If you’ve been managing EDI for a while, chances are you’ve opened a VAN invoice and said: “Wait… I’m being charged for what?”
We’ve seen it all—some of it hard to believe:
These aren't rare cases. They're built into the pricing models of many VANs, making invoices unpredictable and growth expensive. Most EDI VANs use outdated billing structures designed around complexity: In these models, every action becomes a line item, and you often won’t realize it until the invoice arrives. If your business grows, changes ERPs, adds trading partners, or just exchanges more data, your bill skyrockets. You’re punished for succeeding.
One of the sneakiest fees we see is KC (kilo-character) rounding, and many people don’t even realize it’s happening.
Most legacy VANs bill you based on the size of each document, measured in kilo-characters (1 KC = 1,000 characters). But here’s the catch: instead of billing you for the actual size of the document, they round up to the nearest whole KC — or sometimes even multiple KCs.
That means:
—A document that’s 1,100 characters might be billed as 2 KCs.
—A 2,050-character invoice might cost you 3 KCs.
—Multiply that across thousands of documents per month, and the padding adds up.
It’s not always easy to spot, but here are three signs:
In the EDI world, some VANs or service providers set minimums or thresholds around the number of line items in a document (such as a purchase order, invoice, or ASN). A line item is typically a single product or SKU listed within a larger transaction.
Let’s say your trading partner sends you a Purchase Order with 150 individual items listed (each item = a line). Your VAN may allow up to 100 line items in a message without any additional cost. However, once you exceed that threshold, the next 50 lines could trigger a “line item overage fee”—often calculated in increments, such as per 10 or 25 extra lines. In some cases, you might be charged a flat fee simply for going over the limit.
So even though it's one document, your cost rises because it has “too many” details inside it.
These thresholds often aren’t clearly disclosed, which means you might be unknowingly penalized for receiving larger orders. You could end up discouraged from trading efficiently, simply because more detailed purchase orders cost more to process. In the end, you're paying a premium for messages that are completely valid—and necessary—for running your business.
In EDI, an envelope refers to a group of EDI documents packaged together for transmission. Think of it like a digital shipping box that contains specific documents—like an 850 (Purchase Order), 856 (Advance Ship Notice), or 810 (Invoice).
Some VANs charge per envelope, meaning you pay a separate fee for each document sent or received, regardless of its size.
Let’s say your business sends or receives 1,000 documents a day — a common volume for many mid-sized or growing organizations. That includes:
If your VAN uses a per-envelope billing model, you’re looking at 1,000 separate envelope charges every single day.
Now do the math:
And that’s before you factor in setup fees, mailbox charges, map changes, or test transmissions.
Every routine document you send quietly inflates your bill. As your document volume scales with your business, your costs rise linearly (or worse). Some VANs even charge you for documents you receive, not just the ones you send. And the worst part? You usually don’t know what these fees will be until the invoice lands in your inbox.
If you're currently using a traditional VAN, take a moment to review your billing statement. Some red flags include:
Sound familiar? You're not alone.
At Nexus VAN, we believe in transparent, usage-based pricing, so you always know exactly what you're paying for. We bill by actual kilo-character usage without rounding up, and without arbitrary thresholds. If your PO is 150 lines, you’re only billed for the actual size of that data, not penalized for doing more business or being more detailed.
Do you send 60 documents a day? Great. You'll pay for exactly how much data those documents contain, not how many virtual “boxes” they’re packed in.
No rounding up, no hidden fluff. It’s accurate, fair, and easy to track.
Our tiered pricing model offers a scalable, cost-effective path as your volume grows, without punishing you for success.
Most of our customers save 40–80% annually when they switch, while gaining full visibility into their billing, faster support, and fewer surprises.
If you're tired of decoding your invoice, it might be time to take a look at Nexus VAN. One call. One switch. No surprises.
