Email files to Box

Send or forward an email with a file to your Email Parser by FlowMattic address, and this workflow uploads the file to Box, giving you a simple way to file documents from any inbox.

Email Parser by FlowMattic

Box

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2 steps Setup ~5 min Used on 3.4k sites Free to import

The Email files to Box workflow on the FlowMattic canvas, with 2 steps across Email Parser by FlowMattic, Box — The workflow as it appears in the builder after import. Each step opens for editing.

What this workflow does

Files arrive by email all day: invoices, signed forms, photos from the field, reports from a client. Saving each one to Box means downloading it, finding the right folder and uploading it again. This workflow turns an email address into a drop point for Box.

The Email Parser by FlowMattic trigger, Email Received, fires when a message reaches the parser's address. You can send to that address directly or set a forwarding rule in your own mailbox. FlowMattic then runs Upload File in Box, which copies an existing file from another service into your Box account. You map the attachment from the parsed email into that step.

Because the Box action copies a file from a link, the email data must hold a link to the attachment. Send a test email with a file after import and open the run in Task History to see what the parser captured. There is no Filter, so every email that reaches the address starts a run, including ones with no attachment.

Supplier invoices into an accounts folder

Set your mailbox to forward invoice emails to the parser address. Each invoice file goes into the Box folder your bookkeeper works from.

Field photos from a phone

Staff on site email photos to one address from their phones. The files reach Box without anyone signing in to the Box app.

Client documents for a small practice

Clients send signed forms and statements by email. Forwarding them to the parser files each one in Box, ready for the team.

How this workflow runs

What happens at each step once the workflow is on, and what you need before you import it.

Step 1Trigger
Email Parser by FlowMattic Email Received
Starts a run whenever a message reaches the Email Parser by FlowMattic address for this workflow. The parsed email becomes data you can map. Send a test email with a file to see what it captures.
Step 2Action
Box Upload File
Copies a file into your Box account. Connect Box and map the attachment from the parsed email into the step, then check a test run to confirm the file reaches Box.

What you need

FlowMatticCore
Box AccountAccount

After importing, map your own data. To keep the template universal, not every step is pre-filled. Open each step in the builder and connect your accounts and fields (channels, lists, sheets, recipients) before you switch the workflow on.

Make it yours

Changes worth making after you import it.

Add a Filter after the trigger so the Box step runs only when the email has an attachment, which avoids failed runs from plain-text messages.
Add a Google Sheets step after the Box upload to log each email's sender and subject, so you have a list of what was filed and when.
Emails with several attachments may need an Iterator before the Box step to upload each file. Check what a test email with two files captures first.

Questions about this workflow

Where is the email address I send files to?

FlowMattic shows it in the Email Parser trigger after you import the workflow. Send mail to it, or forward from your own inbox.

What happens when an email has no attachment?

The workflow still runs, because nothing checks for a file. The Box step has nothing to copy and Task History shows its response. A Filter after the trigger prevents this.

Does every file in an email reach Box?

As imported, the Box step runs once per email and uses the attachment you map. Several files in one email need an Iterator in front of the Box step.

Where in Box do the emailed files end up?

That depends on how you set up the Upload File step after import. Send a test email and check in Box where the file arrived before you rely on it.