An electronic invoice is delivered digitally — typically a PDF emailed or uploaded to an AP portal, increasingly with an embedded payment link that cuts payment time dramatically. Best practices: send as PDF (not editable Word/Excel), use a subject line with the invoice number and amount, embed or link a payment method, design for mobile reading (most invoices are first opened on phones), and keep file names systematic ('INV-0042 - YourBusiness.pdf'). True e-invoicing — structured data formats like UBL/Peppol exchanged system-to-system — is becoming mandatory across Europe and is worth understanding as it spreads.
Electronic Invoice Template
Reviewed by the Agiled editorial teamUpdated June 2026
Most 'electronic invoices' are just paper habits in a PDF — and they leave money on the table. Done properly, electronic delivery is a collection advantage: a payment link where the client's thumb already is (most invoices are first opened on a phone), a subject line their inbox search will find in March, a file name their bookkeeper doesn't have to rename, and a PDF that can't be accidentally edited. Meanwhile, true e-invoicing — structured data flowing system to system — is becoming law across Europe and creeping into procurement requirements everywhere. This template handles today's best practice and explains tomorrow's. Download it in PDF, Word, Excel, Google Docs, or Google Sheets, or generate a pre-filled version below.
Part of our free invoice template library — 80+ industry-specific templates in PDF, Word, Excel, Google Docs, and Google Sheets.
Your Company Name
123 Business St, City, State 12345
billing@yourcompany.com
INVOICE
INV-0001
Bill to
Client Company
Due
Net 30
| Description | Qty | Rate | Amount |
|---|---|---|---|
| Electronic components | 100 | $5.00 | $500.00 |
| Circuit board assembly | 10 | $50.00 | $500.00 |
| Quality testing | 1 | $300.00 | $300.00 |
Download this invoice template
Pick a style, choose a format, and download — generated locally in your browser.
Style
Format
Fixed layout for sending and printing
Word
Editable in Word or Google Docs
Excel
Live formulas for recurring invoices
Or create and send invoices online
Create online- Format
- PDF — never editable files
- Payment link
- Cuts payment time roughly in half
- First read
- Usually on a phone
- Coming
- Structured e-invoicing mandates (EU now, spreading)
What to include on a electronic invoice
PDF as the delivery format
PDFs preserve layout everywhere and resist accidental (or convenient) editing. Word and Excel files are working documents — what you send should be a finished one.
A payment link, embedded
Card/ACH checkout linked from the invoice itself. Removing the 'log into your bank and type details' step is the single biggest accelerator in digital billing.
A subject line built for search
"Invoice INV-0042 — $1,850 — YourBusiness — due Jul 11." The client's future self will search their inbox for it; give the search something to find.
Systematic file naming
"INV-0042 - YourBusiness - 2026-06.pdf" — sortable, identifiable, and exactly what an AP clerk wishes every vendor did.
Mobile-legible layout
A single column that reads at phone width, the total prominent without zooming, the payment link tappable. The first impression happens on a 6-inch screen.
The complete standard field set
Electronic changes the envelope, not the contents: full header block, itemized lines, ordered math, terms, and remittance details all present.
Delivery through the client's required channel
If the client uses an AP portal (Bill.com, Coupa, Ariba), the invoice goes there — an emailed PDF to a portal-based buyer effectively doesn't exist.
How electronic billing actually works
The email-PDF workflow, optimized
The standard flow most businesses run: invoice generated, exported to PDF, emailed with a search-friendly subject and a one-line body (amount, due date, payment link, attachment named properly). Send to the AP address, not just your contact — and cc your contact. Automate the reminder at due date and the follow-up at +7. Each optimization is small; together they routinely cut a week off average collection time versus the bare-attachment habit.
Payment links and the friction equation
The economics: card processing costs ~3%, ACH links cost pennies, and embedded payment cuts time-to-paid dramatically — for many businesses the float and admin savings dwarf the fees. Offer ACH as the default link with card as the convenience option (surcharging where legal and appropriate). The deeper point: every step between 'client decides to pay' and 'money moves' is where payments stall; electronic invoicing's whole advantage is deleting those steps.
Portals and the e-invoicing horizon
Large buyers increasingly mandate supplier portals, which means invoice data entered or uploaded into their system — tedious, but non-negotiable, and the invoice's field discipline (clean numbers, PO references, line structure) is what makes portal entry fast. Beyond portals sits true e-invoicing: structured formats (UBL, Peppol, factur-X) exchanged machine-to-machine, already mandatory for B2B in a growing list of European countries and spreading through Latin America and Asia. US businesses selling internationally will meet it first; everyone else benefits from keeping invoice data clean enough that the transition is an export, not a rebuild.
Invoicing mistakes that cost electronic professionals money
Sending editable files
A Word or Excel invoice can be altered by anyone in the chain — innocently or otherwise — and renders differently on every machine. Export to PDF; send the PDF.
The naked attachment
An email titled 'Invoice' with body text 'see attached' wastes every advantage of the medium. Subject with number and amount, body with total, due date, and payment link.
No payment path
A digital invoice that ends with 'mail a check' imports paper-era friction into an electronic process. Link the payment; watch the cycle shorten.
Ignoring portal requirements
Emailing PDFs to a buyer whose process starts in Ariba means your invoice is invisible, and the due-date clock never started. Deliver through the mandated channel, always.
Chaotic digital records
Invoices scattered across sent-mail and download folders aren't records. One folder (or system), systematic names, payment status tracked — digital makes archiving free; take the gift.
How to use this template
- 01
Download the template in your preferred format, or generate a pre-filled version with the download studio above.
- 02
Complete the standard field set and export to PDF with a systematic file name.
- 03
Add a payment link — ACH default, card option — to the invoice and the email body.
- 04
Send with a search-friendly subject line to the AP address, cc'ing your contact.
- 05
Use the client's portal instead wherever one is required.
- 06
Automate reminders at the due date and +7, and archive every invoice with its payment status.
Skip this template if…
- Point-of-sale receipts — POS systems generate transaction receipts; invoices bill for payment due.
- Leave-behind paper billing — on-site trades collecting at completion want the printable template.
FAQs
What is an electronic invoice?
Broadly, any invoice delivered digitally — usually a PDF by email or portal upload, ideally with an embedded payment link. Strictly, 'e-invoicing' means structured data formats (UBL, Peppol) exchanged directly between accounting systems — a standard already mandatory in much of Europe and spreading globally.
Should I send invoices as PDF or Word?
PDF, always: it renders identically everywhere, resists editing, and is what AP systems and OCR pipelines expect. Editable formats are for your working files — what leaves your business should be finished and fixed.
Do payment links on invoices actually speed up payment?
Substantially — businesses adding embedded payment routinely report time-to-paid dropping by days to weeks, because the link deletes every step between the decision to pay and the payment. Offer ACH (near-free) as the default with card (≈3%) as the convenience option.
What should the email say when sending an invoice?
Subject: invoice number, amount, your business name, due date — so inbox search finds it forever. Body: one or two lines with the total, due date, payment link, and a thank-you. Attachment: the PDF, named systematically ('INV-0042 - YourBusiness.pdf'). Send to AP, cc your contact.
What is e-invoicing and will it affect US businesses?
System-to-system exchange of structured invoice data (not PDFs) over networks like Peppol — already mandatory for B2B invoicing in a growing list of countries, with EU-wide requirements phasing in. US domestic billing isn't mandated yet, but companies selling into Europe or to multinationals will meet the requirements through their buyers, and clean invoice data now makes that transition trivial later.
Are electronic invoices legally valid?
Yes — electronic invoices and records are legally recognized in the US (E-SIGN Act) and virtually everywhere else, provided the usual invoice contents are present. Keep reliable digital archives (the same 3–7 year retention as paper), and you're covered for tax and dispute purposes.
Need sending, reminders, and payments too?
Turn this template into a full invoicing workflow with Agiled.