Invoice: 'You owe me'
An invoice is issued before payment. It says the customer owes a specific amount for specific goods or services. Until it's paid, it's a liability on the customer's books and a receivable on yours.
Receipt: 'I got it'
A receipt is issued after payment. It confirms that a specific amount was paid for specific goods or services. It's proof for the customer that they paid and proof for you that you received.
Do you need both?
For most B2B transactions, yes. The invoice is the demand, the receipt is the confirmation. Both matter for accounting and dispute resolution.
For point-of-sale retail (a customer paying in cash for a haircut) the receipt alone is fine — the transaction happened in one step. But if you invoice the customer and they pay a week later, a receipt on top confirms the payment posted.
What a receipt should include
A good receipt has:
- 'Receipt' clearly at the top
- The original invoice number (if there was one)
- The date of payment
- The payment method (card, cash, check, ACH)
- The amount paid
- Any remaining balance if it was a partial payment
Automated receipts save time
When a customer pays a Glo Invoice invoice online, they automatically get a receipt by email. You don't have to remember to send one — it happens the moment the payment posts.