Brand Design Invoice Template
This template is for designers and studios who bill a brand identity project: discovery and strategy, the visual identity system, brand guidelines and the rollout of collateral. Those projects run for weeks, are usually paid in stages and end with the client receiving rights to use, and often own, the final identity. A good brand design invoice therefore does more than list hours. It names the phase being billed and its deliverables, shows revision rounds included and used, puts the rights granted on their own line with the condition that they take effect on full payment, separates third-party costs such as font and stock licences, and shows what has already been paid against the project. If you are looking for an invoice that matches your own brand's look rather than one for billing brand design work, see the invoice design guide linked below. The download is an editable HTML file with an invoice header, a line table and fields for the phase, deliverables, rights and payments to date. Fill it in your browser, then print it or save it as PDF.
Preview this editable document
Download the HTML file to edit its fields, then print or save as PDF. Totals are entered manually.
What This Template Includes
- Project name and proposal or statement of work reference
- Phase or milestone billed (strategy, identity, guidelines, rollout)
- Deliverables in this phase
- Revision rounds included and used
- Rights granted: copyright assignment or licence, effective on full payment
- Third-party costs passed through (fonts, stock images, printing)
- Payments already received on the project
- Balance remaining on the project after this invoice
How to Create Your Brand Design Invoice
- 01
Describe your work
Type a plain English description of the services you provided, the client, and the amount.
- 02
AI generates your invoice
InvoiceQuickly's AI drafts the client, line items, dates, and totals for you to review before saving.
- 03
Review, download, and send
Check every detail, download the PDF, or use Pro to email the PDF directly to your client.
Recommended Payment Terms
Brand projects are usually billed in stages tied to approvals rather than one invoice at the end: for example a deposit on signing, a payment when the client approves the identity direction, and the balance on delivery of the final files and guidelines. Write the schedule into the proposal and repeat it on each invoice, so the client sees which stage is being billed and what is left. Short terms such as 14 days suit milestone invoices, because the next phase often starts only when the previous one is paid. Make the rights line conditional: state that copyright in the final identity transfers, or the licence starts, when the final invoice is paid in full, and release the master files then.
Need help writing payment terms? Read our guide to invoice payment terms for best practices and templates.
Tax Information
Whether brand design work is taxed depends on where you and the client are and on what you deliver. In the US, sales tax treatment varies by state and can differ between the design service, digital files and printed items. Under VAT and GST systems the rules can change when the client is a business in another country. Show printed items and pass-through costs on separate lines so any tax that applies only to them can be calculated. InvoiceQuickly applies one tax percentage to the whole invoice and copies saved tax IDs to new invoice PDFs, so if different lines need different tax treatment, or your tax number must appear, issue separate invoices or add the details in the notes. This is general information, not tax advice; check with your tax authority or an adviser.
Industry context (2026)
Brand identity work is mostly done by graphic designers, many of them self-employed. According to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Outlook Handbook, the median wage for employed graphic designers was $62,960 a year ($30.27 an hour) in May 2025, and about 20% of graphic designers were self-employed; the wage figures exclude the self-employed, so they are context for setting a cost floor, not a price for brand projects. The rights side of the invoice is shaped by copyright law. Under the US Copyright Act, a work is made for hire only if an employee creates it within their job, or if it is specially commissioned in one of nine listed categories with a signed written agreement (17 U.S.C. section 101); a client's logo or brand identity is not one of those categories. A transfer of copyright ownership is valid only in a signed writing (17 U.S.C. section 204(a)). That is why brand designers put the assignment on its own line, tie it to full payment and back it with a signed agreement. Other countries treat commissioned work differently, so have the contract terms checked locally.
Worked example
Worked example (illustrative fees and a stated rights policy, not market rates). A studio agrees a four-phase brand identity project with a regional bakery chain for $12,700.00: Phase 1 brand strategy (workshop, positioning, competitor audit) $2,400.00; Phase 2 visual identity (logo suite, colour palette, type system, two revision rounds) $5,200.00; Phase 3 brand guidelines $2,000.00; Phase 4 collateral rollout (business cards, letterhead, five social media templates) $1,800.00; assignment of copyright in the final logo suite, effective on full payment, $1,300.00 (25% of the Phase 2 fee, the studio's policy). Payment schedule: 30% deposit on signing, the rest of Phases 1 and 2 on approval of the identity, the balance on delivery. Invoice 1, deposit: 30% × $12,700.00 = $3,810.00, paid. Invoice 2, on identity approval: Phases 1 and 2 total $7,600.00, less the $3,810.00 deposit = $3,790.00, paid. Invoice 3, final, on delivery: Phase 3 guidelines $2,000.00; Phase 4 rollout $1,800.00; copyright assignment of the final logo suite $1,300.00; one extra revision round on the social templates, 3 hours × $110.00 = $330.00; display typeface desktop licence bought for the client, at cost, $249.00. Total due $5,679.00, no tax shown in this example. Project to date: $3,810.00 + $3,790.00 + $5,679.00 = $13,279.00, which is the $12,700.00 contract plus the $330.00 extra round and $249.00 font licence. Terms on the invoice: copyright in the final logo suite transfers under the signed assignment when this invoice is paid in full; unused concepts remain the studio's property; master files are released on payment.
Common mistakes to avoid
Billing 'brand design' as one line
A single $12,700.00 line hides what each phase delivered and makes the stage payments impossible to follow. Bill by phase, list the deliverables and show the payments already made.
Leaving the rights unstated
If the invoice says nothing about rights, the client may assume they own everything, including unused concepts, while the designer assumes a licence. Put the assignment or licence on its own line with its scope and the full-payment condition.
Releasing master files before the final payment
Once the client has the master files and a working brand, the final invoice is easy to delay. Release proofs during the project and masters on full payment, as the proposal says.
Absorbing font and stock licences
Buying a commercial typeface licence in your own name and not billing it costs you money, and the licence may not cover the client. Buy in the client's name or pass the cost through as its own line.
Free extra revision rounds
Rounds beyond those included are new work. Record rounds used on each invoice and bill extras at the agreed rate, so scope creep is visible before it becomes a dispute.
Invoicing Tips
- 1Name the phase in the invoice title or first line, for example 'Phase 2 of 4: visual identity', so the client's approver knows which stage of the proposal this is.
- 2List the deliverables for the phase: primary logo, secondary marks, colour palette, type system, guideline pages. 'Brand design' alone gives the client nothing to check.
- 3Show the rights on their own line, with the scope written out: assignment of copyright in the final logo suite, or an exclusive licence for the client's own business. Under US law a transfer of copyright ownership must be in writing and signed, so the invoice line should point to the signed agreement.
- 4Record revision rounds: 'two rounds included, two used'. An extra round then appears as its own line at the rate the proposal set.
- 5Pass through font, stock and printing costs at cost, with the supplier and licence name, and license fonts and stock in the client's name where possible so the licence follows the business.
- 6Show the project to date: contract total, invoices already paid and the balance after this invoice. It answers the client's first question before they ask it.
- 7Keep unused concepts out of the rights line unless the client is buying them, and say so on the final invoice.
Related Resources
- How to price graphic design: project fees, copyright assignment and licences as separate lines
- How to price illustration work: creation fees, usage licences and kill fees
- How to invoice as a graphic designer
- Invoice design guide: making your own invoices match your brand
- All invoice templates
Frequently Asked Questions
What should a brand design invoice include?
Your details and the client's, an invoice number and dates, the project and phase being billed, the deliverables for that phase, revision rounds used, any extra rounds, the rights granted and when they take effect, pass-through costs, tax if it applies, payments already received and the amount due now with payment instructions.
How do brand designers usually bill a project?
Most bill a fixed fee per phase or for the whole project, split into stages: a deposit on signing, one or more milestone payments when the client approves key stages, and the balance on delivery. Hourly billing is more common for small changes after launch. Whichever you use, the invoice should match the payment schedule in the signed proposal.
Should usage rights or copyright be a separate line on the invoice?
It helps. A separate line shows the client what they are buying beyond the design work, makes it clear whether they get an assignment of copyright or a licence, and lets you make the transfer conditional on full payment. In the US, a logo for a client is not normally work made for hire when a freelancer creates it, so ownership passes only through a signed written assignment.
How do I invoice extra revision rounds?
Add a separate line for each extra round at the rate set in your proposal, for example '1 additional revision round, 3 hours at $110', and note the rounds included in the fee. If the proposal did not set a rate, agree the charge with the client before doing the work.
Can I charge the client for fonts and stock images?
Yes, if your proposal says so. Show each item at cost with its name and licence, or better, have the client buy the licence in their own name so it stays with the business if they stop working with you. If you add a handling fee, show it as its own line.
When should the client get the final brand files?
Commonly when the final invoice is paid. Clients can review proofs and low-resolution files during the project, and the master files and any copyright assignment are released on full payment. Write this into the proposal and repeat it on the final invoice.
Can I create a brand design invoice in InvoiceQuickly?
Yes. Add each phase, rights line, extra round and pass-through cost as its own line item with quantity and unit price, and put the rights clause and revision policy in the terms, which print on the PDF. Record a deposit as a partial payment on every plan; there is no separate deposit field, so you can also bill each stage as its own invoice. Pro ($9 a month) adds estimates the client can accept in the client portal, email delivery and branded PDF styles with your logo and colour. Pro also tracks time with a timer, but InvoiceQuickly does not track licences or licence expiry dates, and it does not create contracts.