# MarginEdge and Volty > Chefs ask Volty for last week's food cost and price changes from MarginEdge, and vendors email to check whether an invoice was received and processed. Restaurant operators on MarginEdge ask Volty for invoice totals, product price changes and food cost, and vendors checking an invoice get an answer from the processed record. Talk to Volty · Free trial Updated 2 Nov 2026 ## Last week's food cost A chef asks before ordering. Volty reads the numbers from MarginEdge. Kitchen leads Volty · Team chat MV Marisol Vega What was our food cost last week, and what did we pay for salmon on the last invoice? Checked MarginEdge · Oct 26 to Nov 1 · food cost 31.4% · salmon $13.85/lb, Oct 30 VoltyAPP Food cost was 31.4% last week on $48,210 in food sales, up from 29.8% the week before. Salmon was $13.85 a pound on the Oct 30 invoice from Pacific Catch, up from $12.40. Google Sheets MarginEdge · Food cost by week | | Week | Food sales | Food cost | % | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | 2 | Oct 12 | $46,880 | $14,064 | 30.0% | | 3 | Oct 19 | $47,350 | $14,110 | 29.8% | | 4 | Oct 26 | $48,210 | $15,138 | 31.4% | Row 4 added by Volty ## What Volty does with MarginEdge MarginEdge is the restaurant back-office software many operators use for invoice processing, food costing, inventory and a daily P&L. An API key a MarginEdge Admin creates on the Security tab lets Volty read orders, products, vendors and reports for that admin's restaurants. A chef asks Volty in team chat what last week's food cost was or what salmon cost on the last invoice, and a vendor emailing about an invoice hears whether it has been processed. - Food cost on request · Volty reads the period's food cost and sales before it answers. - Latest prices paid · A chef asks what an item cost and hears the last invoice price. - Invoice status for vendors · Volty reads whether an invoice has been received and processed. - Read only by design · MarginEdge's public API is for reading, so invoice edits and approvals stay in MarginEdge. Connects with MarginEdge public API with an Admin's key Volty reads Invoices, products and price history, vendors, P&L Volty can change None, MarginEdge's public API reads only Setup Our team, with a MarginEdge Admin Category Hospitality, food & events 31.4% on $48,210 in food sales, and salmon up $1.45 a pound. ### Did you get our invoice A vendor emails about an invoice. Volty reads its status. GT Gary Thompson Email · Vendor Can you confirm you received invoice 20417 from Thompson Dairy for $684.30? Checked MarginEdge · Thompson Dairy · Invoice 20417 · $684.30 · processed Oct 29 Volty Hi Gary, yes. Invoice 20417 for $684.30 was received and processed on October 29, and it's with our accounts team for payment. ## As an automation Describe it to Volty in a sentence; it drafts the automation and an admin turns it on. Monday numbers - When · Monday 7am · Once the week's invoices are in - Step 1 · Pulls the P&L and price history · Food cost % and the five biggest jumps - Step 2 · Posts in Kitchen leads · One line per location - Step 3 · Takes "why is dairy up?" · Vendor, item and invoice date Thompson Dairy hears invoice 20417 was processed on Oct 29. ## How Volty connects to MarginEdge MarginEdge gives Admins and Franchisee Admins their own API keys, each limited to the restaurants where that person holds the role. Our team builds the custom connection on one of those keys, and an admin approves it in Volty. - 01 · Create the key · The MarginEdge Admin clicks their name, then Settings, the Security tab, and Create new API key. It is shown once. - 02 · Choose the right admin · The key covers only that admin's restaurants, so the person who holds Admin for every location you want creates it. - 03 · Approve in Volty · Our team sets up the custom connection, and an admin approves it once. - 04 · Expect steady reads · MarginEdge allows one request per second per key, so the Monday summary is built ahead of time. ### The tools Volty gets Each one is a switch on the Sources page in Volty. - Read weekly food cost · Reads - Read product price history · Reads - Find invoice by vendor and number · Reads - Read P&L by location · Reads Reading tools can be turned on straight away. Anything that changes MarginEdge starts Off, and once on it can be set to check with staff, so each change waits for a colleague. ## Common questions ### Who creates the MarginEdge API key? A MarginEdge Admin or Franchisee Admin clicks their name, then Settings, the Security tab, and Create new API key. The key is shown once and covers only the restaurants where that person holds one of those roles, so the right admin creates it for the locations you want Volty to read. ### Can Volty change an invoice in MarginEdge? MarginEdge's public API reads data, so Volty reads invoices, products, vendors and reports and does not change them. Edits and approvals stay in MarginEdge with your team. ### Can a chef ask what we paid for salmon last month? Yes. Volty reads the product's price history from MarginEdge invoices and answers with the vendor, the unit price and when it changed, so a chef asking before a menu change gets the number. ### How much does it cost to connect MarginEdge with Volty? Every Volty plan includes seats, active contacts and AI credits and starts with a free 7-day trial, and the plan prices are on voltade.com/pricing. Meta bills message charges separately for WhatsApp, Instagram and Messenger. ## Related integrations - MarketMan Hospitality, food & events - Restaurant365 Hospitality, food & events - Ottimate Hospitality, food & events - QuickBooks Accounting & ERP - Outlook Email All integrations ## Start your free trial Talk to Volty · Start your free trial Sign up for our 7-day trial. No credit card needed. ## Not convinced? Hear more from our CEO and Volty The Leonard and Volty Show · 8 October 2026 ### Meta now charges for WhatsApp replies The Leonard and Volty Show · 1 October 2026 ### Too busy to hire? The Leonard and Volty Show · 21 September 2026 ### From $500 chatbot jobs to agentic AI The Leonard and Volty Show · 10 September 2026 ### Your AI is a new employee The Leonard and Volty Show · 4 September 2026 ### Trust in the AI world The Leonard and Volty Show · 29 August 2026 ### Does the AI model matter? The Leonard and Volty Show · 19 August 2026 ### What are AI agents? Meta now charges for WhatsApp replies. Here's what it means for your business, 8 October 2026 ## Links - [Hospitality, food & events](https://voltade.com/integrations?category=hospitality) - [MarketManHospitality, food & events](https://voltade.com/integrations/marketman) - [Restaurant365Hospitality, food & events](https://voltade.com/integrations/restaurant365) - [OttimateHospitality, food & events](https://voltade.com/integrations/ottimate) - [QuickBooksAccounting & ERP](https://voltade.com/integrations/quickbooks) - [OutlookEmail](https://voltade.com/integrations/outlook) - [All integrations](https://voltade.com/integrations)