Ready for your first sale? There are two ways to record income transactions in QuickBooks Online. In this article, we’ll dive into how to create invoices and sales receipts. Let’s get started!
First, let’s discuss the difference between the two. Simply put, invoices are created when you expect to be paid in the future, and sales receipts are for payments given to you in that moment. Check out this awesome video below that describes these two workflows in this video.
Let’s cover each of these two ways more in depth.
Invoices
You’ll send your customer an invoice when you plan for the customer to pay for your products or services at a later date. Invoicing is essentially sending your customer a bill. To create an invoice, you will follow the steps below.
- Select + New.
- Select Invoice.
- Select Add customer and choose a customer from the ▼ dropdown. Make sure all of their info is correct, especially their email address.
- Review the Invoice date, Due date, and Terms. Enter new dates or terms, if you need to. Tip: In the Terms field, Net refers to the number of days until the payment is due.
- Select Add product or service and select a product or service from the ▼ dropdown.
- Select how you want to calculate the charge amount—flat rate, by hour, or by item. Enter a quantity and rate, if needed.
- To customize the info or design of your invoices, select ⚙ Manage. Then select the options from the side panel. QuickBooks remembers your choices and applies them to all existing and future invoices.
- When you’re done, there are several options for saving or sharing the invoice:
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- If you're ready to send the invoice, select Review and send to email the invoice to your customer. Adjust the email if needed, then select Send invoice.
- To send the invoice later, select Save and close.
- To print a paper invoice, select Print and download.
- If you’ve received a payment from the customer, select Receive Payment.
- To send your customer a link to their invoice through text message, select Share link.
Keep in mind that if you are using QuickBooks Payments, your customers can pay directly through the invoices they receive from you. QuickBooks will take care of the rest. It’s that easy!
Sales receipts
When a customer immediately pays for the products or services they’re purchasing, you will create a sales receipt. Follow these steps to create a sales receipt.
- Select + New.
- Select Sales receipt.
- Select the customer from the Customer dropdown. Note: If you haven't set them up in QuickBooks yet, select Add a new customer.
- Enter the sales info, such as the payment method.
- Enter line items for the products and services you sold.
- When you're done, select Save and send to email the receipt.
Remember, when you enter a sales receipt, you are simultaneously receiving payment for the transaction.
There you have it! Those are the basics of recording sales forms. If you have time, check out more awesome content we have regarding getting started with QuickBooks Online. I hope you found this helpful. Happy selling!
