Guide Nº 03 — The HubLast updated July 24, 2026
How to make an invoice — every method, ranked by speed
There are four ways to make an invoice: forward the client’s email to an invoice service that builds it for you (≈60 seconds), assemble one in a free online calculator (≈3 minutes), fill in a Word, Google Docs, Canva, or Excel template (≈15 minutes), or set up accounting software (hours, then minutes per invoice). All four produce the same legally sufficient document — they differ only in how much re-typing you do.
The four methods compared
| Method | First invoice | Every invoice after | Cost | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. Forward the email — email-forwarding service | ≈ 60 sec | ≈ 60 sec | $0–12/mo | Anyone whose scope & price already live in email |
| 2. Free calculator — invoice calculator | ≈ 3 min | ≈ 3 min | $0 | One-off invoices, quick totals with tax |
| 3. Template — Word, Google Docs, Canva, Excel | ≈ 15 min | ≈ 10 min | $0 | Full control over layout; occasional invoicing |
| 4. Accounting suite — QuickBooks, FreshBooks, Wave | Hours | ≈ 5 min | $0–38/mo | Businesses that also need bookkeeping and expenses |
Method 1 — forward the client’s email (fastest)
Your client already wrote the invoice — the scope, the price, the terms are sitting in their email. Forward that email to your private address at MailToInvoice and the extraction turns it into a numbered, branded PDF with a Stripe payment link, back in your inbox in about 60 seconds. Reply in plain English to change anything. This is the only method with no re-typing at all; the full walkthrough is in how to automate invoices.
Method 2 — build it in a free calculator
For a one-off invoice, the free invoice calculator does the arithmetic: line items as hours × rate or fixed fees, expenses, tax percentage, and an instant PDF download. No account, no signup — it’s a genuinely free tool.
Method 3 — fill a template
A good template gives you the seven required fields pre-arranged; you replace the placeholders and export a PDF. We keep free, no-email-gate templates for Word, Google Docs, Canva, Excel, and fillable PDF. The Excel one calculates totals for you; the others trade automation for layout control. Whichever you pick, the fields that matter are covered in how to invoice a client.
Method 4 — accounting software
Suites make sense when invoicing is one part of a bigger bookkeeping need — expenses, payroll, reports. For invoicing alone they’re the slowest path to the first invoice: import clients, define items, configure taxes and templates, then fill a form per invoice. If that system matches how you work, use it; if you’re choosing it just to make invoices, you’re buying a department to get a document.
Whatever method: the invoice itself
Every method must land on the same seven fields — your identity, the client’s, a sequential invoice number, issue and due dates, line items, a total with tax broken out, and payment instructions. The step-by-step guide covers each field, payment terms like net-30, and the follow-up schedule that actually gets invoices paid.