Are you in search of a step-by-step guide on how to send invoices on PayPal to streamline your invoicing process? Look no further! In this blog post, we’ll walk you through each stage of sending an invoice via PayPal, accompanied by helpful screenshots to simplify the process. Whether you’re a freelancer, a small business owner, or an entrepreneur, sending invoices and receiving payments is important for upholding professionalism and ensuring secure transactions. We’ll also share a hack on how to reduce or even eliminate the fees you pay to PayPal when receiving invoice payments. Plus, we’ll introduce you to free-to-use tools that can potentially save you up to 100% of your PayPal transaction fees. Let’s get started.
Table of contents:
How to send an invoice on PayPal? Step by step guide with Screenshots:
- Log in to Your PayPal Account: Visit the PayPal website and log in using your credentials, then under “Quick Links,” click on “Invoicing” and proceed to click on “Create Invoices.”
- Add Client Details and Invoice Items: Enter the clients’s details, such as their email address and name, and add the items or services provided, along with their respective prices, then select the due date for the invoice.
- Include Message or Terms and Conditions (Optional): If needed, add a message or include specific terms and conditions; this step is optional but can provide clarity to your clients.
- Send the Invoice: Review the invoice to ensure accuracy, and once satisfied, click “Send” to send the invoice to the client
- Automated Reminders: PayPal’s automated reminders are tied to the due dates of your invoices, sent two days before and two days after the due date.
- Modify Reminders: You can change reminder settings to suit your preferences, including when to send reminders before and after the due date, and how many reminders to send, with settings applying to invoices sent after modifications are made.
- Individual Invoice Reminders: In the list of sent invoices, you can send reminders for individual invoices if needed, allowing you to manage reminders on a per-invoice basis.
- Stop Reminders for Specific Invoices: If you wish to stop reminders for a particular client you can do so from the list of sent invoices, giving you control over reminders for specific client or invoices.
Now that you’ve learned how to send invoices through PayPal, let’s understand the fees you might pay when receiving payments for your PayPal invoices.
What is PayPal’s Fees for Invoice Payments?
When it comes to receiving payments through PayPal invoices, understanding the associated fees is important for accurate financial planning. While PayPal doesn’t charge fees for setting up and sending invoices or for canceling them, there are fees incurred when your clients make payments online. Here’s the breakdown of the PayPal fees.
You can also calculate the PayPal fees using a paypal fee calculator here: https://checkya.com/paypal-fee-calculator
Fee Structure:
- Alternative Payment Method (APM): Fee: 2.99% + fixed fee
- All Other Commercial Transactions: Fee: 3.49% + fixed fee
- PayPal Checkout/ PayPal Guest Checkout: Fee: 3.49% + fixed fee
- Pay with Venmo: Fee: 3.49% + fixed fee
- Send/Receive Money for Goods and Services: Fee: 2.99%
- Standard Credit and Debit Card Payments: Fee: 2.99% + fixed fee
For example, if you raise an invoice for $500, using alternative payment methods (APM) such as Google Pay/Apple Pay through PayPal, the fees would amount to approximately $15.25, resulting in a net received amount of around $484.75.
In addition to this, there is a percentage-based fee for international commercial transactions. A fee of 1.50% on top of the domestic fee + fixed fee depending on the currency received is applicable.
Tips to Save PayPal Processing Fees
If you’ve been consistently invoicing through PayPal, you might have noticed that the fees can add up, potentially eating into your earnings significantly. For instance, the average freelancer in the United States, making around $70,000 in 2022, could have lost over $2,000 just due to payment transaction fees alone. That’s a substantial amount of money that could have been retained.
One solution to mitigate these costs is leveraging tools like CheckYa. Our platform offers a unique invoice feature that allows you to pass the payment transaction fees directly to your clients, ensuring you receive the full amount you invoiced for.
CheckYa’s fee-splitting feature allows you to pass on 50% to 100% of your transaction fee to your clients. Simply connect your PayPal account to CheckYa, and when sending an invoice, you can choose to pass on the transaction fee to your clients or split 50% of the fee with them.
With CheckYa, the process remains simple and streamlined. You can still enjoy features like automated reminders upon the due date and track all paid, unpaid, and overdue invoices conveniently within one tab. By utilizing CheckYa’s fee-splitting feature, you can maximize your earnings while maintaining efficient invoicing practices.
By taking advantage of innovative solutions like CheckYa, you can minimize the impact of PayPal processing fees on your bottom line, ensuring you retain more of your hard-earned income.
Sending Invoices via CheckYa: A Step-by-Step Guide
- Sign Up or Log In to Your Account: Visit the CheckYa website and sign up for an account if you haven’t already. If you have an account, log in using your credentials. In the left menu bar, locate and click on “Invoice” to access the invoicing feature.
- Create a New Invoice: Select “Create Invoice” to initiate the process of generating a new invoice.
- Add Project Details: Enter the relevant project details, including the project name or reference number, to help identify the invoice.
- Input Client Details: Provide the client’s information, such as their name, email address, and any additional contact details required for communication.
- Select a Due Date: Choose the due date for the invoice to specify when payment is expected from the client. CheckYa will automatically send a reminder 2 days post the due date.
- Include Line Items: Add line items to the invoice to itemize the services or products provided. For each line item, specify the description, quantity, unit cost, and total cost.
- Specify Payment Method: Indicate the preferred payment method for the invoice, whether it’s through PayPal, Credit Card, or ACH.
- Add Terms and Conditions: Include any relevant terms and conditions associated with the invoice, such as payment terms, late payment penalties, or project-specific agreements.
- Review and Send: Double-check all details to ensure accuracy and completeness. Once done, hit the “Send” button to dispatch the invoice to the client.
Conclusion
Now that you know how to send invoices using PayPal, you’re all set to get paid for your work. But if you’re worried about PayPal’s fees being too high, there’s a solution. You can try tools like CheckYa, which let you send invoices and ask your clients to cover the PayPal fees. By using CheckYa or similar tools, you can make sure you get paid without losing money to fees. Whether you stick with PayPal or try something else, the important thing is finding what works best for your business. With the tips from this guide, you’re ready to make invoicing easy and keep your business running smoothly.
