Consultant Invoice Template
This consultant invoice template is already filled in with the line items the job usually carries. Change the numbers, add your details, and download the PDF. Nothing is uploaded and no account is needed.
A consultant's invoice is read by someone who was not in the room, so it has to show what was done as well as what it cost.
Your details
Bill to
Invoice details
Line items
Tax & discount
- Subtotal
- $7,150.00
- Total due
- $7,150.00
Notes & payment details
- Invoice no.
- —
- Issued
- —
- Due
- —
| Description | Qty | Rate | Amount |
|---|---|---|---|
| Strategy workshop facilitation (days) | 2 | $1,800.00 | $3,600.00 |
| Findings report and recommendations | 1 | $2,200.00 | $2,200.00 |
| Stakeholder interviews (hours) | 6 | $225.00 | $1,350.00 |
- Subtotal
- $7,150.00
- Total due
- $7,150.00
Drawn against the monthly retainer. Hours used this period and the balance remaining are shown above. Unused retainer hours do not roll forward beyond one month. Expenses are billed at cost with receipts attached.
Prefilled as a consultant invoice. The rates shown are round placeholder figures to make the document readable, not rate guidance. Saved in this browser only.
Stop retyping the same invoice every month
A consultant invoice is mostly the same document with new dates on it. PomoTodo keeps your clients, rates and line items, tracks the hours that feed into them, and tells you which invoices are still unpaid.
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How consultants usually bill
| Convention | Value |
|---|---|
| Billed by | Per hour, per day, or against a monthly retainer |
| Usual payment terms | Net 30, or drawn against a retainer paid monthly in advance |
| Money up front | Retainer paid in advance is the norm; project work commonly 30% up front |
| Also called | consulting invoice, advisory invoice, retainer invoice |
| These are the common conventions in the trade, not rules. The terms that matter are the ones in your own agreement with the client, and this template will carry whatever you set. | |
What belongs on a consultant invoice
- Hours used against hours retained
- A retainer invoice that shows only a total tells the client nothing. Show hours drawn, hours remaining and what happens to the unused balance.
- A one-line description of the work, not the deliverable
- 'Stakeholder interviews' is approvable by a finance team. 'Consulting services' is not, and it is the most common reason a consulting invoice sits unpaid.
- The engagement or PO reference
- Corporate clients match invoices to purchase orders automatically, and an invoice without the reference falls out of the process and into someone's inbox.
- Expenses with receipts
- Travel and accommodation go on at cost with documentation, separately from fees, so they can be approved under a different policy.
The mistake that costs consultants the most
Billing a retainer in arrears
A retainer paid after the fact is not a retainer, it is an invoice with extra steps. The point of retaining someone is that the capacity is reserved whether or not it is used, which only works if the money arrives first. Bill on the first of the period, and show the previous period's usage on the same document.
Sales tax on a consultant invoice
Consulting is a professional service and is untaxed in most states, but a handful tax specified services such as information or data processing services. Where the work is performed and where the client is based can both matter.
The template has a tax field with an editable label, so it will say VAT or GST if that is what you need, and it applies the rate to the subtotal after any discount. Leave the rate at zero if you are not registered to collect. Nothing here is tax advice, and a question about your own registration is one for your state's department of revenue or your accountant.
Templates for related work
Monthly flat fee, or per hour for clean-up work
Per milestone, per sprint, or per hour
Quoting the job before you bill it is what the quote generator is for, and working out what to charge in the first place is what the freelance rate calculator does.
Questions about consultant invoices
What should a consulting invoice include that a normal one does not?
The engagement reference and enough description for someone who was not in the room to approve it. Consulting invoices are usually paid by a finance function rather than by the person who hired you, and that person cannot approve a line that says 'consulting services'. Name the activity and the period.
Should unused retainer hours roll over?
Generally no, and the invoice should say so. Rollover turns a retainer into a prepaid block of hours, which removes the reason the client had to use you regularly and leaves you holding a growing liability. One month of grace is a common compromise.
What payment terms should a consultant use?
Net 30 with corporate clients, because that is what their systems are built for and asking for less rarely speeds anything up. With small businesses, Net 15 or payment in advance is reasonable and much easier to enforce.