Create Recurring Invoices
Set up invoice templates that generate on a schedule.
Recurring invoices are for customers who are billed on a schedule, such as monthly retainers, subscriptions, maintenance plans, or ongoing services.
Set them up only after the billing agreement is clear. A recurring invoice is a future billing source, so small setup mistakes can repeat.
Use a recurring invoice for predictable billing. Use a normal invoice when the amount, customer, timing, or line items change every period.
Create a Recurring Invoice
- Open Finance > Recurring Invoices.
- Select Create Recurring Invoice.
- Choose the customer account and contact.
- Add the line items that should appear on each generated invoice.
- Set the start date and frequency.
- Choose whether the recurring invoice starts active or paused.
- Save the template.
Before saving, review customer, contact, currency, taxes, payment terms, template, notes, email delivery, and attachments.
If the recurring invoice should create customer-facing emails automatically, confirm the sender mailbox, invoice template, payment methods, and public link before activation.
Use line item descriptions that explain the billing period or service scope. Customers should be able to understand the generated invoice without asking why the recurring charge was created.
Choose the Schedule
Use the schedule that matches the customer agreement. Common schedules are weekly, monthly, quarterly, or annually. Confirm the start date because it controls when the recurring invoice begins.
If billing should happen at the beginning or end of a service period, choose the start date accordingly and document the period in the invoice notes or line item description.
Check edge cases before activating yearly, quarterly, or month-end billing. Confirm how the team expects invoices to behave around weekends, holidays, and short months, then document that expectation in the customer agreement or internal note.
Active or Paused
Save as Active when invoices should generate on the schedule. Save as Paused when the template is not ready to generate yet.
Use paused when you are still testing, waiting for customer approval, or setting up payment methods. Activate only after previewing the expected generated invoice.
If automated email delivery is enabled, test the customer-facing template and sender before activation. A recurring invoice can generate correctly but still fail the customer experience if the email, payment link, or attached PDF is not ready.
What Changes Later
When you edit a recurring invoice, confirm whether the change should affect only future generated invoices or whether existing draft invoices also need review.
After the first scheduled invoice is generated, review it before sending or before relying on automated delivery.
Add a calendar or task reminder for the first generation date. Review the first invoice for customer, line items, taxes, numbering, due date, email delivery, payment methods, and workflow side effects before trusting the recurring setup.
Changes To Existing Agreements
When a customer changes plan, price, tax status, billing contact, or payment terms, update the recurring invoice before the next generation date. Add an internal note that explains what changed and when the new terms start.
If a price change needs customer approval, keep the recurring invoice paused or unchanged until approval is recorded. Do not let the next invoice generate with unapproved pricing.
First-Invoice Checklist
After the first invoice is generated:
- Open the generated invoice.
- Confirm amount, tax, due date, and billing period.
- Check recipient email and delivery status.
- Test or review the payment link.
- Confirm no duplicate invoice was created manually.
- Leave the recurring invoice active only if the first invoice is correct.