Invoice and receipt generator

What this tool does

This is a simple invoice and receipt maker for shops that do not have billing software, or need a proper-looking bill for a one-off order: a wholesale customer, a school, an office, a delivery. You type, the invoice on the right updates, and the Print button gives you a clean page with nothing else on it. Choose Save as PDF in the print window to keep a copy or send it to the customer.

Your data stays with you. The page works entirely in your browser. Nothing you type is uploaded. If you leave the "remember" box ticked, your shop name, address, phone, heading, tax and note are saved in this browser's own storage so you do not have to type them next time. The customer and the items are never saved. Untick the box or press Forget saved details to remove them.

How to use it

1. Enter your shop name, address and phone once.
2. Give the invoice a number and check the date. Pick "Receipt" or "Cash memo" as the heading if that suits better.
3. Add each item with its quantity and price. The amount for each line and the totals are worked out for you. Quantities can be decimals, such as 2.5 kg.
4. Add a discount (as an amount or a percentage) and a tax rate only if they apply.
5. Press Print or save as PDF. On a phone, the print screen has a "Save as PDF" printer; on a computer, choose it from the printer list.

Worked example

An office orders 2 reams of paper at Rs 1,450, 10 registers at Rs 180 and 5 boxes of pens at Rs 400. The lines come to Rs 2,900, Rs 1,800 and Rs 2,000, a subtotal of Rs 6,700. You give Rs 200 off, leaving Rs 6,500. If you charge a tax at a rate of, say, 5%, that adds Rs 325 on the discounted amount, for a total of Rs 6,825. Every one of those lines appears on the invoice, so the customer can check the arithmetic.

What a good shop invoice shows

• Who it is from: the shop name and a way to reach you.
• A number and a date. Numbering bills in order (1001, 1002, 1003) makes it easy to find one later and to notice when one is missing.
• Clear item names that the customer will recognise, with quantity, unit price and line amount.
• The discount as its own line, rather than quietly lowered prices. It keeps your price list honest.
• A note for anything the customer should know: an exchange policy, a delivery date, or simply thanks.

About the tax field

The tax field only does arithmetic: it adds the percentage you enter to the amount after discount, and labels the line with the name you type. It does not know the tax rules where you are, and a document from this tool is not automatically a valid tax invoice. If you are registered for a sales tax or VAT, check with your tax office or an adviser what your invoices are required to show.

Tips for small shops

Keep a copy of every invoice you give out, even a photo or a PDF in one folder. When a customer comes back with a question months later, the copy settles it in seconds. If a customer pays later rather than now, write that in the note ("Payment due by 30 November") and record it in your udhaar book the same day. Before printing on a new printer, print one test page to check the margins; if the page comes out cut off, set the scale to 100% or "Actual size" in the print window.

Questions

Related reading

• Seven billing mistakes that quietly cost a small shop money
• Udhaar khata: how to give credit without losing the money or the customer
• Setting up your shop and making the first sale

Saleva does this automatically at the till: every sale gets a numbered bill you can print on a Bluetooth printer, share on WhatsApp or save as a PDF. Get the free Android app.