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Creating an invoice

A good invoice answers three questions before your client has to ask: what is this for, how much is it, and when do you need it.

Starting an invoice​

  1. Open Payments → Invoices and choose New invoice. On a wide screen you can also use the plus beside Invoices in the sidebar.
  2. Or start from the job it belongs to: a contact, a booking or an inquiry. The details carry across and the invoice stays linked, which keeps your booking totals accurate later.

To reuse an existing invoice, open it and choose Duplicate in the three-dot menu. You get a fresh draft with the same contact, lines, discount, notes, terms, footer and payment methods. It isn't linked to the original booking or inquiry, and nothing is created until you save.

Two questions the first time​

Before your very first invoice, CoreHue asks two things, once each:

If your business name is missing, you'll see "Your invoices are missing business details." with a link to fix it. Fill that in before you send anything.

Choosing who it's for​

Pick a Contact. Every invoice needs one. You can also link a Booking or an Inquiry so the invoice sits with that job.

Linking a booking sets the invoice to the booking's currency. If your client booked through a service on your booking page and nothing has been invoiced yet, the lines are filled in from the quote they booked, ready for you to check. See Booking details: title, description and amount.

To email the invoice, the contact needs an email address. Without one you can still create it and share the link.

Dates and terms​

  • Invoice Date is the date the invoice carries.
  • Terms works out the due date for you: Due on receipt, Due in 15 days, Due in 30 days or Due in 60 days.
  • Due Date is when you expect to be paid.

The due date matters more than it looks. It decides when an invoice turns Overdue and when reminders go out. Set your usual terms once under Payments → Settings → General.

Using a payment schedule instead? Each payment gets its own date, and these fields step aside. See Splitting an invoice into a payment schedule.

Choosing payment methods​

Under Payment methods, tick the ways your client can pay this invoice. Every method you can currently use starts ticked. Stripe shows as Stripe (Card, Apple Pay, Google Pay), and each manual method appears by its name. Manage payment methods takes you to the settings.

If you untick everything, the invoice becomes a document to read rather than a bill to pay, and you'll see No payment method selected on the invoice page. That's handy for a record of something already settled, and a mistake if you're expecting money.

Adding line items​

  1. Open Select an item… on the first line and pick a saved item. Its name, description and price fill in.
  2. Adjust the description, quantity, price and tax for this invoice.
  3. Choose Add New Row for another line.

Can't find the item? Add item at the bottom of the list creates it and drops it onto the line. A line can also have just a description and no saved item.

Descriptions are plain text over several lines, so you can list what a package includes, one thing per line. Changing a line never changes the saved item, and editing the saved item later never changes invoices you've already made.

Write item names the way your client reads them: "Wedding coverage, 8 hours" beats "WED-8".

The gear icon beside Add New Row lets you rename columns, hide the ones you don't use, and choose which business and contact details show, for this invoice only. Your defaults live in Customizing how invoices look.

Tax and discount​

Choose a tax rate per line, so one invoice can mix taxed and untaxed work. Add one discount for the whole invoice with + Add Discount under the totals. See Adding taxes and discounts.

Three text blocks at the bottom fill in from your defaults: Notes (a thank you or job-specific message), Terms (payment terms and policies) and Footer (optional) (registration numbers, contact details). Edit them for this invoice if you need to.

Preview and save​

Choose Preview at the top to see the invoice exactly as your client will, then Edit to go back.

When you're ready, choose Save & Send or Save Draft at the bottom. CoreHue checks the basics first and lists anything missing, such as a contact, at least one line item, or a total below zero.

Your invoice gets its number as soon as it's created, and that number is never reused. Deleting a draft leaves a gap in your sequence, which is normal.

What your client sees​

Nothing yet. A new invoice is a Draft that only you can see. Your client sees it once you send it or share its link. See Sending an invoice.

Frequently asked questions​

Can I edit an invoice after I've sent it?​

Yes. You can edit a sent invoice as long as no payment has been recorded against it. See Editing, cancelling or writing off an invoice.

Can I format line item descriptions?​

No. Invoice line item descriptions are plain text, with line breaks. That keeps them tidy on every screen and in the PDF. Use separate lines for each thing a package includes.

Why can't I change the currency on my invoice?​

On Free and Plus, every invoice uses your default currency. On Pro, choose the invoice currency before adding lines: the currency locks once a line has content, and a linked booking sets the currency for you.

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