It is difficult to start a new company, and it is even more difficult to keep one going. When you consider the various paper works, it becomes even more disturbing. While several of them are easily distinguished from one another, some are more difficult to differentiate and must be avoided at all costs. This category includes purchase orders and invoices.
Both of these accounting statements deal with payment and merchandise requests. They have a list of items on them, but they normally move in opposite directions between the buyer and the seller. The complete differences and similarities between the two are mentioned below.
What Is the Difference Between a Purchase Order and an Invoice?
Knowing what both are is a good place to start before going through the many discrepancies and similarities between them. And that should be sufficient to make a comparison.
A purchase order is a business document that a buyer sends to a seller in order for the seller to provide products and services. A customer’s purchase orders (PO) detail the items, sizes, and amounts they wish to purchase. They often provide pertinent details such as the price, the due date for the products and services, and any other pertinent data.
A Purchase Invoice is a bill that you collect from your suppliers for which you must pay. The Purchase Invoice is the inverse of the Sales Invoice. Expenses are accrued to your Supplier in this section. The process of creating a purchasing invoice in WeInvoice is somewhat close to the process of creating a Purchase Order.
A purchase order is an official statement in which a customer declares his intention to patronize a company. It outlines the seller’s whole set of standards. It is important to ensure that the incorrect goods are not distributed.
Invoices, on the other hand, are sent back and forth from the seller to the buyer, requesting payment for goods or services provided. When a business project is completed, business owners generate invoices. It includes a definition, quantity, and price for each product sold.
Indy is a great platform for freelancers because of its combinations of tools. Indy has a simple invoice creator. More on that in a second. Indy also offers tools for creating proposals, writing and signing contracts, tracking time, and a file approval module.
Indy’s Invoices tool has all the features a freelancer needs for their invoices. You can add line items, automatically insert unbilled hours, and customize your invoice with your branding and logo. When you’re finished editing, Indy’s tool also connects to payment providers such as Zelle, PayPal, and Stripe to make getting paid easier and faster.
1. WeInvoice
Take a peek at WeInvoice if you’re looking for a free invoice software that’s perfect for freelancers and sole proprietors.
The software has simple device navigation and excellent invoicing capabilities. WeInvoice is more suited to service companies and allows you to build the invoice you want. WeInvoice invoice customization features include the ability to add a logo and some accent colors to your invoice. You can choose from a number of in-app invoice models to use right away, or you can make your own. You can set up invoice preferences during the product setup process, or you can select a different invoice form each time you create an invoice.
Any invoice can have notes attached to it, For those that are paying on a regular basis, all invoices may be made recurring. To allow your customers to pay from their invoice, you’ll need to sign up for WeInvoice Payments, and WeInvoice is currently testing an extension that will allow you to accept payments on your website.
2. Indy
Indy is a great platform for freelancers because of its combinations of tools. Indy has a simple invoice creator. More on that in a second. Indy also offers tools for creating proposals, writing and signing contracts, tracking time, and a file approval module.
Indy’s Invoices tool has all the features a freelancer needs for their invoices. You can add line items, automatically insert unbilled hours, and customize your invoice with your branding and logo. When you’re finished editing, Indy’s tool also connects to payment providers such as Zelle, PayPal, and Stripe to make getting paid easier and faster.
Indy works on the web and on mobile devices in the US market. Indy’s Free plan gives you free unlimited access to all the basic tools you need to manage your business. However, the Pro Bundle plan is only $12 per month, so most of us can afford unlimited access.
3. FusionInvoice
FusionInvoice, a handy open source invoicing platform, existed once upon a time. Its developers made the most recent version of the code proprietary one day. FusionInvoice’s doors were closed for good in 2018, but it was not a happy ending. But the application didn’t stop there. An older version of the code has evolved into InvoicePlane, which includes all of FusionInvoice’s features.
It just takes a few clicks to create an invoice. You can make them as simple or as complex as you want. When you’re done, you can email or print your invoices as PDFs. You may also set up annual invoices for companies or consumers that you bill on a regular basis.
4. BambooInvoice
I used BambooInvoice to bill my clients when I was a full-time freelance writer and consultant. I was surprised when the software’s original creator stopped working on it. However, BambooInvoice is back and better than ever.
BambooInvoice appealed to me because of its simplicity. It focuses on a single task and does it well. BambooInvoice allows you to generate and edit invoices, and it keeps track of them by client and invoice number. It also tells you which invoices are available and which are past due. You can email invoices or create PDFs directly from the application. You may also generate reports to monitor your earnings.
5. ZipBooks
ZipBooks has great invoicing features, including the ability to customize invoice preferences during the setup process, such as adding the company logo and accent color to every invoice.
You can easily invoice your customers for services provided thanks to the time tracking feature, and once an invoice is done, it can be emailed directly to your customer.
ZipBooks also allows your customers to pay their invoices online using a credit card or PayPal, and you can add a default message appearing with the emailed invoice. You can also make an invoice template to use for future invoices, which is very convenient.
6. Invoice2go
Invoice2go is mostly used for invoicing, but it also has time and cost tracking functionality. Where applicable, the system may also levy a tax.
Clients can pay with a credit card or PayPal with a single click, and payment alerts can be automated with ease. You can also keep track of whether or not your invoices have been opened; it’s an easy function that comes in handy when it comes to tracking down payments.
Invoice2go is optimized for mobile use, as the name implies – the iPhone and Android apps are short, elegant, and simple to use.
