Invoice & Estimate Templates

Overview

Invoice and Estimate Templates save time by storing your standard document setup. Instead of recreating the same structure for every invoice, load a template and focus on client-specific details.

Templates can be created from scratch or saved from an existing document you're happy with. You can have multiple templates for different scenarios (standard invoice, rush service, retainer, etc.).

What Gets Saved

Invoice Templates Include

• Line Items — All items, descriptions, quantities, and rates
• Tax Rate — Default tax percentage for this invoice type
• Discount — Default discount (flat dollar or percentage)
• Payment Terms — Deposit requirements, balance due milestones, due dates
• Convenience Fee — Credit card processing fee (if applicable)
• Stripe Payment — Whether to include payment link by default
• W-9 Toggle — Require W-9 form from client
• Notes & Legal — Standard invoice notes, terms, or legal text
• Display Options — Show/hide line item descriptions, category totals, etc.
• Deliverables Paywall — Lock deliverables behind payment by default
• File Attachments — Auto-attach standard PDFs (contracts, T&Cs, etc.)

Estimate Templates Include

All of the above, plus estimate-specific settings:

• Requires Signature — Client must approve/sign
• Validity Period — How many days the estimate is valid (e.g., 7 days)
• Approval Message — Custom message shown on approval page
• Auto-Create Invoice — Automatically create a new invoice on approval with specified deposit terms

💡 Auto-Create Invoice Feature

When a client approves an estimate, you can automatically create a corresponding invoice. Example: A 50% deposit invoice is created immediately upon approval. This streamlines your approval-to-payment workflow.

Creating Templates

Two ways to create templates: from scratch, or from an existing document.

Method 1: Create from Scratch

1. Go to Settings → Templates → Invoice Templates (or Estimate Templates)
2. Click Create New Template
3. Build the template with your standard line items, terms, and settings
4. Give it a descriptive name (e.g., "Standard Invoice", "50% Deposit Estimate")
5. Save the template

Method 2: Save from Existing Document

1. Create an invoice or estimate you're happy with
2. Click Save as Template at the bottom of the form
3. Give it a name
4. Save—it's now available as a reusable template

This is the fastest way because it captures your actual workflow and approved formats.

Using Templates

Load a template when creating a new invoice or estimate:

Loading a Template

1. Create a new invoice or estimate
2. At the top, look for Load Template dropdown
3. Search for and select a template
4. Click Load
5. If the form already has data, confirm that you want to replace it
6. The template's settings, line items, and terms are loaded. Now customize for this specific document.

Customizing After Loading

After loading a template, you can modify for the current document:

• Add or remove line items
• Adjust quantities and rates
• Change payment terms for this project
• Modify due dates or deposit amounts
• Add client-specific notes

Changes apply only to this document—templates remain unchanged.

⚠️ Loading Replaces Content

Loading a template overwrites any content already in the form. If you've already entered data, confirm first before loading.

Next Steps

• Create your Line Items library
• Create an invoice template for your standard project type
• Create an estimate template with your typical deposit structure
• Test loading templates when creating new documents

Templates vs Document Theme

Templates and document theming work together, but they serve different jobs.

• Templates save document structure such as line items, payment terms, fees, and reusable sections.
• Document Theme controls the visual presentation of estimates and invoices, including fonts, colors, banner imagery, and watermark behavior.

If you want to change how the document looks, go to Settings → Branding → Document Theme. If you want to change the reusable document setup, save or edit a template.

The updated preview system is intended to keep the in-app preview and generated PDF much closer together, so template content and document styling are easier to review before sending.