Invoice - What is an invoice?

Definition: a document sent to a buyer that specifies the amount and cost of products or services that have been provided by a seller.

An invoice indicates what must be paid by the buyer according to the payment terms of the seller. Payment terms usually specify the period of time that a buyer has to send payment to the seller for the goods and/or services that they have purchased.

Included in a typical invoice

Usually, an invoice will include an arrangement of the following points of information:

The word ‘Invoice’ A unique reference number for reference The date the product was sent or delivered (or the date the service was rendered) The date the invoice was sent The contact information and name of the seller The name of the buyer

The contact information of the buyer The terms of payment (that explain the means of payment, when the sum should be received, the discount details for early payment, late payment fees, etc.) An account detailing the product/service The cost per unit of the product (if this applies) The total amount that is owed

Sales v. purchase invoice

An invoice shows the payment that a buyer owes to a seller. From a seller’s point of view, an invoice for the sale of goods and/or services is referred to as a sales invoice.

From a buyer’s point of view, an invoice for the cost of goods and/or services rendered is referred to as a purchase invoice.

Invoices in E-conomic

In E-conomic you can design, create, send and book your own invoices from your computer or smartphone. You can even scan invoices (from e.g. your suppliers) and book them in your system directly.

See our video about how to create your first invoice in E-conomic, read more about creating, designing and sending invoices with E-conomic, or learn more about the E-conomic Scanning add-on module on our help site E-copedia.