Retainer invoice template
An invoice for a monthly retainer: the fee and the hours it includes on one line, and time beyond it on dated lines at your overage rate.
Opens in the free invoice generator. No account, and nothing you type is sent anywhere.
What to put on it
- The month and the hours included
- On the retainer line itself: “Monthly retainer, November: up to 10 hours”.
- Extra time, labeled as extra
- Each piece of work beyond the retainer gets a dated line that says so, at your overage rate.
- Hours used
- A short note with the hours used against the hours included shows the client whether the retainer is the right size.
- What happens to unused hours
- Whether they roll over or expire is set in your agreement. Repeating it in the notes heads off the question.
Paid in advance or after
A retainer that reserves your time is usually invoiced at the start of the month and due on receipt. A retainer that is a bulk rate for work done is invoiced at the end, together with any extra hours. The same layout serves both; the date and the terms differ.
When the work outgrows the retainer
If extra hours show up month after month, the invoice already makes the case for a larger retainer. Lines marked as beyond the retainer are a record both sides can read.
Questions
More on writing invoices in the guides.
What is a retainer invoice?
An invoice for a recurring fee that buys a set amount of your time or availability for a period, usually a month. It names the period and what the fee includes, and lists work beyond that separately.
When do I send a retainer invoice?
At the start of the period if the client pays in advance to reserve your time, or at the end if the retainer is billed after the work. Your agreement decides which.
How do I bill hours over the retainer?
On hourly lines under the retainer line, each with a date and a description that marks it as extra, at the overage rate you agreed.
Related templates
Beyond a template
Have the lines written from your notes.
A template still leaves the writing to you. With a free Sandglass account you paste the notes you kept, a time-tracker export or a git log, enter your hours and rate, and it drafts the dated lines. Then it emails the invoice and tracks whether it was paid.