When you bill by the hour, the client is buying your time, so the invoice has to show that time clearly: when you worked, what you worked on, how many hours and at what rate. A client who can check the numbers at a glance pays faster and questions less.
These hourly invoice templates load into the editor below with hours in the quantity column and your rate in the rate column, so every line multiplies out on its own. Decimal hours such as 4.25 work, and totals update as you type.
A weekly timesheet layout and a service log with two rates. Click either card to load it into the editor below; your own draft is left alone until you start editing.
Tip: copy rows from Excel or Google Sheets and paste them into any line.
Rename any label printed on the invoice. You can also click a label on the preview.
An hourly invoice is really a short timesheet with a total. These are the parts clients look for.
Hours in the quantity column, one line per week, and weekend work at 1.5× the regular rate.
| Description | Qty | Rate | Amount |
|---|---|---|---|
| Development, week of Oct 6 | 14.25 | $90.00 | $1,282.50 |
| Development, week of Oct 13 | 11.5 | $90.00 | $1,035.00 |
| Client meetings | 2 | $90.00 | $180.00 |
| Weekend release (1.5× rate) | 3 | $135.00 | $405.00 |
| Total due | $2,902.50 | ||
Each amount is hours × rate. Change the column labels to “Hours” and “Rate / hr” by clicking them on the invoice.
Most people who bill by the hour round their time in some way, and that is fine as long as the rule is consistent and the client knows it. The common choices are 6-minute increments (a tenth of an hour, usual in legal and accounting work), 15-minute increments (quarters of an hour), and a minimum charge for short tasks, such as a one-hour minimum for a call-out. Whatever you choose, decide it before the first invoice rather than adjusting it job by job. Tell new clients at the start, not on the first bill.
Round each entry rather than the weekly total, and round to the nearest increment rather than always up, unless your agreement says otherwise. Then convert to decimal hours for the invoice: with 6-minute increments every entry is a clean tenth (0.1, 0.4, 1.3), and with 15-minute increments it is a quarter (0.25, 0.5, 0.75). The quantity field accepts decimals, and each line amount is rounded to the cent. Keep the raw start and end times in your own log, so you can show how any line was rounded if a client asks. That way the invoice and your records always agree.
Some hourly clients prefer to buy a block of hours up front, for example 20 hours at a slightly lower rate, and draw them down over a month or a quarter. It smooths cash flow for you and gives the client a predictable budget. Invoice the block when it is bought, as one line such as “Prepaid support block, 20 hours”, and keep your own log of the hours used against it. Blocks work well for support, maintenance and advisory work where the need is steady but hard to predict week to week.
Each period, send an invoice that lists the hours actually worked at the block rate and enter the prepaid amount they use up under Amount paid, so the balance due covers only hours beyond the block. Say in the notes how many prepaid hours remain and whether unused hours roll over or expire, exactly as your agreement states. When a block is about to run out, say so on the invoice and offer the next block, rather than letting the balance slide into unbilled overage.
For ongoing hourly work, invoice on a fixed schedule, weekly, every two weeks or monthly, so neither side ends up with a surprise bill. Short payment terms like Net 7 or Net 15 fit a regular cycle.
If a project could run long, agree on an hour cap or an estimate first, and note on each invoice how many hours have been used against it. Clients rarely dispute hours they saw coming.
Keep your rate the same on every invoice for a client unless you have told them about a change in advance. A new rate that appears for the first time on an invoice tends to delay payment.
Billing time without the back-and-forth.
Use decimal hours in the quantity column: 1 hour 15 minutes is 1.25, 1 hour 30 minutes is 1.5. Put your hourly rate in the rate column and the amount is calculated for you.
Usually not. One line per day or week with a clear description is easier to read. Attach or offer the detailed time log for clients who want it.
Add those hours as a separate line with the higher rate, and say why in the description, for example “Weekend release (1.5× rate)”.
Yes. Click the column label on the invoice and type a new one, or use Customize wording in the form. The change is saved with your invoice.
On a fixed schedule the client knows: weekly or every two weeks for busy projects, monthly for lighter ongoing work. Regular, smaller invoices are easier to check and approve than one large bill at the end.
Yes. It is free to fill in and download as a PDF, with no watermark and no account.
Different work, different invoice. Each of these opens in the same free generator.
