SettleDue Blog

Invoicing tips and guides for freelancers

Practical advice on invoicing, time tracking, and getting paid. Written for freelancers, contractors, and trades professionals.

August 20, 2026

How to Invoice as a Freelancer

You finished the work. Now you need to get paid. That means sending an invoice, and if you have never done it before, the process can feel uncertain. What do you include? When do you send it? What if the client does not pay?

This guide walks through...

Read more →
freelancing invoicing getting-started

August 15, 2026

QuickBooks Alternatives for Freelancers

QuickBooks is the default recommendation whenever someone says "I need to send invoices." But for most freelancers, it is the wrong tool. QuickBooks is accounting software. It tracks journal entries, reconciles bank accounts, and manages a chart of...

Read more →
quickbooks comparison freelancing

May 19, 2026

Simple Invoicing Software: What Small Businesses Actually Need

Simple invoicing software has one job. It helps you send a clear bill and get paid, without a finance degree. Most small businesses buy far more than that. They sign up for a full accounting suite, lose an afternoon to setup screens, and then use one...

Read more →
invoicing-software small-business buying-guide

March 10, 2026

Tree Service Invoicing: How to Price and Bill Tree Work

Tree service invoicing is where a good crew loses money or spends a month chasing the balance. You climbed the tree, ran the chipper, and hauled the brush. But the number on the invoice is the part the customer reads, and it has to hold up. Price it...

Read more →
tree-service invoicing estimates

December 16, 2025

How to Bill for Notary Services

Notary work looks simple to bill until you send your first mobile invoice and realize the stamp is the cheap part. Notary invoicing has a rule that catches new notaries off guard: the fee for the notarial act itself is capped by your state, so the...

Read more →
notary invoicing getting-paid

October 14, 2025

Deposits and Retainers: How to Get Paid Before You Start

The best time to get paid is before you start. A deposit invoice puts part of the money in your account while the job is still on paper, which means you are not carrying all the risk alone. Most clients expect it. The ones who push back hardest are...

Read more →
getting-paid deposits invoicing

July 22, 2025

Invoice Payment Terms Explained: Net 15, Net 30, Deposits, and Late Fees

You did the work and sent the bill, and now you are waiting. How long you wait depends almost entirely on your invoice payment terms, the small line most people paste in without thinking. Net 30, due on receipt, a deposit up front: each one changes...

Read more →
invoicing payment-terms getting-paid

May 13, 2025

How to Get Clients to Pay on Time

Late payment is the most common cash-flow problem for freelancers and small trades, and most of it is preventable. If you want to know how to get clients to pay on time, the work starts before you send a single invoice. The habits that get you paid...

Read more →
getting-paid invoicing cash-flow

February 25, 2025

How to Track Time as a Freelancer

If you bill by the hour, your time is your inventory. Learning how to track time as a freelancer is the difference between billing what you actually worked and billing what you can remember on invoice day. Memory loses money. It rounds down, it forgets...

Read more →
freelancing time-tracking getting-paid

December 10, 2024

Contractor Invoicing: What to Include on Every Invoice

A contractor invoice is a payment request and a legal record at the same time. Get contractor invoicing right and you get paid on time, with less back and forth. Leave a field off and the client has a reason to hold your check. This is the full list...

Read more →
contractors invoicing getting-paid

September 24, 2024

How to Invoice for Trade Work: A Guide for Plumbers, Electricians, and HVAC Techs

You just cleared the drain, closed up the panel, or got the AC blowing cold again. The customer is happy, and now you need to get paid. Knowing how to invoice for trade work is what turns a finished job into money in your account. Field service billing...

Read more →
trades invoicing contractors

July 16, 2024

Invoice vs. Estimate: What Is the Difference?

Estimates and invoices look almost the same on paper. The invoice vs estimate question trips up plenty of new business owners, because the two documents share a layout but do completely different jobs.

An estimate asks a client to approve a job. An...

Read more →
estimates invoicing getting-started

Send your first invoice today.

Sign up, create an invoice, and email a PDF. Takes about five minutes.

Try free for 14 days

No credit card required · Cancel anytime