Sales invoice template
Invoice template for shops and online sellers: products sold, product shipping and gift wrapping. Fill it in online, download Excel or Word, or print to PDF.
Templates by industry
- Products sold
- Product shipping
- Gift wrapping
Filling in a sales invoice for goods
Example workflow
List the products
Start with "Products sold": one line per product, with the quantity shipped and the unit price.
Add shipping and extras
Add the carrier charge and the extras down to "Gift wrapping", each on its own line, then set the tax rate that applies to the goods.
Send the invoice
Send the invoice with the shipment or straight after it, and reconcile payment against the invoice number.
A shop’s till receipt proves a payment; a sales invoice asks for one, or records a sale that a business customer has to book. Online sellers send it with the parcel or by email after dispatch, and trade customers often expect it before they pay. The template is laid out for goods rather than time: products by quantity and unit price, with shipping and gift wrapping kept apart, so a partial return or a damaged parcel can be credited line by line.
Fields to prepare
- Deliverables and line items
- Products sold, Product shipping, Gift wrapping: bill the products by quantity and unit price, and shipping and gift wrapping as lines of their own.
- Products sold
- Enter the price per unit after any agreed trade discount, and put variants such as size or color on separate lines.
- Product shipping
- Charge shipping once per parcel or shipment, not per product, and name the carrier or delivery service if the customer chose one.
- Gift wrapping
- Count the items wrapped rather than the parcels, and delete the line when nobody asked for wrapping.
- Products and quantities
- Name each product the way the customer ordered it, with a product code if you use one, the quantity shipped and the price per unit.
- Shipping and extras
- Show shipping, packaging and gift wrapping apart from the goods, and say whether the shipping is charged at cost or at a flat rate.
- Scope to agree
- List each product with its code and quantity, and keep shipping and gift wrapping as separate services so that a returned product does not take them along.
Before sending
- Does “Products sold” show the quantity actually supplied, not the quantity first quoted?
- Is “Product shipping” charged at the rate the customer agreed to, with any change approved?
- Is “Gift wrapping” finished and accepted, or does it belong on a later invoice?
Show 3 more
- Check each quantity against what was actually packed and shipped, not against the order alone.
- Show the delivery address and the shipping method when they differ from the billing address.
- Check the completed work against what shipped: every shipment belongs on the invoice, with the due date and the amounts already received.
Worked example: an order of goods with shipping
The figures are an example, in dollars, with an example tax rate of 8%. A shop sells 24 products at one price, ships them in a single parcel and gift-wraps six of them.
| Item | Quantity × unit price | Amount |
|---|---|---|
| Products sold | 24 × $18.00 | $432.00 |
| Product shipping | 1 × $14.50 | $14.50 |
| Gift wrapping | 6 × $3.50 | $21.00 |
| Subtotal | $467.50 | |
| Sales tax (8%) | $37.40 | |
| Total | $504.90 | |
Goods, shipping and wrapping add up to $467.50. Tax at 8% is $37.40, so the customer pays $504.90.
Common mistakes on a sales invoice
- Billing the quantity ordered when only part of it shipped.
- Folding shipping into the product price, so that a returned product takes the shipping money with it.
- Leaving out the product code, which leaves a customer with several similar products unable to match the line.
- Mixing goods that carry different tax rates on one invoice; QuoteBill applies one rate per document, so issue one invoice for each rate.
- Forgetting the delivery address when it differs from the address the invoice is sent to.
What the document must show
These details make an invoice easier to approve and to file.
- Your business name, address and registration or tax number
- The customer's name and address
- Issue date and a document number you do not reuse
- Each line item with quantity, unit price and amount
- Tax shown separately from the net amount, and the total payable
- Payment terms: due date, bank details or accepted payment methods
The sales tax depends on where the work is supplied, so set the rate that applies to your customer before sending.
Official rate reference: US government: state and local taxes
Frequently asked questions
Sales invoice template: what should it include?
List what you sold on the lines the template carries — Products sold, Product shipping, Gift wrapping — then name each product, give its quantity and price, and add your details, the customer and a number you have not used before.
Should shipping be a separate line?
Yes. A separate line shows what the goods cost and what getting them to the customer cost, and it keeps the shipping charge out of the product price if the customer returns the goods.
How do I invoice a part shipment?
Bill what has shipped so far and say that the rest follows on a later invoice. Keep the order number on both, so the customer can match them to the one order.
Where does the product code go?
At the start of the line description, before the product name, so a customer who orders by code can find the line by it. Use the code the customer uses on the order.
Can gift wrapping have its own price?
Yes. Give it a line, a quantity and a unit price, as the sample "Gift wrapping" does, so the charge is visible and can be removed if the customer cancels the wrapping.
What if the customer returns part of the order?
Leave the original invoice as issued and send a credit note for the returned goods, quoting the invoice number. Add the shipping to the credit only if you agreed to refund it.
Read next
Reading for the Sales invoice template: How to write an invoice: a step-by-step example and Invoice payment terms: Net 15, Net 30, due dates. The VAT and GST calculator works out the tax line for you.