Sales Invoice Template

What This Template Includes

• Customer purchase order number
• Order date and ship date
• Ship-to address, if different from the bill-to address
• SKU or product code for each item
• Unit of measure (each, case, pack, metre)
• Quantity ordered, shipped and backordered
• Unit price and line total
• Shipping and handling
• Discount, if any
• Sales tax rate and the jurisdiction it applies to
• Resale or exemption certificate on file, if no tax is charged
• Carrier and tracking number
• Returns and damaged-goods terms

How to Create Your Sales Invoice

Recommended Payment Terms

Business buyers usually pay goods invoices on terms such as net 30, counted from the invoice date, and many will only pay an invoice that matches their purchase order and the goods they received, so quote the PO number and invoice only the quantity shipped. If you offer an early payment discount such as 2/10 net 30 (2% off if paid within 10 days, otherwise the full amount in 30), write both dates on the invoice. Consumers and new customers are usually asked to pay before the goods ship, in which case the invoice is due on receipt and the goods are released when payment clears. For partial shipments, send an invoice per shipment and say which items remain on backorder, rather than billing the full order up front.

Need help writing payment terms? Read our guide to invoice payment terms for best practices and templates.

Tax Information

In the US, sales tax on goods depends on where the buyer takes delivery, what the item is and who the buyer is. Since South Dakota v. Wayfair (2018), states can require remote sellers to collect once their sales into the state pass a threshold; Texas, for example, uses $500,000 of revenue in the preceding twelve months. Shipping is not always treated like the goods: the Texas Comptroller says delivery charges follow the item, so delivery of a taxable item is taxable, but other states treat separately stated shipping differently. A buyer who will resell the goods can give you a resale certificate (in Texas, Form 01-339), and you then charge no tax and keep the certificate on file. In the UK, HMRC treats a delivery charge as following the VAT liability of the goods. InvoiceQuickly applies one tax percentage to the whole invoice, shipping included, and saves rates to four decimals; if an order mixes taxable and exempt items, or ships to two tax jurisdictions, split it into separate invoices.

Industry context (2026)

Most of what makes a sales invoice correct in the US is sales tax, and the rules have changed for small sellers since 2018. In South Dakota v. Wayfair (No. 17-494, 21 June 2018), the Supreme Court allowed states to require out-of-state sellers to collect sales tax based on their sales into the state, overruling the physical-presence rule; each state now sets its own threshold. Texas is a typical example: the Texas Comptroller's remote-seller guidance sets a safe harbor of $500,000 in Texas revenue over the preceding twelve calendar months, combined state and local rates top out at 8.25%, delivery charges follow the taxability of the item, sales for resale need a completed Form 01-339, and sales records must be kept for four years. Other states differ on thresholds, on shipping and on what counts as taxable, so check each state you ship into. If you sell through a marketplace that collects tax for you, the marketplace's own invoice or order record may already serve as the buyer's document.

Worked example

Common mistakes to avoid

Invoicing Tips

• 1Invoice what shipped, not what was ordered. Show backordered items with a quantity of zero or in the notes, and bill them on a later invoice when they ship.
• 2Put the SKU at the start of each description ('CHR-ERG-200 Ergonomic office chair, black') so the buyer can match lines to their purchase order and packing slip.
• 3State the unit of measure. '4 at $68' means nothing to a receiving clerk until they know whether it is 4 units or 4 cases of 1,000.
• 4Use the tax rate for the ship-to location, not your own, when your state sources tax by destination, and name the jurisdiction on the invoice.
• 5When you charge no tax, say why in the notes ('Sale for resale: Form 01-339 on file') so an auditor and the buyer can see the reason.
• 6Include the carrier and tracking number. It ends most 'we never received it' disputes before they start.

Related Resources

• All invoice templates: industry, country and document-type layouts
• E-commerce invoicing guide: order invoices, marketplaces and VAT
• Sales tax nexus guide: when you must collect in another state
• Texas sales tax on invoices

Frequently Asked Questions