Create and manage sales orders

Use sales orders to track products your customers want to buy before you send an invoice. This non-posting transaction allows you to reserve items from your inventory so you can fulfill orders accurately. Once the order is ready, you can easily convert the sales order into an invoice for payment or a purchase order for your suppliers.

Note: You can create sales orders manually if you have QuickBooks Online Plus or QuickBooks Online Advanced.

Create a sales order

To create a sales order, follow these steps. 

1. Select + New or + Create.
2. Select Sales order.
3. Select which customer the sales order is for. Review the shipping address and update if needed. 
   Note: You can select a multi-currency customer and update exchange rates. Once Multi-currency is on, you can't turn it off again, or change your home currency. 
4. Add the products and their quantities. Select Tax if tax applies to this order.
5. (Optional) If you added an item for revenue recognition, you can set up the revenue recognition schedule in the Invoice you create from the sales order.
6. (Optional) Add a note for the customer, or an internal memo for your records. 
7. Select Save. If you would like to print the order, select Print. 

When you save a sales order, the committed quantity for those products updates. This helps you see when it’s time to restock.

Create a sales order from an estimate

Another way to create a sales order is from an existing estimate. Follow these steps to learn how.

1. Follow this link to complete the steps in product
2. Find the estimate in your transaction list.
3. In the Action column, select the dropdown , then select Convert to sales order.
   • Alternatively, open the estimate to open the activity drawer. Select More actions , then select Convert to sales order.
4. Review the new sales order, updating details if necessary. 
5. Select Save.

Note: You can view the linked estimate in the Linked transactions section of the sales order or by selecting the link icon on specific line items.

Create an invoice for the sales order

When you're ready to bill your customer, convert the sales order directly into an invoice.

1. Follow this link to complete the steps in product
2. Find the order you want to invoice.
3. In the Action column, select the dropdown , then select Convert to invoice.
   • You can also open the Sales order form, select the Save and new dropdown , and select Convert to invoice.
4. Verify the invoice details. 
5. Select Save.

The sales order status updates to Invoiced. Once the customer pays the invoice, the status updates to Paid. A single sales order can be linked to multiple invoices.

Create a purchase order from a sales order

If you need to order stock to fulfill a customer request, you can create a purchase order directly from the sales order.

1. Follow this link to complete the steps in product
2. Find the specific sales order in your list that you want to create a purchase order against.
3. In the Action column, select the dropdown , then select Convert to purchase order.
   • You can also open the Sales order form, select the Save and new dropdown , and select Convert to purchase order.
4. Review the purchase order.
5. Select Save.

Edit a sales order

You can edit open sales orders if they haven’t been fulfilled, or if their linked invoice is voided or deleted.

1. Follow this link to complete the steps in product
2. Find the sales order and select Edit.
3. Make your necessary changes.
4. Select Save and close.

Note: You can edit sales orders that are still open and not fulfilled, whether they’ve been invoiced but not paid, not yet invoiced, or have an invoice that’s been voided or deleted. If the accounting period is closed and there’s no invoice, you can also make changes to the sales order.

Manage and filter sales orders

1. Follow this link to complete the steps in product
2. Select Filter if you need to find a specific sales order, or group of orders. 
3. Select a column header to sort by that column, ascending or descending.
4. In the Actions column, select the dropdown , and select the action you need for that sales order. You can:
   • Convert to invoice
   • Convert to purchase order
   • Cancel order
   • Mark as shipped
   • Close order
   • Email 
   • Print
   • Delete

To delete an order while viewing the form, select More actions and then Delete. Select Delete to confirm.

Custom templates for the sales order form

1. Follow this link to complete the steps in product
2. Find the sales order and select Edit.
3. Select the settings icon ⚙, then select the Design dropdown.
4. The Modern template is enabled by default. You can adjust the colour and font as needed.
5. To create or edit a custom template, go to Other Templates, then select Add/Edit to open the custom form styles.
6. Select New style , then select Sales order.
7. Update the Design, Content, and Emails for your custom template, then select Done to save your new sales order style.

Moving forward, your new form style will appear in Other Templates.

View Audit History

Admins can track changes made to sales orders through the audit log. Follow these steps to do so:

1. Open the sales order you want to review.
2. Select More actions and select Audit history.

Alternatively, go to Settings ⚙ and select Audit log, then filter by Sales Order events.