Invoicing for contractors: Tips and free templates (2024)

Looking for invoicing tips and templates as a contractor? Check out our comprehensive guide to invoicing for contractors, including free templates that help you streamline your invoicing process and get paid faster.

Invoicing for contractors – why is it so important?

Invoicing might seem like just another boring task, but it’s one of the most important things you do as a business owner.

There are several reasons why invoicing is vital when working as a contractor.

First, invoicing helps you keep track of your money. When you’re issuing an invoice, you’re giving your customer a bill for the work you have done for them. By sending an invoice, you keep track of how much money the customers owe you and when you can expect to get paid. Without this documentation, it’s hard to keep track of your finances and to make sure you get paid on time.

Invoicing is also important for tax and accounting purposes. When you are working as a contractor, you have got to keep track of all the transactions in your business and what you owe in taxes. This can be a bit of a headache, but proper invoicing makes it a lot easier. By keeping track of all your invoices (and expenses), you will be able to do your bookkeeping, and in turn, pay the right taxes.

Create and send invoices for free with Conta ➝

How to invoice as a contractor

When it comes to generating invoices, you have got a few different options. Here are some of the most popular ways to do it:

Manually: Download a contractor invoice template, edit it in a word processing program (such as Microsoft Word or Google Docs), print it out or send it as an email attachment. This can be a bit time-consuming, and you risk human error, but it’s a simple way to get the job done.

Invoicing software: Our favorite pick! Sign up for a free online invoicing system (such as Conta), create the invoice in a few seconds and send it directly from the software via email. The main benefit of invoicing software is that you can create invoices faster because fields (such as invoice date, invoice number and company information) are filled out automatically. The invoice software stores all your invoices safely. In Conta it will soon be possible to set up automatic reminders to follow up on late payments, which can help you save a lot of time.

Get your free invoicing software

Invoicing for contractors: An invoice example

Struggling to create a professional-looking invoice for your business? Check out this sample construction invoice as a starting point:

Five things you should include in a contractor invoice

As a contractor, there are a few key elements you have to include in your invoices to make sure they are valid and that you get paid for the work you’ve done.

Here’s a list of what you should include in a contractor invoice:

1. Contact information

Make sure to include the name, business name, address, phone number and email address of both you and the customer. This way, the customer knows the invoice is meant for them, who’s sent the invoice and how to get in touch with you in case they have questions.

2. A detailed description of the work done

Be clear about what work you have done and include details like how many hours you have worked, which materials you have used and other relevant information. This way, you can help customers understand what they’re paying for and avoid any misunderstandings.

3. Payment terms and conditions

You should include information about when the customer should pay you and how you want them to pay. Also make sure to state that late payment fees will occur if the customer does not pay on time, to incentivize timely payments.

4. Invoice number and date

Include a unique invoice number, the invoice date and the date you delivered the goods or services. This makes it easier for the customer to refer back to the invoice in case they have questions, and is also legally required in most countries for accounting and tax purposes.

5. Total amount due

Include the total cost of the goods and services rendered, along with taxes and fees, if applicable.

Invoicing tips that will help you get paid fast

Only 41.5 percent of B2B invoices are paid on time. If you want to become one of the businesses that get paid on time, you should do the following:

First, be clear about when the payment is due and the consequences of paying late. Try including this in the payment terms section: “Payment is to be made within 14 days. Please note that a 1.5 percent monthly interest fee will be applied to any invoices that are paid past their due date.”

Next, make sure that you send the invoice immediately after you’ve completed the job. The faster you send out your invoice, the quicker the customer can pay you.

It is also imperative that you send late payment reminders as soon as a customer fails to pay on time. By doing this, you will show your customers that you have well-established invoicing routines, improving the likelihood of early payment this time and the next time you send an invoice.

Contractor invoice software

Conta is a free invoicing software for small and medium-sized enterprises. Our invoicing software is a great solution for contractors because it’s easy to streamline the invoicing process. By guiding you along the invoicing process, Conta saves you time and reduces the risk of errors. With Conta you can

• create and send professional-looking invoices in seconds
• customize the invoice template with your business logo
• keep track of payments
• send late payment reminders automatically (coming soon!)
• create recurring invoices that are sent automatically (coming soon!)

Get started with free invoicing

Contractor invoice template

If you chose to create contractor invoices using templates rather than free invoicing software, it’s important to know that there are several free invoice templates online.

Conta has a variety of free invoice templates that you can download and edit in Word, Excel, PDF and Google Docs.

Get our free PDF invoice template.

To use one of our templates, simply download it to your computer or Mac, fill out fields and send it to your customer via email.

Download a free invoice template.