n8n RFQ PDF to Excel Quote Drafts with Price Lists

Turn RFQ PDFs into Excel quote drafts—automatically

This n8n workflow takes an RFQ PDF uploaded via an n8n Form, extracts the item table, matches each line against your catalogue and approved price list, and returns a priced Excel (.xlsx) quote draft for review—complete with totals and any lines that need attention.

What this workflow does

• Receives an RFQ PDF upload through an n8n Form Trigger.
• Extracts text from the PDF and stops with a clear error if the PDF has no text layer or doesn’t match expected RFQ layout markers.
• Parses header + item rows using strict regex rules to output structured line items.
• Loads a catalogue and approved price list (provided as sample data in the template), validates currency, and checks pricing availability.
• Matches RFQ lines to the catalogue by exact code, then normalized code, then description similarity with a confidence score.
• Prices lines only when it’s safe: an exact code match with the same unit and an approved price.
• Calculates totals for each priced line and a grand total using integer-based rounding.
• Generates one Excel sheet containing:
  • Priced lines (from approved price matches)
  • Review-required lines with reasons and candidate matches
  • Total row including the price list version
• Returns the .xlsx file to the form user, or shows the failure reason if parsing/pricing cannot safely run.

Use cases

• Sales ops or procurement teams want faster, consistent quote drafting from RFQ PDFs.
• Automation engineers need reliable catalogue + approved price matching with audit-friendly “review” outputs.
• SaaS operators aim to reduce manual pricing errors by enforcing exact-code + unit approval rules.

Technical details

• Nodes / building blocks: Code, Form, Sticky Note, Form Trigger, Extract from File, Convert to File.
• Output: downloadable .xlsx quote draft.
• Important requirement: the workflow expects text-based PDFs that follow the required RFQ layout (including table header ending in “Unit” and an “END OF ITEMS” marker).