Best Invoice Software for Contractors

The best invoice software for contractors turns finished work into an invoice without retyping, lets the customer pay from a link by card, bank transfer or financing, and records the payment on the invoice by itself. Whether you need construction invoicing software for remodels or a simple app for route work, it should also bill repeat work on a schedule, handle cash and checks, and feed your books, because an invoice tool that stops at a PDF still leaves you chasing money.

As invoicing software for contractors, QuoteIQ does that inside the app you already use for estimates and scheduling. An accepted estimate becomes the invoice, the customer pays through online payments or customer financing from your payment processor, invoice subscriptions bill recurring work, and the QuickBooks integration pushes invoices to QuickBooks Online. QuickBooks Integration is on the Pro plan and above. Comparing tools? Read QuoteIQ vs Jobber and QuoteIQ vs Housecall Pro.

Whatever you choose, keep every invoice with your business records; the IRS recordkeeping page explains what counts.

Contractors get paid faster by sending the invoice the day the job is done, as a link the customer can pay from on their phone, and by offering more than one way to pay. A customer who can tap Pay and choose card, bank transfer or financing settles the bill while the work is fresh, instead of waiting to write a check.

In QuoteIQ you convert the accepted estimate into an invoice on site, text or email it, and the customer pays through online payments with a tip if they like. Larger jobs can go on customer financing through your payment processor (Stripe or Whop), and deposits taken on the estimate carry over to the invoice. Send reminders from the invoice, text the customer in ClientHub, and keep an eye on open balances in business analytics. Crews invoice from the truck with mobile and web access.

The Federal Reserve Payments Study tracks how Americans pay, and cards and ACH transfers keep growing while checks keep falling, so offering both online options matches how your customers already pay.

To accept ACH bank payments, you need a payment processor that supports bank debits and an invoice the customer can pay online by linking their bank account. In QuoteIQ you turn on Accept ACH Bank Payments under Account › QuoteIQ Payments and enable ACH in your Stripe Dashboard, and from then on Bank transfer appears next to Card when the customer taps Pay on the invoice.

The customer picks Bank transfer, connects their bank at the secure checkout and pays. Bank transfers usually clear in 3 to 5 business days, and the invoice shows as paid once the money clears. ACH works for one-off invoices, for invoice subscriptions, and for deposits on estimates. See online payments for how payouts work, QuickBooks integration for syncing the payments, and ClientHub for sending the link by text.

Stripe explains the rules for bank debits, including how long they take to clear, in its ACH Direct Debit documentation.

Customer financing lets a homeowner split a bigger invoice into payments with a lender while the contractor is paid for the job, so price stops being the reason a job waits. The customer chooses a buy now, pay later option at checkout, the lender checks them, and the lender carries the repayment plan.

In QuoteIQ, customer financing is available on every plan to anyone with a Stripe or Whop account: your payment processor provides it, not QuoteIQ, and it appears at the secure checkout of the invoice link, next to card and bank transfer. Nothing changes in how you build the invoice: convert the estimate, send it, and the customer picks financing when they tap Pay. Financing works well for roofing and remodeling jobs, and it sits beside online payments, tips and invoice subscriptions in the same checkout.

The financing provider sets its own terms, which Stripe describes in its payment method guides for each option, and the CFPB's Regulation Z page covers the federal Truth in Lending rules for consumer credit.

You turn an estimate into an invoice by converting the accepted estimate, so the customer, the services, the quantities and the prices carry straight over and nothing is retyped. The invoice then only needs what the estimate did not have: taxes, a payment term, photos of the finished work and the message you want the customer to read.

In QuoteIQ, an accepted estimate in the Estimates list has an Invoice button. Tap it and the new invoice opens with everything from the estimate, including a deposit the customer already paid. Add a payment term such as Net 30, attach photos from QuoteIQ Cam, then tap Send Both to text and email it. The same conversion works from the Estimates list on your phone or in the web app with mobile and web access, and quick estimates built on site convert the same way. The customer's history stays in the client database, and once the invoice is paid it feeds job costing.

Keep the estimate and the invoice together as a pair; the IRS guide to starting a business and keeping records (Publication 583) lists invoices among the records that support your income.

Recurring invoices bill the same service on a schedule, weekly, monthly or yearly, so you set up the customer's plan once and the invoices are created for you. They suit route work that repeats, such as lawn care, pool service, house cleaning and pressure washing maintenance plans.

In QuoteIQ, invoice subscriptions live under Manage Subscriptions on the Invoices screen. Pick the customer, the service and how often, then choose Auto-Pay to charge the customer automatically or Manual Billing to send each invoice yourself. The customer gets a subscription link that shows the amount, how often it bills and when it ends, and tapping Start subscription turns it on. Each subscription keeps a list of the invoices it generated, and payments come in through online payments like any other invoice. Schedule the visits in scheduling so the work and the billing line up.

Recurring billing is easier to keep straight when you follow the IRS recordkeeping basics and keep each generated invoice with the payment it received.

You record a cash or check payment by marking the invoice paid and choosing the payment type, so the invoice, your open balance and your books all agree. For a check, add the check number so you can match the deposit to the invoice later.

In QuoteIQ, tap Mark as paid on the invoice and pick the payment type: Cash, Check, Venmo, Zelle, Cash App, PayPal, Direct Deposit or Other. A check asks for its number. If the customer paid only part of the bill, enter the amount and the invoice turns Partially paid with the rest still due. A card the customer saved can be charged from the same screen with Charge Card on File. Paid invoices move to the Paid tab and feed business analytics and job costing. They also sync through the QuickBooks integration, and QuickBooks Integration is on the Pro plan and above. Expenses for the job go in expense tracking, and card and bank payments come in through online payments without any typing.

Payments that reach you through a payment company can be reported on a Form 1099-K; the IRS explains Form 1099-K and why your own records should match it.

A contractor invoice should include your business name and contact details, the customer's name and job address, an invoice number, the issue date and the due date, each service or material with its amount, the subtotal, tax, the total and the balance due, and how the customer can pay. Photos of the finished work and a short message help the customer pay without a phone call.

QuoteIQ fills most of that in for you. The invoice number and issue date are set automatically, the payment term sets the due date, tax follows your company rate or the customer's own rate, and the Pay button carries the payment options. Photos from QuoteIQ Cam attach to each service line, materials can show as one Materials & Supplies line, and the customer can open, pay and download the invoice from the link. Start from an accepted estimate, keep the customer in your client database, add tips and customer financing from your payment processor at checkout, and export data pulls your invoice history into a spreadsheet when your accountant asks.

Trade groups such as the National Roofing Contractors Association, Power Washers of North America and the National Association of Landscape Professionals share billing practice for their trades.

Contractor invoicing software is usually a monthly subscription, and in QuoteIQ invoicing is included on every plan, from Essentials at $29.99/month with 1 user. Beginner is $99.99/month with 2 users, Pro is $199.99/month with 4 users, Elite is $299.99/month with 10 users, and Max is $699.99/month with 20 users. You can add more users at $25/per-additional-user/mo on any plan.

Every plan starts with a 14-day free trial. A credit or debit card is required to start. Card, ACH bank transfer, customer financing through your payment processor (Stripe or Whop) and tips come with every plan. Mass Invoicing is on the Beginner plan and above. QuickBooks Integration is on the Pro plan and above. Compare every plan on the pricing page or start with the Essentials plan. Payment processing fees are separate from the plan and are set by the processor when a customer pays online through online payments.

When you compare subscriptions, read the trial and renewal terms; the FTC's advertising FAQ for small businesses explains what honest pricing and trial offers must disclose. Comparing costs with other tools? See QuoteIQ vs QuickBooks.