If you sell on Shopify, you need a clean way to bill customers, record what you were paid, and keep your books in order. An invoice does all three. This guide explains what a Shopify invoice generator is, walks through creating an invoice inside your Shopify admin step by step, shows you Shopify’s free standalone invoice tool and its one honest limit, and compares the invoice apps merchants install when they want the whole job automated.

Key Takeaways
1
A Shopify invoice generator builds an itemized bill showing the products bought, their quantity and price, any tax or discount, and the total the customer owes.
2
You can make an invoice inside Shopify admin with a draft order, with no extra app, and email the customer a secure payment link.
3
Shopify also runs a free standalone invoice generator that needs no account, but it does not pull from your store orders, so you type every detail by hand.
4
For invoices created and sent automatically on every order, a dedicated app such as Fordeer, Vify, F, or Invoice Hero does the work for you.

What Is a Shopify Invoice Generator?

A Shopify invoice generator is a tool that builds a professional invoice for a sale. It lists the products or services bought, the quantity and price of each, any tax or discount, and the total due. Some generators are built into Shopify itself, one is a free web tool, and others are apps that attach to your store and send invoices on their own.

An invoice does two jobs. It tells the customer exactly what they are paying for, and it gives you a dated record for your own bookkeeping and tax filing. Wholesale buyers and other B2B customers often ask for an invoice before they pay, so a fast way to produce one is worth having.

How to Make an Invoice in Shopify Admin, Step by Step

If you already run a Shopify store, you do not need any extra tool to send a one-off invoice. Shopify’s built-in draft orders feature does it. Here is the exact path.

  1. Open draft orders. From your Shopify admin, go to Orders, then click Drafts.
  2. Create the order. Click Create order. This opens a blank draft that will become your invoice.
  3. Add products. In the Products section, click Add product to pull items from your catalog, or add a custom item if you are billing for something that is not in your store. Set the quantity, and edit the price on a line if you need to.
  4. Add the customer. In the Customer section, search for an existing customer or create a new one. The email address on the customer record is what Shopify uses to send the invoice, so check that it is correct.
  5. Set discounts, shipping, and tax. Apply an order discount or a per-item discount, add a shipping charge if you are billing for delivery, and use the tax setting to charge or exempt tax. Shopify works out the subtotal and total for you.
  6. Send the invoice. Click Send invoice. Shopify opens an email with the customer’s address filled in, a subject line, and a message you can edit. The email carries a secure link the customer clicks to pay.
  7. Collect the payment. When the customer pays through the link, the draft turns into a paid order on its own. If they pay you another way, open the draft and choose Mark as paid or Collect payment to record it yourself.

The draft order method works for a single buyer or a wholesale order, and because it lives inside your store, the invoice already knows your products, prices, and tax rules.

Which Invoice Tool Should You Use?

Shopify’s Free Invoice Generator

Shopify also runs a free online invoice generator that is separate from your store admin. You do not need a Shopify account to use it, and it is free for personal and commercial use. You fill in your company details, the customer’s details, and the line items, set the tax rate, and the finished invoice is emailed to you to download as a PDF.

The honest limit is this. It is a one-off generator. It does not connect to your Shopify store, so it will not pull your orders, products, or customers, and it cannot send the invoice to the customer or chase payment for you. You type every detail by hand each time and handle delivery yourself. That is fine for the occasional invoice, but it does not hold up if you bill customers every day. At that point an app earns its keep.

Invoice Apps That Automate the Job

When you want an invoice created and emailed automatically for every order, an app is the answer. These install into your Shopify admin, read your real orders, and send branded PDF invoices without you lifting a finger. Four of the invoice apps merchants reach for most often are below. All four have a free tier, so you can test one before you pay.

App What it is for Free tier Paid plans start at Automatic sending
Fordeer: PDF Invoice Generator Customizable PDF invoices, packing slips, and returns forms, with bulk download and email Yes, 50 downloads, manual email only $8.95/mo From the Starter plan
Vify Order Printer PDF Invoice Custom invoice and order-document templates, with draft-order support Yes, your last 50 orders, frontend download $10.99/mo From the Starter plan
F: PDF Invoice Generator Automatic PDF invoices, packing slips, and credit notes, with wide language support Yes, 60 prints and downloads, quick send only $21/mo From the Pro plan
Invoice Hero PDF invoices plus accounts-receivable tracking, multi-currency, and multi-language Yes, your first 50 invoices $5.95/mo From the Gold plan
Prices and plan limits checked on the Shopify App Store in October 2026. The monthly price is the lowest paid plan, so treat it as a starting point rather than a final bill.

If you only need the invoice made and emailed on each order, the cheaper plans from Invoice Hero or Fordeer cover it. If you bill in several languages or want accounts-receivable tools, F and Invoice Hero go further. For a fuller rundown of the options, see our guide to Shopify invoice apps.