How to Make a Receipt of Payment: Step by Step, With an Example

Step by step: every field on a receipt

Each step names the field on our blank receipt template and the label you will see in the Receipt Generator. The template page also has the field table and a filled-in sample of a receipt paid in full.

1. 1 Number the receipt

   On the blank form

   Receipt no.

   In the Receipt Generator

   "Receipt #" under "Receipt Details". A new receipt starts at REC-2026-001; you can change it to any format.

   Use a series kept separate from your invoice numbers, so a receipt and the invoice it settles never share an identifier.

2. 2 Enter the date of payment

   On the blank form

   Date of payment

   In the Receipt Generator

   "Date", which prints on the receipt as "Date of Payment". The receipt has no due date field.

   Use the day the money reached you. For an invoice paid weeks after it was issued, this is a different date from the invoice date.

3. 3 Name who received and who paid

   On the blank form

   Received by (seller) and Received from (customer)

   In the Receipt Generator

   "From (Sender)" for your business and "To (Client)" for the payer, which prints as "Received From". This layout prints each party's name and address box only, so put an email, phone or tax number you want printed into the address box.

   Write the payer's name the way they need it for their own records, such as the company name rather than the person who paid.

4. 4 Name the invoice the payment settles

   On the blank form

   Reference (invoice / order no.)

   In the Receipt Generator

   There is no Reference field. Put the invoice number in the line description (for example "Payment — invoice INV-2026-048") or in Notes.

   This is what lets you, and the customer's bookkeeper, match the receipt to the invoice later.

5. 5 List what the payment covers

   On the blank form

   DESCRIPTION / QTY / UNIT PRICE / AMOUNT

   In the Receipt Generator

   Description, Unit, Qty and Price for each line, with "+ Add New Item" (up to 25 lines). The line total is calculated for you.

   Itemize when the payment is for several things. When it pays one invoice, a single line naming that invoice is enough.

6. 6 Check the totals

   On the blank form

   Subtotal / Tax / TOTAL PAID

   In the Receipt Generator

   "Totals & Adjustments": a discount row, a tax row with an editable label and rate, and a shipping row. The receipt prints the subtotal, a tax line only when tax is above zero, and "Total Paid".

   The total paid must equal the money you received. If the invoice already charged tax, do not add tax again on the receipt (see the example below).

7. 7 Record how it was paid

   On the blank form

   Payment method

   In the Receipt Generator

   "Payment Methods": Add Bank Transfer, Add PayPal, Add Stripe Link, or "+ Add Custom" for cash, card or check (up to 4 methods). It prints under "Payment Details".

   Add the detail that finds the payment again: a transfer reference, a check number, or the last four digits of a card.

8. 8 Add a note

   On the blank form

   Notes

   In the Receipt Generator

   "Notes & Terms". A new receipt starts with the note "Payment received in full. Thank you for your business." Edit it for a part payment or a deposit.

   The note is where a part payment and the balance still open are written down.

9. 9 Issue it and keep a copy

   On the blank form

   Print the PDF and fill it in by hand, or type into the Word file and save it as a PDF.

   In the Receipt Generator

   Press "Preview & Download", check the preview, then "Confirm & Download PDF". Email or print the PDF yourself.

   Keep your copy with the invoice it settles.

Worked example: a receipt for a part payment

Your business sent invoice INV-2026-048 for $1,200.00. On September 10, 2026 the customer transfers $500.00. The receipt records the $500.00 that came in, not the invoice total. The figures are illustrative and the parties are placeholders.

When the remaining $700.00 arrives, issue a new receipt with the next number (REC-2026-023) for $700.00, with a note such as "Final payment on invoice INV-2026-048. Invoice paid in full." The two receipts together add up to the invoice: $500.00 + $700.00 = $1,200.00.

What to write for cash, card, bank transfer and check payments

Whatever the method, write down the detail that lets you find the payment again. In the Receipt Generator the method goes under "Payment Methods" and prints under "Payment Details".

Paid in full, part payments and deposits

The rule is the same in every case: a receipt records the amount you actually received on that date.

• Paid in full. A new receipt in the generator starts with the note "Payment received in full. Thank you for your business." Keep it when the payment settles everything owed.
• Part payment. Receipt the part received, and replace the note with the invoice total and the balance still open, as in the example above.
• Deposit. Receipt the deposit as its own line (for example "Deposit received — [project]") and say in the note what total it counts toward.

To change the note, edit the Notes box under "Notes & Terms". The generator has no amount-paid or balance field, so the balance is text you type. Every receipt it makes also prints this notice: "This receipt confirms payment received for the items listed above. It is not an invoice or a request for payment — please retain it for your records."

Blank form or online generator?

Use the blank receipt template if you want to write receipts by hand or keep a Word file of your own: it comes as a print-ready PDF and an editable Word (DOCX) file, and it has a "Reference (invoice / order no.)" field. Use the Receipt Generator if you want the lines added up for you and a finished PDF to send.

What the free Receipt Generator does and does not do

The generator is free and unmetered for normal use; an anti-abuse cap of 20 PDFs per device per day (200 per IP) applies, well above ordinary use, and blank template file downloads are not metered. A one-line "Created free with myinvoicetemplate.com" credit is switched on by default and one free checkbox in the settings turns it off. Your draft is stored in your own browser on this device; when you download, its content is sent over an encrypted HTTPS connection to our server, which renders the PDF. There is no account or invoice history, so the site offers no way to recover a lost receipt: download and keep the PDF you need.

Numbering your receipts

Keep receipts in their own numbered series and refer to the invoice inside the receipt. The Receipt Generator starts at REC-2026-001; change the prefix or the starting number to continue a series you already use. For formats and the rules for sequences, see the invoice numbering guide, and use the invoice number generator to build a format you can mirror on receipts.

How long to keep receipts

There is no single worldwide period. Here is what two tax authorities say, quoted from their own pages.

United States (IRS)

"Generally, you must keep your records that support an item of income, deduction or credit shown on your tax return until the period of limitations for that tax return runs out."

"Unless otherwise stated, the years refer to the period after the return was filed. Returns filed before the due date are treated as filed on the due date."

1. Keep records for 3 years if situations (4), (5), and (6) below do not apply to you.
2. Keep records for 3 years from the date you filed your original return or 2 years from the date you paid the tax, whichever is later, if you file a claim for credit or refund after you file your return.
3. Keep records for 7 years if you file a claim for a loss from worthless securities or bad debt deduction.
4. Keep records for 6 years if you do not report income that you should report, and it is more than 25% of the gross income shown on your return.
5. Keep records indefinitely if you do not file a return.
6. Keep records indefinitely if you file a fraudulent return.
7. Keep employment tax records for at least 4 years after the date that the tax becomes due or is paid, whichever is later.

Receipts you issue count among these records. The IRS lists "Receipt books" and "Invoices" among the documents for gross receipts:

"Documents for gross receipts include the following:"

• Cash register tapes
• Deposit information (cash and credit sales)
• Receipt books
• Invoices
• Forms 1099-MISC

United Kingdom (self-employed)

"You must keep your records for at least 5 years after the 31 January submission deadline of the relevant tax year."

"If you sent your 2022 to 2023 tax return online by 31 January 2024, you must keep your records until at least the end of January 2029."

For Australia, including when a receipt is required at all, see invoice vs receipt in Australia.

Frequently asked questions

Wondering whether a receipt and an invoice are the same thing, or what an "invoice receipt" is? That is covered in Invoice vs Receipt.