Bill the hours, not a lump sum
Free Timesheet Invoice Generator
One line per day worked, with the date, the hours and the rate. The invoice totals the hours as well as the money, so a client can check the time before they check the amount.
Everything stays in this browser. Your business, clients and past timesheets are saved on this device only.
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- Remembers your details
- Saves clients and items
- Download PDF
Why an hourly invoice is a different document
An ordinary invoice line is a thing supplied. A timesheet line is a thing supplied on a date, and the date is what the client checks it against — their own record of when you were there, or the agency system that approved the hours.
That is why an invoice with "Consulting — 38 hours — $2,356.00" gets queried and a dated breakdown does not. The amount is the same. The difference is whether the client can verify it without emailing you.
- A date on every line, not just an invoice period
- Hours as the unit, in quarter-hour steps
- The rate per line, so a different rate for a different task is visible
- A total hours figure alongside the money total
- Expenses can sit on the same invoice without inflating the hours
The hours and the money have to agree
The most common defect in a timesheet invoice is a total-hours figure that does not match the lines it is supposedly summing. It happens when the hours are re-derived from the money, or typed by hand into a footer, and it is the first thing an accounts-payable clerk finds.
Here the hours total is summed from the lines at quarter-hour precision, and only lines actually booked in hours are counted. Put a travel expense or a fixed fee on the same invoice and it bills correctly without moving the hours figure.
A worked week
Three days at a single rate, with an expense line that is billed but is not time.
| Date | Work | Hours | Amount |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026-09-01 | Discovery calls | 7.5 | $450.00 |
| 2026-09-02 | Schema work | 8 | $480.00 |
| 2026-09-03 | Review and handover | 6.25 | $375.00 |
| 2026-09-03 | Site visit mileage | — | $45.00 |
| Total hours | 21.75 | ||
| Subtotal | $1,350.00 | ||
| Total | $1,350.00 | ||
The hours total is 21.75, not 22.75: the mileage line is billed but is not time, so it stays out of the hours figure. 21.75 hours at $60.00 is $1,305.00, and the remaining $45.00 is the expense — the two numbers reconcile, which is the whole point of showing both.
Timesheet, hourly invoice or retainer?
These get used interchangeably and describe different agreements.
- Timesheet invoice
- Bills specific hours on specific dates. The client can verify each line against their own record before paying.
- Hourly invoice
- Bills a quantity of hours for a period without dating them. Faster to produce, harder for the client to check.
- Retainer invoice
- Bills an agreed amount per period regardless of hours worked. Hours may be reported alongside, but they are not what is being charged.
- Fixed-fee invoice
- Bills an agreed price for a defined deliverable. Hours are irrelevant to the amount and listing them invites a negotiation you already had.
Keeping the record
Timesheets are saved in this browser alongside your invoices, receipts and credit notes, and can be exported as a backup. Clearing site data removes them, so download the PDF for anything you need to keep.
This produces an invoice. It is not a time-tracking system, does not run a timer, and does not connect to an agency or payroll system. Whether hours must be approved before invoicing, and in what format, is set by your contract.