Invoice Templates by Profession
An invoice template is only useful if it already looks like your invoice. Each of these 16 templates opens prefilled with the line items, payment terms and notes that trade actually bills, so the first thing you do is change a number rather than start from an empty page.
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Creative
Creative work is billed by the project far more often than by the hour, and the invoice usually has to carry something the hourly trades never deal with: what the client is allowed to do with the work once they have paid for it.
Per word, per piece or per hour
Per project, with an hourly rate for work outside scope
Per session or per day, plus licensing
Per day for production, per project for post, plus licensing
Monthly retainer, with ad spend billed separately
Technical
Technical work runs long and changes shape while it runs, so these invoices lean on clear scope, itemised change requests and a record of hours that can survive being questioned.
Trades
Trade invoices split labour from materials, because the two are marked up differently, taxed differently in many states, and questioned separately by clients.
Professional services
Professional services bill time in small increments against a retainer or a cap, so the invoice has to show the arithmetic rather than just the total.
Per hour, per day, or against a monthly retainer
Per hour or per session, often prepaid in blocks
Per hour, or a monthly block of retained hours
Per source word, per target word, or per hour for revision
Monthly flat fee, or per hour for clean-up work
Per session, sold in prepaid blocks
The invoice is the last step, not the first
PomoTodo tracks the hours against the project, keeps your clients and rates, and turns a month of tracked work into the invoice rather than asking you to remember it.
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Billing conventions compared
| Profession | Billed by | Usual terms | Money up front |
|---|---|---|---|
| Freelance Writer | Per word, per piece or per hour | Net 30, and Net 15 with direct clients | Uncommon for articles, 50% for long projects such as a book or a white paper |
| Graphic Designer | Per project, with an hourly rate for work outside scope | Net 15 or Net 30, with 50% up front | 50% standard before work begins |
| Web Developer | Per milestone, per sprint, or per hour | Net 15 or Net 30, milestone-based | 25% to 50% before the first milestone |
| Photographer | Per session or per day, plus licensing | Balance due before delivery of final images | Non-refundable retainer to hold the date, commonly 25% to 50% |
| Consultant | Per hour, per day, or against a monthly retainer | Net 30, or drawn against a retainer paid monthly in advance | Retainer paid in advance is the norm; project work commonly 30% up front |
| General Contractor | Per stage of work, with labour and materials itemised | Due on receipt or Net 15, billed in progress payments | Deposit to cover materials, then progress payments by stage |
| Electrician | Per hour or per job, plus materials and call-out | Due on receipt for domestic work, Net 15 for trade accounts | Materials deposit on larger jobs; none for a call-out |
| Cleaning Service | Per visit, per hour, or a monthly flat rate | Due on receipt for one-offs, monthly in arrears for contracts | None for regular work; deposit common for a deep clean or a move-out |
| Landscaper | Per visit for maintenance, per project for installation | Monthly in arrears for maintenance, staged for installation | Materials deposit for planting and hardscaping projects |
| Tutor | Per hour or per session, often prepaid in blocks | Prepaid weekly or monthly, or due on receipt | Block booking paid in advance is the common structure |
| Virtual Assistant | Per hour, or a monthly block of retained hours | Monthly in advance for retained hours, Net 15 for hourly | Retained hours paid in advance is the common structure |
| Videographer | Per day for production, per project for post, plus licensing | 50% up front, balance before final delivery | 50% standard, covering crew and equipment commitments |
| Social Media Manager | Monthly retainer, with ad spend billed separately | Monthly in advance | First month in advance; ad spend prepaid or on the client's own card |
| Translator | Per source word, per target word, or per hour for revision | Net 30, and Net 45 or longer with agencies | Uncommon with agencies, 30% to 50% for large direct projects |
| Bookkeeper | Monthly flat fee, or per hour for clean-up work | Monthly in advance for ongoing work, Net 15 for projects | Clean-up and catch-up projects commonly 50% up front |
| Personal Trainer | Per session, sold in prepaid blocks | Paid in advance, per block | Full block paid up front is the norm |
| These are common conventions in each trade rather than rules. The terms that apply to you are the ones in your own agreement with the client. | |||
If none of these fit
The general invoice generator is the same tool with an empty document, which is the right starting point for work that does not match a trade above. If you are pricing a job rather than billing one, use the quote generator, and if the invoice is going to be built out of tracked hours, start with the billable hours calculator.
Questions about invoice templates
What has to be on an invoice?
A unique invoice number, the date it was issued, the date payment is due, your name and contact details, the client's name and address, a description of what was supplied, the amount for each item, and the total owed. Everything beyond that is either trade-specific or a matter of preference.
Do I need different invoice templates for different jobs?
The legal minimum is the same for everyone, but the useful parts differ a lot. A contractor separates labour from materials, a designer names the rights being transferred, a translator states which word count the price is based on. Those are the lines that prevent disputes, and they are the reason these templates are split by profession rather than being one generic form.
How should I number my invoices?
Sequentially, with no gaps. If your books are ever examined, the expectation is a run of numbers that can be followed. INV-2026-001 onwards is safer than a date or a random reference. Never reuse a number, and if you need to cancel an invoice, issue a credit note rather than deleting it.
Is my data sent anywhere when I use these templates?
No. Everything you type stays in your own browser's local storage, which is why the invoice is still there when you come back. Nothing is uploaded, and the PDF is generated on your own machine. Each profession's template has its own storage, so a draft on one page cannot overwrite a draft on another.
Can I use these templates for a quote instead?
The quote generator is the better starting point, because a quote needs a validity date rather than a due date, a signature block, and the option to mark lines as optional extras. An accepted quote converts into an invoice without retyping anything.