The buttons at the bottom of the invoice's right-hand panel decide what the document becomes when you save it: a final invoice (paid or on account), an estimate, a pending invoice or a sales order. This article explains each one, when it is available, and how the set changes when you are writing an estimate or a sales order, or editing a saved invoice.
All of them are unavailable until the document has at least one line, and while a save is in progress (the main button then reads Recording… or Saving…).
On a new invoice
| Button | What it does |
|---|---|
| Save & Close | Shown when On Account is selected under Settlement (the default). Saves a final invoice the customer owes and returns to the Invoices list. It appears in Customer Balances and the aging reports and is paid later in Receive Payments. F9. |
| Save & Close — $… paid | The same button when a payment method is selected. Saves the final invoice and records a payment for the whole amount by that method. F9. |
| Save & New | Saves exactly as the main button would, then opens a blank invoice instead of going to the Invoices list. |
| Split | Takes the payment in more than one part — two or more methods, or part now and the rest on account. Opens Split Payment. See Taking a split payment. |
| Estimate | Saves the lines as an estimate instead of an invoice: no payment is taken, nothing posts, no stock moves. SeroBooks confirms Estimate (number) saved — find it under Customers ▸ Estimates. and opens the Estimates list. See Create Estimates. |
| Pending | Saves the invoice as pending: Pending invoice (number) saved — nothing is posted until it is marked final from Customers › Pending Invoices. Use it for an invoice you are not ready to post — waiting for approval, or for final quantities. See Pending Invoices. |
| Order | Saves the lines as a sales order for the customer: Sales order (number) created for (customer) — fulfil it from Customers ▸ Sales Orders. Needs a customer: Pick the customer first — a sales order is a commitment by a named customer. See Create Sales Orders. |
| Clear | Empties the form after asking Clear this cart? — All items in the cart are removed. Nothing is saved. |
Ctrl+S, Alt+S and Alt+A do the same as the main button on an invoice. After a save with the main button SeroBooks returns to the Invoices list; after Save & New you stay on a blank form.
Ctrl+M memorizes the form, as QuickBooks' Memorize does, once it has been saved: open a saved invoice (or estimate) and press it to keep it in the Memorized Transaction List. On a form that has never been saved it says Save it first — Memorize (Ctrl+M) keeps a saved invoice or estimate.
Finishing a pending invoice
When you open a pending invoice to finish it, Pending reads Keep Pending — saving it again as pending replaces the earlier version. The main button makes it a final invoice; SeroBooks then removes the pending copy (if it could not, it tells you to delete it from Pending Invoices).
Writing an estimate
In estimate mode (Customers ▸ Create Estimates, or when revising a saved estimate) the panel shows Estimate — no payment is taken and no stock moves. and these buttons:
| Button | What it does |
|---|---|
| Save & Close | Saves the estimate (or, when revising, saves the revised one in place of the old) and opens the Estimates list. F9. |
| Save & New | Saves it and starts another. |
| Order | Saves the lines as a sales order instead. |
| Invoice instead | Turns the form back into an invoice, keeping the lines. (Not shown in the Create Estimates window itself.) |
While revising a saved estimate an amber bar reads Editing (number) with Cancel. See Create Estimates.
Writing a sales order
In sales order mode (Customers ▸ Create Sales Orders):
| Button | What it does |
|---|---|
| Create Sales Order — $… | Saves the sales order. F9. |
| Save & New | Saves it and starts another. |
| Estimate instead | Saves the lines as an estimate. |
| Invoice instead | Turns the form back into an invoice. |
When you invoice a sales order, a green bar reads Fulfilling order (number) — charging updates what is still owed, with Cancel; Order is not offered. See Create Sales Orders.
When you invoice an estimate (Convert to Invoice), a blue bar reads From estimate (number) — saving marks it invoiced, with Cancel, which clears the form and leaves the estimate open. See The Estimates list.
Editing a saved invoice
On a saved invoice the buttons depend on how the change affects the money:
| Button | When it appears / what it does |
|---|---|
| Update (number) — no payment change | Nothing about the money has changed, or the invoice is unpaid and still owing. Saves the correction. F9. |
| Update (number) — $… due | The invoice is unpaid or part-paid: saves it, and the new balance stays in Receivables (Unpaid balance stays in Receivables — nothing is collected or credited by this update.). |
| Collect $… & Update (number) | A paid invoice's total went up: choose how to collect the difference (Collect difference by replaces Settlement), then save. |
| Refund $… — (method) | A paid invoice's total went down: refund the difference to the original payment method. |
| Issue Credit Note for the returned items | A paid invoice had items removed: leaves the invoice exactly as sold and records a separate credit memo for the returned items. Needs a named customer. |
| Cancel invoice (number)… | All items were removed: opens the return for the whole invoice, where you choose how the money and the stock go back. |
| Save & New | Saves the update and starts a new invoice. |
Details: Edit, copy, void or delete an invoice.
Common problems
| Problem | What to do |
|---|---|
| All the buttons are grey. | Add a line. |
| Order says to pick the customer first. | A sales order needs a named customer. |
| Ctrl+S says to use Update (F9). | On an invoice being edited, save with the Update button or F9. |
| After Estimate, the invoice is gone. | It was saved as an estimate. Open it from Customers ▸ Estimates. |