How to Invoice as a Personal Stylist
How to bill wardrobe edits, shopping trips and styling packages: your time and the items you bought for the client on separate lines, a deposit for packages, and a clear due date.
A styling invoice should separate what the client paid you for your time from what they paid for clothes and accessories you bought on their behalf. Each session or trip gets its own dated line, with the hours and your rate.
Write your rates, your cancellation terms and how purchases are handled into your client agreement before the first session, so the invoice holds no surprises.
Sample figures, for illustration only: a client books a three-hour closet edit and a four-hour shopping trip at $110.00 an hour, 3 × $110.00 = $330.00 and 4 × $110.00 = $440.00. The stylist also buys $612.40 of clothing for the client and logs it as an expense. Billed's help center says "The expense will appear as a line item in the invoice." The invoice totals $330.00 + $440.00 + $612.40 = $1,382.40.
Step-by-step invoicing guide
- 1
Set out your rates and purchase terms
State your hourly or session rate, any package price, and whether items you buy are billed at cost, in writing before you start.
- 2
Save your session types
Billed's invoice software page says you can "save the products and services you sell so you can pull them into an invoice instead of retyping them."
- 3
Give each session its own line
Show the date, the hours and the rate for each closet edit or shopping trip. Billed's help center says you can "fill this section to charge against new items and services".
- 4
Pass on what you bought
Log each purchase as an expense with its receipt. Billed's help center says "If there are any unbilled expenses of a particular client, you can add these expenses to the client's next invoice."
- 5
Take a deposit on packages
Billed's help center says "Add a percentage or flat amount and the due date for each installment." and "Clients can pay several installments against a single invoice."
- 6
Send it and follow up
Billed's invoice software page says "Set a due date on each invoice so your client knows when to pay." Billed's help center says "You can set a schedule of payment reminders before and after the invoice's due date."
Tips for personal stylist invoicing
- Return or exchange unwanted items before you invoice, so the purchase line matches what the client kept.
- Name the store and date for each purchase; the client can then check it against the receipt.
- Bill travel time only if your written rates include it, and show it as its own line.
- Keep receipts with each purchase: Billed's expenses page says "An expense in Billed records who you paid, when, how much and which category it belongs to, with the receipt attached to the same entry."
- Send a receipt once a client pays: Billed's invoice software page says "After a client pays, you can send them a payment receipt."
Common invoicing mistakes to avoid
- Rolling clothing purchases into your fee, which hides what the items cost.
- Buying items for a client without written terms on how purchases are billed.
- Booking a full styling package with no deposit.
- Billing a shopping trip without the hours and the rate.
How this works in Billed
Purchases on the client's next invoice
Billed's help center says "If there are any unbilled expenses of a particular client, you can add these expenses to the client's next invoice." and "The expense will appear as a line item in the invoice."
Saved session types
Billed's invoice software page says you can "save the products and services you sell so you can pull them into an invoice instead of retyping them."
Package deposits
Billed's help center says "You can make unlimited installments. However, the sum of all installments should be equal to the total balance of the invoice."
Card and PayPal payments
Billed's mobile app page says "Invoices carry a pay button when Stripe or PayPal is connected, so clients can pay by card the minute they receive it."
Scheduled reminders
Billed's help center says "You can set a schedule of payment reminders before and after the invoice's due date." It also says "You can send up to three reminders."
Frequently asked questions
Start Invoicing With Billed
Set up your account and send your first invoice with Billed.
At a glance
| What you did | How to bill it |
|---|---|
| Closet edit or styling session | Hours and rate on a dated line |
| Shopping trip | Hours and rate on a dated line |
| Clothes bought for the client | The logged expense, as its own line |
| A styling package | A deposit, then the balance |
When this isn't for you
If the way you invoice clients today already works for you, there's no need to switch.