The Document Chain: Quotes, POs, Invoices & Receipts
Every sale generates a chain of documents. A quote or estimate proposes the deal. A purchase order authorises it. An invoice requests payment for it. A delivery note travels with the goods, and a receipt proves the payment happened. Each document has one job, and most billing disputes trace back to two of them being confused.
These guides walk the chain end to end: what each document is, who issues it, when it changes hands, and how they reference each other so that an auditor — or just your future self — can reconstruct the deal from paper alone.
All 4 Guides
- Purchase Order vs Invoice: What Each Does and When to Use ThemOne document starts the purchase, the other ends it. Who issues each, and how they match up.Read the guide
- Estimate vs Quote: Which One Are You Actually Giving?One is a best guess, the other is a committed price. The difference decides what you can bill.Read the guide
- Delivery Notes: The Document That Travels With the GoodsWhat a delivery note proves, what goes on it, and how it feeds three-way matching.Read the guide
- Receipts: Proof of Payment, Not a Request for ItWhere receipts fit in the document chain, and why an invoice never doubles as one.Read the guide