Printable invoice template that stays clear on paper

When a paper invoice still makes sense

Paper is the better choice when the customer is standing in front of you and wants to settle up, when they do not use email, or when their office files paper. Handing over a printed invoice at the end of a visit also means nobody waits for an email that lands in a spam folder.

• A technician finishing a home visit who hands over the invoice before leaving
• A stallholder supplying a café with weekly produce, invoiced at the counter
• A client who posts every invoice to their accountant
• An office that scans incoming paper into its books

Printer settings for a printable invoice template

Print at actual size, sometimes labeled 100% scale, rather than fit to page. Shrinking the page makes small print harder to read and can clip the footer. Match the paper to your tray: the generator makes the PDF in A4 or US Letter, so choose the one you load before you download.

• Grayscale mode saves color ink and every design stays readable in it.
• Keep the default margins; most home printers cannot print to the edge.
• Print one test page and check the total box is not cut off.
• Print two copies if you want one for your own file.

Filling in an invoice to print by hand

The PDF on this page has ruled lines and empty boxes, so you can print a stack and take it on jobs. Write the invoice numbers on the sheets in order before you leave. A lost or spoiled form then shows up as a gap you can explain.

1. Use a dark ballpoint pen, never pencil.
2. Write amounts with cents: 149.00, not 149.
3. Work out the VAT on your phone and give it its own line.
4. Add the total last and check it twice.
5. Photograph the finished form before you hand it over, so you keep a copy.

Example: a printed VAT invoice in Ireland

Our sample is a home tech help business in Ballina, Co. Mayo, billing a customer €447.72 including VAT at 23%. A printed invoice has to carry the same details Revenue lists for any VAT invoice, so check the list before you print a batch of forms with your details already on them.

• Date of issue, and the date the goods or services were supplied
• A unique number in sequence
• Your full name, address and VAT number
• The customer’s full name and address
• Quantity and nature of goods, or extent and nature of services
• Unit price excluding VAT, any discounts and a breakdown by VAT rate
• Total VAT payable

The lines come to €364.00 and VAT at 23% adds €83.72. Revenue expects the invoice within 15 days of the end of the month of supply, and allows a simplified invoice for amounts of €100 or less. The Irish invoice template page covers the rest.

Choosing a design that prints well

Our free generator has 8 designs: Classic, Band, Minimal, Statement, Ledger, Centered, Bold and Compact. For office printers, the lighter ones work best. Centered and Minimal rely on thin rules and white space rather than shaded panels, so they print quickly and look the same in grayscale as in color.

Band and Ledger put solid color behind the header or the table heading, which looks good on screen but uses more toner. Try the Centered design and preview the page before printing. If you add a logo, pick a version that still reads in black and white.

Keeping paper and digital copies together

A printed invoice is still part of your records, so keep a copy of every one, including spoiled forms marked void. Run a single number series for paper and PDF invoices, so number 0117 exists only once, whatever format it went out in.

When you fill invoices in the generator before printing, the PDF is your copy. Our guide to invoice numbering explains how to run one series. For screen first layouts, compare the modern invoice designs or the professional layout for business clients. Every style is in the template library, and the generator with this printable sample opens ready to edit.