How to Get Paid Faster on Your Trade Invoices

Affiliate link: we may earn a commission if you sign up, at no extra cost to you.

Late payment often comes down to small things. The invoice showed up a week after the job, it was vague, or paying it meant finding a checkbook. Fix those and a lot of the chasing goes away. Not all of it, but a lot.

Here's what helps, roughly in the order it happens on a job.

Settle payment terms before you start

Start with the quote. Put your terms on it in plain words, starting with the due date and the ways you take payment. Add a deposit line if you need one. If the customer signs or approves the quote, they've already agreed to the terms, and the invoice holds no surprises.

On bigger jobs, ask for a deposit up front, or bill in stages as the work gets done. You carry less risk, and you aren't paying for materials out of your own pocket for weeks.

Our free quote template has room for your terms at the bottom.

Invoice the day the job is done

The best time to send an invoice is while you're still in the driveway. The customer can see the finished work, and they remember why they called you. Leave it until Friday night and it turns into one more bill on the pile.

If you can't send it on site because you're out of signal or the customer isn't home, send it that evening before you sit down for dinner and forget about it. Make it a habit. Same as putting tools back in the truck.

Make the invoice easy to read

A customer who has a question about an invoice usually puts off paying it. A clear invoice heads that off:

• Your business name, phone and email, so they know who it's from.
• An invoice number and date, plus a clear due date (a real date works better than "net 30").
• The job address and a short description of what you did.
• Labor and materials on separate lines, with the total easy to spot.
• Every way they can pay you.

You can make one in a couple of minutes with our invoice generator. It adds up the lines for you, and you can print it or save a PDF.

Give customers more ways to pay

Every extra step between "I should pay this" and "paid" is a chance for them to forget. If you only take checks, think about adding card or bank transfer. Cards aren't free. Weigh the fees against how long you're waiting for money now. Some trades build the fee into their pricing; others take cards only on larger jobs. Pick what suits your business and check any local rules on card surcharges before you add one.

Follow up on a schedule

Nobody likes this part. Following up feels awkward, so it gets put off. A set routine takes the feelings out of it. For example, send a friendly reminder a few days before the due date, another on the day, and then call if it's a week overdue. Keep it short and polite. Often that's enough.

Write your routine down and stick to it for every customer. The exact days count for less than doing it the same way every time.

When paper stops keeping up

Templates are fine for a handful of jobs a week. Once you're sending lots of invoices and trying to remember who has paid, software can take over the chasing.

Jobber offers quotes your customers can approve online and invoices they can pay online by card or bank transfer. On the Connect plan and higher, it sends quote and invoice follow-ups for you by email or text. Jobber also offers a 14-day free trial with no credit card needed, and 20% off your first 6 months when you sign up through our link.

Try Jobber free for 14 days (opens in a new tab)

If you're comparing options first, see our field service software guide.

This is general information, not legal, tax or financial advice. Payment terms, late fees and card surcharges are covered by different rules depending on where you work, so check what applies to you.