Trade Price Book
MenuClose

ES-02Estimates & invoices

Invoice generator

A clean invoice with line items, tax, deposits and payment terms, printed or saved as a PDF in your browser.

Your invoice

Example A drain cleaning call. Replace it with your own, or start blank.

Live previewPrints like this, without the website around itFill in your invoice

Example Plumbing & Heating

1200 Commerce Drive, Suite 4 Springfield

(555) 010-0142office@example.com

License no. PL-000000

Invoice

No.
INV-2081
Date
—
Due
On receipt
Amount due
$377.80

Bill to

Morgan Lee

715 Orchard Street Springfield

(555) 010-0163morgan.lee@example.com

Work performed

Kitchen sink drain backed up. Cleared the 2-inch line from the sink to the stack with a cable machine, ran a camera through it to check it, and replaced the corroded P-trap.

Line items
LineDescriptionQtyUnitUnit priceAmount
1Service call and diagnosis1ea$89.00$89.00
2Clear kitchen sink drain with a cable machine, up to 25 ft1ea$185.00$185.00
3Camera inspection of the cleared line0.5hr$125.20$62.60
41½-inch P-trap and slip-joint washers1ea$38.50$38.50 (taxable)

Taxable line

Subtotal
$375.10
Sales tax 7% on $38.50
$2.70
Amount due
$377.80

How to pay

Check payable to Example Plumbing & Heating, or card or bank transfer (ACH) by phone at (555) 010-0142. Please write the invoice number on your check.

Late payments

A late fee may apply to balances unpaid 30 days after the due date, where state law allows.

Notes

Thank you for your business. The camera showed grease buildup but no damage to the pipe.

Fill in your invoice

Seven steps, in the order the page reads. The preview updates as you type.

Your businessExample Plumbing & Heating

Heads the invoice, the way your customers know you.

Street, city, state and ZIP, as they should print. Press Enter for a new line.

The number customers call.

Optional.

Optional. Some states expect it on estimates, bids and contracts, California and Florida among them. Check with your licensing board.

Keeps your business name, address, phone, email and default terms in this browser, so the next invoice starts filled in. This box does not keep customer details, line items or the license number, and it sends nothing to us.

CustomerMorgan Lee

The person or company the invoice is for.

Billing address.

Optional.

Optional.

Only if the work is at a different address.

Invoice detailsINV-2081 · due on receipt

Your own numbering, like INV-2081.

Today’s date on this device.

Prints as a date.

Optional. The day of the job.

Optional: the estimate, work order or PO this bills.

Work performed32 words

What you found and what you did, in plain words.

Line items4 lines · $375.10
  • Description: what the customer gets, with make, model or size where it matters.
  • Qty and unit: 3 hr, 1 ea, 25 ft. Qty takes numbers only; an empty Qty counts as 1.
  • Unit price before tax, numbers only. Leave Qty and price empty for a text-only line.
  • Taxable: tick the lines your state taxes. The rate is set under step 6.
  1. Line 1

    Amount $89.00

  2. Line 2

    Amount $185.00

  3. Line 3

    Amount $62.60

  4. Line 4

    Amount $38.50

Subtotal $375.10

Discount, tax and paymentsDue $377.80
Discount

Taken off before tax. Leave empty for none.

Optional, like “Returning customer”.

Contractor sales tax differs by state: some tax the materials, some the whole job, some neither. Tick Taxable on the lines your state taxes, or leave the rate empty. How several states handle it

Money already paid on this job. It comes off the balance due.

Total
$377.80
tax $2.70
Balance due
$377.80
on receipt
Terms and notes3 of 3 written

Who to make checks out to, the ways you take payment and a number to call. Saved with your business details if you tick “Remember” in step 1.

Optional. Late fees and interest are limited by state law, and the limits differ by state: ask your attorney before you add one. Saved with your business details if you tick “Remember” in step 1.

Optional: a thank-you, what you found, what to watch for.

Before you send it 5 of 6

  • Done: Your business name and how to reach you
  • Done: The customer and billing address
  • Not yet:
  • Optional: if there was one
  • Done: What was done
  • Done: Priced line items
  • Done: How to pay you

Amount due $377.80 · on receipt. Back to the preview

Prints only the invoice: no website header, ads or links. In the print window, choose “Save as PDF” to get a file.

How the math works

Every figure is a whole number of cents. Each line, the discount and the tax are rounded to the cent once, and the totals are added from those printed figures, so the page always adds up. The example is the drain cleaning invoice above.

  1. Line amountquantity × unit price, rounded to the centCamera inspection: 0.5 hr × $125.20 = $62.60. An empty quantity counts as 1.
  2. Subtotalthe sum of the line amountsFour lines: $375.10.
  3. Discountan amount, or a percent of the subtotal, taken before taxNone on this invoice.
  4. Taxable amounttaxable lines − discount × taxable lines ÷ subtotalOnly the P-trap is marked taxable: $38.50.
  5. Sales taxtaxable amount × tax rate, rounded to the cent$38.50 × 7% = $2.695, rounded to $2.70.
  6. Totalsubtotal − discount + sales tax$375.10 + $2.70 = $377.80.
  7. Balance duetotal − deposit and payments receivedNothing received yet, so $377.80 is due. After a $100.00 deposit: $377.80 − $100.00 = $277.80.

Due dates

“Net 15” means payment is due 15 days after the invoice date. The invoice prints the date itself (or “On receipt”), so neither side has to count days.

Sales tax

Contractor sales tax depends on the state, the kind of work and how the job was contracted, so each line has its own Taxable box. Show the tax as its own amount: for custom construction, Washington’s Department of Revenue says invoices should state it separately. The sales tax guide sets out what the tax agencies of all 50 states and DC say; your invoice should match the estimate or contract the customer signed.

Card payments

If you pass card fees on, Visa’s rules for U.S. merchants allow a surcharge on credit cards only, never debit or prepaid, up to the lower of your processing rate or 3%, with notice to your acquirer, clear disclosure and the surcharge on its own line of the receipt, and only where state law allows it. The other route is a discount for paying by cash or check, which federal law keeps the card networks from forbidding. Credit card fees for contractors covers both, with what the common platforms charge.

Late payments

Late fees and interest on unpaid invoices are limited by state law, and the limits differ from state to state. Ask an attorney before you print a late fee, and put the same terms on the estimate the customer signs, so the invoice holds no surprise.

Tie it to the paperwork

Put the estimate or work order number in Reference, and bill any change orders as their own lines. When the invoice matches paper the customer already signed, there is little to argue about.

What happens to what you type

The invoice is built in your browser. Calculators run in your browser and work without an account. Nothing is saved unless you press Save. If you tick “Remember my business details on this device”, only your business name, address, phone, email and default terms are saved, in your browser’s local storage; “Forget my details” removes them. Details are in the Privacy Policy and the Cookie Policy.

Tools for the job

Tool listOffice3 itemsSpecs read

As an Amazon Associate, Trade Price Book earns from qualifying purchases. Amazon links are marked “(paid link)”; prices aren’t shown here.

  1. Rugged tablets and mobile printersSamsung SM-X308U

    Galaxy Tab Active5 5G (U.S., unlocked)

    • 8.0 in. WUXGA display up to 120 Hz that works with gloves or when wet; Exynos 1380 processor.

    Specs: Samsung product page, read

    View on Amazon for Samsung SM-X308U(paid link)

  2. Rugged tablets and mobile printersBrother PJ-883

    PocketJet PJ-883 Wi-Fi & Bluetooth Mobile Printer

    • Full-page 8.5 in. wide thermal printing at 300 dpi, up to 3 in. per second.

    Specs: Brother product page, read

    View on Amazon for Brother PJ-883(paid link)

  3. Rugged tablets and mobile printersBrother RJ-4230B-L

    RuggedJet RJ-4230B-L 4-Inch Mobile Printer with Bluetooth and Battery

    • 4 in. direct-thermal receipt and label printer, up to 5 in. per second; the -L version ships with the battery.

    Specs: Brother product page, read

    View on Amazon for Brother RJ-4230B-L(paid link)

How tools are chosen for gear lists

Sources

  1. U.S. Merchant Surcharge Q and A (Version 02152024)Visa
  2. 15 U.S.C. 1693o-2 — Reasonable fees and rules for payment card transactions (2024 edition)U.S. Government Publishing Office
  3. Custom constructionWashington State Department of Revenue