Free invoice maker

How to make an invoice

1. Add your business details. Name, address, phone and email. Add a logo if you have one; the maker remembers all of it on this device for next time.
2. Add the client. Their name and, if you have it, an address or email. A project line says what the invoice is for.
3. Set the number, the date and the terms. The due date follows the terms you pick: Due on receipt, Net 15, Net 30 or Custom.
4. List the work. One line per item or service, with a quantity and a price. Add sales tax or a discount if they apply.
5. Say how to pay and download. Add payment instructions and a note, then download the PDF and send it or print it.

What an invoice should include

• Your business name and contact details, and the client's name
• A unique invoice number, so either of you can refer to it
• The issue date and the due date, with the payment terms
• Each item or service with a quantity, a price and the amount
• Sales tax and any discount, if they apply, and the total
• Any deposit or part payment already received, and the amount still due
• How to pay: a payee name for checks, or a Zelle, Venmo or bank transfer detail

Invoice, receipt or estimate?

The three documents answer different questions. An estimate says what a job will cost before it starts. An invoice asks for payment once the work is done, or at an agreed stage. A receipt confirms that the client has paid. Many small businesses send all three for one job: an estimate, then an invoice, then a receipt when the money arrives. The guide receipt vs invoice goes through the difference in more detail.

If a client pays in full on the spot, you may only need a receipt. If you just want to confirm that a sum of money arrived, such as a deposit or a private sale, the payment receipt is shorter than an invoice. A landlord asking for the month's rent can use this maker too, or use the rent receipt maker once it has been paid.

Payment terms: due on receipt, Net 15 or Net 30

Payment terms tell the client when the money is due. Due on receipt means as soon as they get the invoice. Net 15 and Net 30 mean within 15 or 30 days of the issue date. Shorter terms get you paid sooner; longer ones are what bigger clients often expect. Pick the terms before you send the first invoice and keep them the same for a client, so nobody has to guess. If your terms are different, choose Custom and write them in your own words, for example half up front and half when the job is finished.

Deposits and part payments

If a client has already paid a deposit, enter it under Deposit or amount already paid. The invoice then shows the total, the deposit as paid to date, and the amount due as a separate line. When the amount paid covers the whole total, the invoice is stamped PAID. Until then there is no stamp, so an invoice with a balance never looks settled by mistake.

Numbering and keeping your invoices

Number invoices in a simple running sequence, such as INV-1001, INV-1002 and so on. The maker starts you at INV-1001 and adds one after each download. Save every invoice as a PDF in one folder, or print a copy, so you can find it when a client asks about it or when you do your books. The last twenty invoices are also listed under the preview on this device, and you can open one again.

What this maker does not do

It makes a clean invoice document. It does not send reminders, take card payments or track who has paid. For that you would use accounting software. It also does not tell you whether tax applies to your work; it only adds the rate you type in. If you need a template for a particular trade, see the contractor invoice template for labor and materials, or the service invoice template for freelancers, cleaners and tutors. To record hours for a client who pays by the hour, use the timesheet template.