How to set up recurring invoices in Stacks

If you bill the same client the same amount on a schedule — a monthly retainer, a membership, an annual renewal — you shouldn't be building that invoice by hand every time. In Stacks you set the schedule once, and Stacks generates the invoice each cycle. Turn on auto-send and it emails the client for you too.

Before you start

• The Invoicing module needs to be on — it's free and on by default for every account.
• You'll need at least one contact to bill. If the client isn't in Stacks yet, add them under Contacts first.
• You'll need permission to create invoices — admins, managers and team members have it by default (view-only users don't).
• Optional: to have invoices emailed automatically, your email sending should be set up; to collect card payments online, connect your own Stripe. Neither is required just to create a schedule.

Step by step

1. Open Recurring Invoices. Go to Invoicing in the left menu, open Recurring, and click New Recurring Invoice.
2. Choose the client. Pick the contact you're billing. You can also add a short title like "Monthly retainer" so the schedule is easy to spot in your list (it's optional).
3. Set the frequency and first invoice date. Choose how often to bill — Weekly, Every 2 weeks, Monthly, Quarterly or Yearly — and pick the first invoice date. That's the day the first invoice goes out; each one after it follows one interval later.
4. Add your line items. Add each item with a description, quantity and rate — or pull one in from your catalog. Set a tax rate or discount if you need them, and anything you put in Notes appears on every invoice this schedule generates.
5. Set the billing terms. Choose payment terms (how many days the client has to pay — 14 by default) and the currency (USD, EUR, GBP or CAD). Optionally cap the run with an end date and/or a "stop after N invoices" limit — leave both blank to bill until you pause it.
6. Choose auto-send and create. Leave "Automatically email each invoice" checked to have Stacks email the invoice to the client the moment it's generated. Turn it off and each invoice is created as a draft for you to review and send yourself. Click Create recurring invoice — the first one goes out on the date you set.

Current behavior

Background jobs must be running to generate scheduled invoices. Auto-send attempts delivery through your configured workspace provider. Failed delivery leaves a draft for investigation; do not confuse a generated invoice with a successfully sent message.

Good to know

• One invoice per cycle, automatically. On each scheduled date Stacks creates that cycle's invoice and moves the schedule forward to the next date. It generates at most one invoice per schedule per day, so a schedule never fires a surprise burst of back-dated invoices.
• Pause and resume anytime. From the Recurring list you can Pause a schedule to stop billing without deleting it, then Resume when you're ready. Paused schedules generate nothing.
• It ends on your terms. When a schedule hits its end date or its invoice limit, it marks itself Ended and stops. Need it going again? Edit it and give it a later date or a higher limit — that revives it.
• Deleting is safe. Deleting a schedule stops all future invoices but leaves every invoice it has already generated exactly where it is.
• Edits apply going forward. Change the amount, frequency or client and future invoices use the new details — invoices already generated aren't touched.

Frequently asked