Invoice vs receipt vs quote
They get used interchangeably, but they're three different documents that appear at three different moments in a sale. Mixing them up causes real problems — chasing a payment you already got, or losing a tax deduction because you kept the wrong piece of paper.
| Document | When | What it does |
|---|---|---|
| Quote / estimate | Before the work | Offers a price so the client can decide. Not a demand for payment; an estimate can change, a quote usually can't. |
| Invoice | After the work, before payment | Requests payment. States what's owed, by when, and carries a unique invoice number. |
| Receipt | After payment | Proves payment was made. Confirms the transaction is settled. |
Why the difference matters
The practical failures are predictable. Treat a quote as an invoice and you'll book revenue that hasn't been agreed. Treat an invoice as a receipt and you'll chase a client who already paid. And in your own records, an invoice tells you what you're owed; a receipt tells you what you've collected — you need both to know where you stand.
The tax trap: a receipt is not a VAT invoice
This one costs people money. If you're VAT-registered and want to reclaim the VAT on something you bought, you generally need a valid VAT invoice to support the claim — a card slip, an order confirmation, or a plain receipt often isn't enough on its own.[1] So when you buy business supplies, ask for a proper invoice, not just the receipt. The same logic runs the other way: the invoices you send your clients are what let them reclaim their VAT, which is why a well-formed invoice is a small courtesy that makes you easier to do business with.
Where Billfold fits
Billfold creates the invoice — the request for payment — with everything a valid one needs: a unique sequential number, per-line tax, and clear totals and terms. When the client pays, tick Mark as paid and export again: the same document now reads as a record that the balance is settled, effectively your receipt. It all happens in your browser, and nothing is uploaded.
See also: what legally has to be on an invoice and how to number invoices.
- UK Government / HMRC, reclaiming VAT — you need a valid VAT invoice to reclaim input VAT. gov.uk/reclaim-vat