No trade** at the bottom of the list and click **Match**. You'll then approve it with **Approve without a trade**.

If you choose a trade when you [upload](https://docs.mercora.io/documents/uploading.md), the documents go straight onto it.

## Starting a trade from a contract or recap

When no trade carries a contract or recap yet, the **Trade** list offers **New trade from this contract** (or **from this recap**), and Mercora may recommend it. Click **Approve**: the [approval flow](https://docs.mercora.io/documents/inbox.md#contracts-and-recaps) creates the trade. Nothing is created until you approve.

Mercora never puts a document on a trade leg by itself. You set a contract's purchase or sale leg when you approve it; other documents sit on the trade as a whole.

![The Match step recommending a new trade from a contract](https://mintcdn.com/placeholder-f4ffdeec/22McaegbdDRSI41b/images/documents/match-step-new-trade.png?fit=max\&auto=format\&n=22McaegbdDRSI41b\&q=85\&s=2357cd8c791e408e56c2521b44a425d2)

No trade carries ALU-2026-0012 yet, so Mercora recommends a new trade from purchase contract P-2026-0893.

If your workspace uses the **Contracts** module, a document whose contract number matches a standalone contract stays on that contract, shown as "On contract *number* · no trade".

## Change or remove the trade

**Before approving:** click **Change** next to **✓ Match**, pick another trade (or **No trade**) and click **Match**. If you've already resolved discrepancies against the current trade, they're dropped, and the button reads **Match anyway**.

**After approving:** open the **⋯** menu, choose **Reassign to Trade**, and pick the new trade or **Unmatched (remove from trade)**. For shipping documents, Mercora then offers the new trade's shipments. This also works from a trade's **Documents** tab.

If a trade is created or changed while documents wait for a match, Mercora tries matching them again ("Matching it again after a trade changed…").

## Next steps

* [Discrepancies](https://docs.mercora.io/documents/discrepancies.md): what Mercora checks once a document is on a trade.
* [Trades overview](https://docs.mercora.io/trades/overview.md): A trade's documents, discrepancies and legs.


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