> For clean Markdown of any page, append .md to the page URL.
> For a complete documentation index, see https://docs.tabs.com/llms.txt.
> For AI client integration (Claude Code, Cursor, etc.), connect to the MCP server at https://docs.tabs.com/_mcp/server.

# About Tabs

**Tabs** is an AI-native revenue platform for finance teams. It ingests contracts and customer data, turns legal terms into structured billing, generates and collects invoices, recognizes revenue, and syncs everything to your ERP — on one system instead of spreadsheets and bolt-on tools.

Tabs agents automate routine work like invoice preparation, collections replies, and reconciliation. Your team stays in control with approvals and exception handling when judgment is needed. See [Collections & Receivables](/collections-receivables) for how the Collections Agent handles inbound email.

These docs cover two paths:

* **Getting Started** (this tab) — product concepts and workflows for finance and ops teams
* **API Guides** — implementation, integrations, and programmatic access for developers

## How revenue operations flow through Tabs

Every billing operation in Tabs follows the same contract-to-cash lifecycle:

1. **Customers and contracts enter Tabs** — via CRM sync, e-signature, email ingest, or API. CRM customers often arrive before their contracts; use [Confirm Customer](/customer-ingestion#confirm-customer) to link deals to the right account.
2. **Products and billing terms are configured** — reusable [Product Catalog](/product-catalog) entries define what you sell; billing terms on each contract define pricing, cadence, and schedule for that customer.
3. **Invoices are generated and sent** — billing terms create draft invoices on schedule; sent invoices sync to your CRM, ERP, and tax providers.
4. **Payments are collected and applied** — Stripe, Plaid, and manual recording settle invoice balances and sync cash to your ERP.
5. **Revenue is recognized and closed** — performance obligations and revenue schedules decouple recognition from billing; month-end close posts journal entries to your ERP.
6. **Reporting and integrations tie it together** — AR, forecasting, and commercial metrics draw from the same data; [Integrations](/integrations) connect CRM, ERP, payments, and tax.

![Contract-to-cash lifecycle](https://fdr-prod-docs-files-public.s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com/tabs.docs.buildwithfern.com/95e1b34c41330cdba7fd18516135a881662f7cc92ae137a54e7be2402a9f241d/docs/assets/get-started/deal-flow-lifecycle.png?X-Amz-Algorithm=AWS4-HMAC-SHA256&X-Amz-Content-Sha256=UNSIGNED-PAYLOAD&X-Amz-Credential=AKIA6KXJSKKNFOCF7G4B%2F20260806%2Fus-east-1%2Fs3%2Faws4_request&X-Amz-Date=20260806T181835Z&X-Amz-Expires=604800&X-Amz-Signature=c6027141b743fa812895116cc72ea04cf2e97a4c6541f5718aa69e8d73ce9b4b&X-Amz-SignedHeaders=host&x-amz-checksum-mode=ENABLED&x-id=GetObject)

For entity definitions and a worked example, see [Tabs data model](/data-model).

## Explore Getting Started

#### [Customers](/customers)

Customer records, billing contacts, and how accounts enter Tabs from CRM and ERP.

#### [Contracts](/contracts)

How deals become structured billing data — ingestion, extraction, and amendments.

#### [Product Catalog](/product-catalog)

What you sell — pricing models, cadence, revenue dates, and invoice timing.

#### [Billing](/billing)

Billing terms, schedules, invoice generation, and ERP sync.

#### [Collections & Payments](/collections-payments)

Receivables workflows, payment collection, cash application, and credits.

#### [Revenue](/revenue)

Revenue recognition, performance obligations, SSP allocation, and month-end close.

#### [Reporting](/reporting)

Aging, cash forecasting, renewals, ARR, and commercial visibility.

#### [Integrations](/integrations)

CRM, ERP, payments, and tax — architecture, setup, and troubleshooting.

## Key concepts

**Billing and revenue are separate.** A customer can be invoiced on one schedule and recognize revenue on another — for example, usage billed monthly in arrears with revenue recognized ratably over the contract term. See [Billing](/billing) for invoice generation and [Revenue](/revenue) for recognition and close.

**Tabs is the source of truth for invoices.** Sent invoices, payments, and revenue journal entries flow from Tabs to your ERP. Changes made directly in your ERP to Tabs-sent invoices do not sync back. See [Integrations](/integrations) for sync behavior and [ERP & Account Mapping](/erp-account-mapping) for setup.

**CRM customers arrive before contracts.** HubSpot and Salesforce syncs create customer records first; contract sync links closed-won deals to those accounts. If a contract lands on the wrong customer, use [Confirm Customer](/customer-ingestion#confirm-customer) before processing.

## Build with the API

#### [Tabs data model](/data-model)

Entity definitions, relationships, and a worked billing example.

#### [Invoice a customer](/invoice-customer-quickstart)

Define billing terms and send your first invoice via the API.

#### [Develop with the Tabs API](/develop-with-api)

Authentication, core endpoints, usage events, and the Tabs MCP Connector.

## Further reading

* [Tabs data model](/data-model) — entity definitions and relationships
* [Integration Overview](/integration-overview) — CRM, ERP, payments, and tax architecture
* [Develop with the Tabs API](/develop-with-api) — authentication, endpoints, and rate limits