Hourly Invoice Template

An hourly invoice template should include your name or business name, contact information, the client's details, a unique invoice number, the invoice date and payment due date, and an itemized list of the work performed. For each line item, show the date or description of the work, the number of hours worked, the hourly rate, and the line total. Finish with a subtotal, any tax, the total amount due, and your accepted payment methods and terms. Clear hours and rates on every line make it easy for clients to verify your work and pay on time.

Multiply the hours worked by your hourly rate for each line item, then add the line totals together to get your subtotal. Apply any tax or discounts to reach the final amount due. If you track your hours in Google Sheets, you can let the spreadsheet calculate every line total and the grand total automatically, and Portant will merge those values straight into your invoice so the maths is always right.

Most businesses that bill hourly use decimal hours and round to a sensible increment, commonly 6 minutes (0.1 hours) or 15 minutes (0.25 hours). Pick one increment, state it in your payment terms, and apply it consistently on every invoice. Showing partial hours as decimals (for example 3.5 hours at $80) keeps the line totals easy to verify and avoids disputes about rounding.

Hourly billing suits work where the scope is open ended or likely to change, such as ongoing consulting, support, or maintenance, because you are paid for exactly the time you spend. A flat rate suits well defined projects with a clear deliverable. Many freelancers and agencies use both: a flat rate for fixed projects and an hourly invoice for everything outside the original scope. Whichever you choose, an itemized invoice that shows what the client is paying for will get you paid faster.

Yes. You can use Portant to generate hourly invoices from Google Sheets for free, and customise the template with your own logo, brand colours, hours, and rates. Portant also automates the boring part: it merges each row of your timesheet into a finished invoice and emails it to your client as a PDF, so you never copy and paste timesheet data again.