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Recurring invoices allow you to schedule and send invoices automatically. If you use online payments, you can also set up automatic payments on your recurring invoices to get paid on schedule.
Create your recurring invoice
Recurring invoices can also be created through checkouts. Learn how to Set up a checkout that processes recurring payments.
On the left-side menu, choose Sales & Payments > Recurring Invoices. Click Create a recurring invoice to get started.
On the next page, you can customize your invoice. In the first section, you can edit the invoice title, your business information, and your logo.
Next, you can add your customer, products, or services and any associated sales taxes, payment due date, currency, and any other details in your notes. There is extra space in the footer if required.
New products and services and customers can be added from within their respective sections under Sales in the left menu, or during the invoice creation process.
Click Save and Continue to move to the next step.
You can also customize your invoice from the Business settings menu, where you can choose a template and accent color, edit your columns, and upload your logo.
Set your schedule
This sets the rule for when Wave will create and send the invoices to your customer. You choose the frequency, start date, end date, and time zone, to ensure your customer receives your invoice on the correct day. For more information about the scheduler and the customizations available, see Understanding the recurring invoice scheduler.
Click Save and Continue to move to the next section.
Select the payment method
You can choose between automatic or manual payments. This depends on whether you would like your customer to be charged automatically, or if they would prefer to pay each invoice every time one is created. For automatic or manual payments, the customer can choose between credit card, debit card, or bank payment options.
Recurring invoices created from checkouts can only be paid by credit card or Visa debit cards. Learn how to Set up a checkout that processes recurring payments.
Once you've made your selection, click Next to proceed.
Automatic payments allow you to seamlessly bill your customer and receive payment for each sale. For more information, see Set up automatic payments on recurring invoices.
Select the sending method
Automatic sending of recurring invoices and manual sending via Wave are available to businesses that accept online payments through Wave or subscribe to Wave's Pro Plan. To learn about other ways to send invoices, see Generate a PDF or a link to an invoice.
Next, you can choose whether you'd like to automatically have your invoice sent to your customer each time it is created, or manually send the invoice each time Wave generates one for you.
If you have selected Automatic payments, the option to send invoices manually will not be available. Instead, your customer will be billed automatically and will receive a receipt of payment with a link to the relevant invoice each time.
If you choose Automatic sending, you will then be able to select your Send from and Send to addresses, and enter your email message. With a Pro Plan subscription, you can customize the default message your customers see in their email when recurring invoices are sent. Learn how to customize your email message templates.
If you choose Manual sending, you can update this information when you send your invoice.
To send the individual invoices generated from a specific recurring invoice schedule manually:
- On the left side menu, click Sales & Payments > Recurring Invoices
- Click the dropdown arrow to the right of the recurring invoice, then select View created invoices.
- Find the unsent invoice, then click Send.
- Click Save to move on.
You can also find the individual invoices on the Sales & Payments > Invoices page.
Review the details
Review the details you have selected, and scroll down to see a preview of your invoice. When you're ready, click Approve and start recurring invoice to activate the schedule.
You can review the details of your recurring invoice at any time, by heading to the Sales & Payments > Recurring Invoices page. Here, you can view details such as the start and end date, schedule, and invoice amount.
To edit these details, click on the invoice, then click Edit in the section you want to make changes to, for example, the Set schedule section.
You can also modify any recurring invoice schedules you create directly from the Recurring Invoices page. Click the drop-down arrow to the right of an invoice schedule to find View, Edit, End, View created invoices, and Duplicate options.