Before you begin
Before creating an invoice, confirm that:
the correct job, customer, and property are selected
the job is set up for the billing workflow you intend to use
billable labor, materials, fees, or other items are ready to invoice
the correct department and invoice template are available if you plan to email the invoice
Recommended workflow: Create an invoice from the job
For time and material jobs, the recommended workflow is to create the invoice from the Job Report. This gives you the best visibility into the work completed and lets you choose what to bill.
Step 1: Review visits
On the job, open the Visits tab and review the visits you plan to invoice.
Check that:
visit summaries are complete
labor entries are accurate
customer-facing details are ready to appear on the invoice if needed
Step 2: Review the job and billable items
Go to the Overview tab and confirm the job is ready to invoice.
Review:
Job Information
Pricebook
Labor
Inventory Items
Parts & Materials
Purchased Items
Fees, if applicable
If purchased items are not ready to invoice, confirm they have been received and billed in BuildOps first.
Step 3: Create the invoice
From the Overview tab:
Click Invoice.
Click Create Invoice.
Choose how you want to bill the job:
Entire Job to invoice everything currently ready to bill
Specific Visits to invoice work tied to selected visits
Custom selections to invoice only certain billable sections, such as labor or materials
If needed, select Include visit summaries in the invoice summary.
Click Generate.
Other ways to create an invoice
BuildOps also lets you create an invoice outside the Job Report workflow.
1. Create an ad hoc invoice from Accounting
Go to Accounting.
Click Invoices.
Click + New Invoice.
Search for the job, customer, or property.
Complete the invoice details.
Click Save Invoice.
2. Create an ad hoc invoice from the global Create menu
Click the + icon next to the global search bar.
Select New Invoice.
In Create Invoice For, search for the job you want to bill.
Select the department and pricebook.
Enter the billing information.
Click Save Invoice.
Review and edit the invoice
After the invoice is created, review it carefully before sending it.
Depending on the invoice contents, you can update:
labor lines
parts and materials
discounts and fees
payments already applied to the invoice
If needed, use + Add Item to add billable lines to the invoice.
Configure the customer-facing invoice
Before sending the invoice, review how it will appear to the customer.
Open the invoice.
Click the arrow on the right side to open the invoice configuration panel.
Select an invoice preset if your team uses one.
Turn invoice sections on or off depending on what you want the customer to see.
Click Preview Invoice.
Review the preview carefully to confirm:
the correct sections are visible
line items are clear
totals and summary information match what you intend to send
Best practice: always preview the invoice before emailing it to the customer.
Email or post the invoice
Email the invoice
Click the three dots next to Preview Invoice.
Click Email Invoice.
Select any attachments you want to include.
Click Next.
Complete the email details:
To
CC
BCC
Invoice Template
Subject
Message
Click Send Invoice Email.
After sending, you can review the email status on the invoice page.
Post the invoice
To sync the invoice with your accounting system, click Post Invoice.
If the invoice was already recorded outside of BuildOps, use the drop-down option next to Post Invoice to bypass posting.
Frequently Asked Questions
Q: What is the difference between a time and material job and a quoted job?
A: A time and material job is billed based on the actual labor, materials, and items recorded on the job.
A quoted job is billed based on the quoted amount instead.
Q: Why is the Create Invoice button unavailable?
A: The Create Invoice button may be unavailable if you are on the Visits tab in the Job Report.
Navigate to the Overview tab and make sure at least one visit has already been reviewed.
Q: Should I create invoices from the job or as ad hoc invoices?
A: For time and material jobs, creating the invoice from the Job Report is the recommended workflow because it gives you better control over what is billed.
Use ad hoc invoices when you need to create an invoice outside the primary job-report workflow.
Q: Why is the invoice total zero?
A: If the invoice total is zero, the invoice may not have any billable line items yet.
Review the invoice and add the needed labor, materials, parts, fees, or other billable items using + Add Item.
Q: Why is the invoice template missing?
A: Invoice templates in BuildOps are tied to departments.
If the expected invoice template is missing:
confirm a department is assigned to the invoice
check that the department is associated with the correct external message template in Company Settings
note that ad hoc invoices created without a department may not show the expected template
In those cases, the message may need to be added directly to the invoice.
Q: Why are some purchased items unavailable to invoice?
A: Purchased items must be received and billed in BuildOps before they can be invoiced.
If a purchased item subtotal is zero, the related purchase order may still need a bill.
Q: Can I change the billing customer after invoicing?
A: No. Once a job has been fully invoiced, the billing customer can no longer be changed.
If a billing customer change is required, all invoices associated with the job must first be voided.