What's the actual difference between a 997 and an 855 in terms of what they confirm?
Asked by newtoedi_ops (EDI Beginner) on 2026-07-20 · 3104 views
My manager keeps saying 'the customer acknowledged the PO' whenever we get a 997 back, but I thought the 997 was just a technical acknowledgment. Am I wrong, or is there a business-level confirmation happening in the 997 that I'm missing?
1 Answer
You're right and your manager is conflating two different layers. The 997 only confirms the EDI file passed X12 syntax validation — correct segment structure, valid codes, correct envelope counts. It says nothing about whether the customer's order-management system actually accepted the purchase order. The 855 is the business-level response: it tells you whether each line item was accepted, changed, backordered, or rejected. You can get a perfectly clean 997 and still have every line on the 855 come back rejected. I'd push back gently and clarify the distinction — it matters a lot when something goes wrong and people assume the order was 'confirmed' when it was only 'received.'
tom.reilly · EDI Expert · 2026-07-20