AvoWeb Development Invoice Template (Free Fillable PDF)
Developers bill in one of three ways: hourly with a timesheet, by sprint or milestone against a fixed scope, or on a monthly retainer for maintenance. Clients who are not technical need the invoice to name what was built in plain words, not ticket numbers alone. This template has a line per feature or sprint with the ticket reference in brackets, hours where relevant, and third-party costs (hosting, APIs, licenses) separated from your fees.
Free, fillable, US Letter. No email, no sign-up. Fill in your details once. For each invoice change the client, the period or milestone and the lines.
What the PDF looks like. The hints in the line table show the lines a developer typically bills; type over them.
Why web development invoices get paid late
Ticket numbers only
“#412, #418, #420: 14 h” means nothing to the client's finance person. “Checkout flow: address validation and order confirmation emails (#412, #418), 14 h”.
Retainer hours untracked
If the retainer includes 10 hours, show hours used this month and hours carried or expired, or the client assumes unlimited.
Cloud costs surprise
Hosting, API usage and licenses passed through need the service, the period and the amount, with the provider invoice available.
What to include on a web development invoice
- Your name or company, contact and tax IDW-9 on request for US business clients.
- Client name and project or product“Ridgeline Carpentry quoting app”.
- Invoice number, date, due date and SOW or contract reference; sprint or period“Sprint 4, Mar 2–13” or “Retainer, March 2026”.
- Features or deliverables with ticket references and hoursPlain-language description first, ticket numbers in brackets.
- Hourly summary or fixed-scope milestone amountHours × rate with a timesheet attached, or the milestone fee.
- Retainer: hours included, used, remainingOr the flat monthly fee with what it covers.
- Third-party costs at costHosting, domains, API usage, SaaS licenses, with periods.
- Deposit or previous payments, balance, payment termsNet 15; code handover or deployment terms.
Example web development invoice
Lines a typical job produces. Labor and materials are separate, and anything already paid is a negative line so the total is the balance due.
| Description | Qty × rate | Amount |
|---|---|---|
| Sprint 4 (Mar 2–13): checkout flow, address validation and order confirmation emails (#412, #418) | 22 h × $110.00 | $2,420.00 |
| Sprint 4: admin dashboard, order export to CSV (#420) | 9 h × $110.00 | $990.00 |
| Bug fixes and code review, logged in timesheet | 4.5 h × $110.00 | $495.00 |
| Pass-through: hosting (Mar) and transactional email API (Mar), provider invoices attached | 1 | $63.40 |
| Deposit received Feb 1 | −$1,500.00 | |
| Total due | $2,468.40 | |
How to use the template
- Download the PDFIt is a fillable form: open it in any PDF reader, on a computer or a phone.
- Fill in your details onceBusiness name, contact, license number, terms. Save it as your master copy.
- Add the job and sendChange the client, the lines and the invoice number for each developer job. Export and send by email or text.
Fill it on your iPhone in a minute instead
Avo keeps your clients and your usual line items, so the next invoice is three taps. Your first three documents are free, full-quality PDF, no watermark. Premium from $59.99/year if you invoice often.
Scan the code with your iPhone camera to open Avo in the App Store, or email yourself the link.
Questions
Should developers invoice hourly or per milestone?
Hourly with a timesheet for open-ended or maintenance work; fixed milestones for defined scope where the client wants a known price. Many projects use a deposit plus milestones for the build and hourly afterward. The invoice should say which applies to each line.
How do I describe technical work on an invoice?
Lead with what the client can recognize (“checkout flow with address validation”) and put ticket numbers or commit ranges in brackets. The finance person approves the plain description; the product owner checks the references.
How should a maintenance retainer appear?
One line with the month, the hours included, the hours used and what happens to the remainder (carried or expired), plus the flat fee. Work beyond the retainer goes on separate hourly lines at the agreed rate.
Do I mark up hosting and API costs?
Small developers usually pass them through at cost on separate lines with provider invoices available, or have the client pay the providers directly. If you add a management fee, state it as its own line.
When should code be handed over?
On payment, stated in the terms: repository access or a deployment on receipt of the milestone payment. For retainers, the client usually owns the repository from the start and the terms cover access instead.