Templates
Sales order format, free in Excel, Word and PDF
A sales order records what a customer has ordered, at what price and by when, before anything is billed. Download the format, fill in five blocks, and send it to the customer to confirm.
Free download, no sign-up
Filled with the sample shown. The Excel file has formulas for tax and totals.
In short
A sales order confirms what a customer ordered, the agreed prices and the delivery date before you invoice. The download here is free in Excel, Word and PDF, and SimpleERP turns the same order into invoices in parts.
Harbor Supply Co.
Tax number 100 234 567
Sales order
SO-2026-0007
Customer: Bluewater Traders
- Steel rack 4 shelf10 pcs
- Office chair mesh6 pcs
- Cable tray 3 m20 pcs
What this document is for
A sales order sits between the quotation and the invoice. The customer has said yes; you have not delivered yet. Writing the order down fixes the items, quantities, prices and delivery date both sides agreed, so the invoice that follows has nothing to argue about.
- It is a commitment, not a tax document. No VAT, GST or sales tax is charged on a sales order; tax is charged on the invoice.
- It tracks what is left to deliver. An order for 20 cable trays billed 12 at a time still shows 8 open.
- It protects your price. If prices change before delivery, the confirmed order is your record of what was agreed.
What a sales order must contain
No tax rule prescribes a sales order format. These are the blocks a customer and your own team need to act on it.
- Your business details: name, address, tax number and contact phone.
- Order number and date, numbered in one series, such as SO-2026-0007.
- Customer details: name, billing and delivery address, and tax number if they have one.
- Lines: description, quantity, unit, price, tax rate and amount.
- Totals: amount before tax, expected tax and the order total, so the customer sees the invoice amount in advance.
- Delivery date, payment terms and any advance agreed before work starts.
How to fill the template
Put your header in once
Replace Harbor Supply Co. with your name, address and tax number, and save the file as your own blank copy.
Number and date the order
Use the next number in your series and the date the customer confirmed, not the date of the quotation.
Add the customer and delivery address
Copy the customer's tax number exactly from their own documents; the invoice will carry the same one.
Enter the lines
Type quantity and price; the Excel file works out amount, tax and total with formulas. In Word, check the arithmetic before you send.
Write the terms and send it
Delivery date, advance, payment days. Ask the customer to sign or reply to confirm, then keep the confirmed copy.
| Item | Qty | Rate | Amount |
|---|---|---|---|
| Steel rack 4 shelf | 10 pcs | $57.00 | $570.00 |
| Office chair mesh | 6 pcs | $74.00 | $444.00 |
| Cable tray 3 m | 20 pcs | $17.00 | $340.00 |
| Amount before tax | $1,354.00 | ||
| Tax at 20% | $270.80 | ||
| Order total | $1,624.80 |
Make it in SimpleERP instead
In SimpleERP a sales order is the same editor as an invoice. Pick the customer, type the lines, and confirm it. When goods are ready, Create invoice copies whatever is still open on the order.
- Quotation to sales order to invoice with the lines copied at each step.
- Invoice an order in parts. Each line shows ordered, invoiced and remaining.
- Tax rate and price fill from the product, at the rates set up for your country.
- Record an advance as a customer payment kept on account, then allocate it to the invoice.
- A work order can name this sales order when the piece has to be made first, so the job shows which customer is waiting.
Illustration of the keyboard-first invoice editor with a focused line, live tax totals and shortcut hints.
Fields
Every field on a sales order, and why
Tax law prescribes the supplier's invoice (in the EU, article 226 of the VAT Directive), not the sales order. The fields here are what customers, suppliers and auditors expect to see.
| Field | Required | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Seller name, address and tax number | Good practice | Identifies who is committing to supply. |
| Order number and date | Good practice | Lets the invoice and any part delivery refer back to the order. |
| Customer name, address and tax number | Good practice | The invoice will carry the same details, so check them now. |
| Description, quantity, unit and price per line | Good practice | The agreed goods and prices the invoice must match. |
| Amount before tax, tax rate and expected total | Good practice | The customer approves the amount they will be invoiced. |
| Delivery date and address | Good practice | Sets when and where the goods are due. |
| Payment terms and advance | If applicable | Records any money due before work starts. |
| Customer confirmation or signature | Good practice | Evidence the customer accepted the order. |
Source: No format is prescribed; good practice, verified 5 November 2026.
Common mistakes
Mistakes to avoid on a sales order
- Charging tax on the sales order and then again on the invoice, so the customer's books show tax twice.
- Reusing the quotation number as the order number, which breaks the trail when one quotation is revised and reordered.
- Leaving out the delivery date, so a late delivery has no agreed date to measure against.
- Not recording what has already been invoiced, so a part-billed order gets billed in full again.
- Taking an advance with no reference to the order, then losing track of it when the invoice is raised.
Honest limits
Honest limits
- A sales order does not move stock or post to the books. The invoice does.
- No shipping documents or e-invoicing network link. Produce those in your carrier's or government's own system.
- No price lists per customer. The price comes from the product and you change it on the line.
Getting started
Start with your first invoice
Sign up with your email
Name, email and a password. No card for the seven-day trial.
Tell us about the business
Pick your country and type your tax number. Currency, tax rates, accounts, units, roles and numbering are set up for that country.
Add what you sell
Name, tax rate and selling price for each product, typed in or imported from a spreadsheet. Then create and confirm the order.
Post your first invoice
Pick the customer, add lines and save. Your first tax invoice can be out within 10 minutes of signing up.
FAQ
Questions, answered
Is a sales order a legal requirement?
No. Tax law prescribes the invoice, not the sales order. A sales order is a commercial document that records the agreement; the tax is charged and reported on the invoice you raise when goods are supplied.
Should a sales order show tax?
It is good practice. Showing the amount before tax, the tax rate and the expected total, here $1,624.80 on $1,354.00 before tax, means the customer approves the full amount before the invoice arrives.
What is the difference between a sales order and a purchase order?
They are two sides of the same deal. The buyer sends a purchase order to the seller; the seller records a sales order for it. Many sellers note the buyer's PO number on the sales order so both can be matched.
Can I use this format in Excel with formulas?
Yes. The Excel download computes each line amount, the tax and the order total with formulas, so changing a quantity or price updates the total. The Word and PDF files are for printing or sending as they are.
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