Creating and Sending Invoices

Creating and sending invoices

Accounted lets you create professional invoices directly from your dashboard and send them to your clients. Here's how to set up and manage your invoicing.

Creating your first invoice

1. Go to Invoices > New Invoice from your dashboard.
2. Add client details — Enter your client's name, email address, and postal address. Once you've invoiced a client, their details are saved for future use.
3. Add line items — For each item or service, enter:
   • A description (e.g., "Website design — homepage")
   • The quantity
   • The unit price (in pounds)
   • The VAT rate, if applicable (standard 20%, reduced 5%, zero-rated, or exempt)
4. Set payment terms — Choose the number of days until payment is due (common options are 14, 30, or 60 days). The due date is calculated automatically.
5. Add optional details — You can include a purchase order number, additional notes (e.g., bank details for payment), or terms and conditions.
6. Preview and send — Review the invoice preview, then click "Send" to email it directly to your client as a PDF attachment.

Invoice numbering

Accounted generates sequential invoice numbers automatically (e.g., ACC-0001, ACC-0002). You can customise the prefix in Settings > Invoicing to match your existing numbering system if you're switching from another tool.

What's included on the invoice

Every invoice generated by Accounted includes:

• Your business name and address
• Your client's name and address
• A unique invoice number and date
• Itemised line items with descriptions, quantities, and amounts
• Subtotal, VAT breakdown (if applicable), and total amount due
• Payment due date
• Your VAT registration number (if you're VAT-registered)

Customising your invoices

From Settings > Invoicing, you can:

• Upload your logo — Appears in the top corner of every invoice.
• Set default payment terms — Applied to all new invoices unless overridden.
• Add default notes — Such as your bank details or a thank-you message.
• Choose a colour scheme — Match your brand with a primary colour for headers and accents.

Tracking payment

When you send an invoice, Accounted tracks its status:

• Sent — The invoice has been emailed to your client.
• Viewed — Your client has opened the invoice email (if email tracking is enabled).
• Paid — Payment has been received. Penny will try to match incoming bank payments to outstanding invoices automatically.
• Overdue — The due date has passed without payment.

When an invoice becomes overdue, Penny can send a polite reminder to your client on your behalf, or notify you via WhatsApp so you can follow up personally.

Recording payments

When a client pays, Penny will attempt to match the incoming bank transaction to an open invoice. If she finds a match, the invoice is marked as paid automatically. If the payment doesn't match exactly (for example, a partial payment or a payment without a reference), Penny will ask you to confirm.

You can also manually mark an invoice as paid — useful for cash payments or bank transfers that don't appear in your connected account.

Credit notes

If you need to refund or adjust an invoice, you can issue a credit note from the original invoice. The credit note references the original invoice number and adjusts your income records accordingly.