Guide · 6 minute read

Quotes and invoices without the spreadsheet

Save each product or service once with its price and tax. Build every quote by picking from that list, so totals work themselves out and no old figure sneaks in. When the client accepts online, turn the quote into an invoice in one click, with any deposit already taken off.

By the Babara team · Updated

“I made the same pricing mistake twice this week because I copied an old quote and forgot to update one of the figures.”

A small business owner on Reddit (r/Invoice), looking for something simpler than Excel and Word, and simpler than an ERP.
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Invoice already out? Write the reminder

Pick how late it is and how you want to sound. Copy it, or let Babara send it for you.

How late is it?

Tone

Your email appears here

Pick how late the invoice is and the tone you want. Babara writes a short, human reminder you can paste into any email.

Sound familiar?

Four jobs a computer should be doing for you

Most quotes are repeat work: the same products, the same customers, different quantities. Here is what changes when the details live in one place.

Copying an old quote and missing one figure

Start from your saved items, not an old file. Prices come in as saved, every time.

Opening a spreadsheet to check prices

Search your items while you build the quote. Name, description, price and tax are already there.

Typing the same customer details again

Save each client once. Pick them from a list on the next quote.

Doing half the work again for the invoice

One click on an accepted quote makes the invoice with the same lines.

Step by step in Babara

From saved items to a paid invoice

  1. Step 1

    Save what you sell in Items

    Add each product or service once: a name, a price, what it’s priced per (hour, piece, day), a short description and its tax. Five minutes for your top ten items covers most quotes.

  2. Step 2

    Save your regular clients

    Add a client the first time you quote them, right from the quote. Next time, pick them from the list and their details fill in.

  3. Step 3

    Build the quote from your items

    Click “Add from your items”, search, pick. Change the quantity and Babara works out line totals, tax, any discount and the grand total as you type.

  4. Step 4

    Send it and let the client accept online

    Your client gets a link to the quote. They accept by typing their name, or decline with a reason. You get an email either way, and the quote expires on the date you set.

  5. Step 5

    Ask for a deposit if you want one

    Set a deposit as a percent or an amount. When the client accepts, Babara sends the deposit invoice straight away.

  6. Step 6

    Make the invoice in one click

    When the work is done, press “Make the invoice”. Same lines, the next invoice number, and any deposit already paid taken off.

After that, Babara does what it was built for: if the invoice isn’t paid on time, it sends polite reminders for you and stops the moment your client pays. Read how to ask for payment politely to see the timing.

Changing a price? Change it once

Edit the item in Items and every new quote and invoice uses the new price. No hunting through old templates.

Quotes and invoices you already sent don’t move. Your client keeps seeing the price they agreed to.

Using item codes

There isn’t a separate code field yet. Start the item name with your code, like SH-104 · Oak shelf.

Search finds it by code or by name, and the code prints on the quote and the invoice.

Not an ERP, on purpose

No stock counts, purchase orders or ledgers to set up. Items, clients, quotes, invoices, and getting paid.

Need a one-off invoice with no account? Try the free invoice generator.

Before you start

Good questions

What is the easiest way to turn a quote into an invoice?
Use software that keeps the quote’s lines and makes the invoice from them. In Babara, an accepted quote has a “Make the invoice” button: the invoice gets the same items, prices and taxes, the next invoice number, and any paid deposit taken off.
If I change a product’s price, do my old quotes change too?
No. The new price is used on every quote and invoice you make from then on. Quotes and invoices you already sent keep the price your client saw, which is what you want.
Can I add item codes or SKUs?
There isn’t a separate code field yet. Put the code at the start of the item name, like “SH-104 · Oak shelf”. Search finds it by code or by name, and the code prints on the quote.
Do I need a full ERP or accounting system for quotes and invoices?
Not if you mainly quote repeat work. You need saved items, saved clients, automatic totals and quote-to-invoice. An ERP adds stock, purchasing and accounting you may never use.
Is it free to try?
Yes. The free Starter plan lets you make invoices and quotes and send 5 a day by email. Paid plans add more open invoices, more sending and e-signing.

Sources

Every link checked on . Quoted with credit to the original poster.

  1. Pls I need a quote and invoice software that can replace my messy Excel setup · r/Invoice on Reddit

Thanks to the r/Invoice poster whose question shaped this guide.

Keep reading

Unpaid invoice: what to do, day 1 to day 60The steps in order, with the email, the interest and the demand letter for each.When to send a payment reminderThe 6-step schedule, as a calendar file or checklist.How to ask for payment politelyWhen to send each reminder, and word-for-word scripts.Polite ways to say “please pay”20 phrases for every stage, from heads-up to final reminder.Overdue invoice email5 templates from 1 to 45+ days late, plus subject lines that get opened.Final payment reminderWhat it must say, 3 templates, and what to do after.Late Payment of Commercial Debts Act (UK)Interest, the £40/£70/£100 compensation and when it applies, in plain English.Demand letter for payment (US)Free generator, 3 sample letters and small claims limits.Invoice software for freelancersAn honest roundup with prices, free plans and reminders, each fact dated.Late payment interest calculatorUK, euro area, Germany, France and Netherlands rules.

Invoice and reminder templates for designers, photographers, developers, copywriters and content writers, videographers and video producers, contractors and consultants.

Illustration of a coral front door with a brass knocker and a potted plant

Consider the awkward part handled

Quote it once. Invoice it in one click

Save your items, send a quote your client can accept online, and let Babara chase the invoice until it’s paid.

Start free

Your clients won’t know what hit them. (A very polite email.) Free for your first 3 invoices.