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A recurring invoice bills the same client for the same lines on a schedule: every week, every month or every year. Hiveku creates each invoice on its date and emails it to your client, so you don’t write the same invoice again each month. This guide sets up Lanternwick Café’s monthly coffee: eight bags of single origin and four of house espresso, billed on the 1st of each month for a year. It saves the recurring invoice as a draft, so nothing is created or sent until it is started.
The Commerce menu has two items called Recurring. Recurring invoices, under Receivables, bills your clients. Recurring, under Payables, is for bills you pay to your own suppliers.

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Start a recurring invoice

Click Commerce in the left rail, then Recurring invoices, then New recurring invoice at the top right. The same list is on the Recurring tab of Invoices.
The Commerce menu with Recurring invoices outlined, and the Invoices page on its Recurring tab with No recurring invoices yet and the New recurring invoice button outlined

Recurring invoices, and New recurring invoice

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Fill in what it bills

1

Name and client

The form opens as a New billing schedule with Retainer (recurring) chosen. That is the recurring invoice; the other types are for deposits, installments and one-time invoices.Type a Name to find it by: your client never sees it. The Invoice title is printed on each invoice. Pick the Client; a Deal is optional.
New billing schedule with Retainer (recurring) chosen and outlined, Name Lanternwick Café monthly coffee, Invoice title Monthly coffee for your bar and Client Theo Nakamura, each outlined, and Deal left empty

Lanternwick Café's monthly coffee

2

Line items

Add the lines with Pick from catalog… and type each quantity, as on any invoice. Tax rate (%) is Automatic: the tax is worked out for the client on each invoice. Total per invoice shows what each one bills before tax.
Two lines picked from the catalog and outlined, 8 Ethiopia Yirgacheffe 5 lb bags at 78.00 and 4 House Espresso 5 lb wholesale bags at 62.00, and Total per invoice $872.00, plus tax worked out each run, outlined

$872 a month, plus tax

3

How often, and for how long

Under Cadence, set Repeat every to 1 month(s), or to days, weeks or years. The Start date is the date of the first invoice, which is due that day.To stop on its own, set an End date (optional) or a Number of invoices (optional). Leave both blank to keep billing until you stop it.
Cadence with Repeat every 1 month(s), Start date 12/01/2026 and Number of invoices 12 outlined, and End date left empty

Monthly from December 1, twelve invoices

4

Sending and charging

With Email each invoice to the client on, each invoice is emailed with a link to pay. Off, each one waits as a draft for you to send.Type a number in Email each invoice to email each one that many days before the invoice date. Northwind emails each one 5 days ahead, so the December invoice goes out on November 26.Charge the client’s saved card charges each invoice on its due date, to a card your client saved. It needs a payment processor. Northwind has none connected, so it stays off.
Sending and charging with Email each invoice to the client switched on and outlined, Email each invoice 5 days before the invoice date with the 5 outlined, and Charge the client's saved card switched off and outlined

Emailed 5 days ahead, no card

5

Delivery and other settings

Below, Delivery sets who gets each invoice (To starts as the client’s email), whether a PDF is attached, and the Default email or a Custom message. Other settings switches reminders, partial payments and receipts on or off for every invoice it creates.

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Check what will happen, then save

What happens next, at the bottom, says in plain words when the first invoice is due, when it is emailed, how often it repeats and when it ends. Read it before you save. Click Save as draft to keep it paused: nothing is created or sent until you start it. Create schedule starts it at once.
What happens next: First invoice due Dec 1, 2026, emailed on Nov 26, 2026 to Theo Nakamura; then every month on the 1st, each emailed 5 days before it is due, 12 invoices in all, the last on Nov 1, 2027; Not charged automatically. Outlined, with the Save as draft button outlined next to Create schedule

What happens next, and Save as draft

The recurring invoice opens marked Draft. When you are ready, click Start. Edit changes it, and Stop schedule ends it.
Lanternwick Café monthly coffee with the Draft badge outlined, the Edit, Start and Stop schedule buttons, the notice Draft: nothing is created or sent until you start it, outlined, and the Cadence and Client details

Saved as a draft

It is listed under Recurring invoices with its amount, how often it bills and its next invoice date.
The Recurring list with Billed monthly, Active, Paused and Needs attention counts, and one draft, Lanternwick Café monthly coffee for Theo Nakamura, $872.00, Monthly, next invoice Dec 1, 2026 once started, outlined

On the Recurring invoices list

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Shortcut: repeat an invoice you already sent

1

Choose Make recurring

On an invoice that is sent, partly paid or paid, click the … button at the top right, then Make recurring.
The ... menu of a paid invoice with Edit wording, Turn into subscription, Make recurring outlined, and Save as template

Make recurring, in the ... menu

2

Set how often

Pick how often under Repeat every. The dialog shows the next invoice date and whether each new invoice is emailed, and the box at the bottom sums it up. This invoice counts as the first one.Email each invoice … days before it’s due starts from the invoice’s payment terms, up to the most the schedule allows (27 days here, for a Net 30 invoice billed monthly). Type 0 to email each one on its due date.Make recurring starts billing straight away, with no draft step. Northwind clicked Cancel here.
The Make this invoice recurring dialog with Repeat every 1 month outlined, Next invoice Dec 20, 2026, the card and email settings, and the summary This invoice counts as the first run, outlined, above the Cancel and Make recurring buttons

The same invoice, every month

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Good to know

  • Each invoice it creates is a normal invoice. It appears under Invoices, and on the recurring invoice’s page under Invoices generated. Record payments on it as usual.
  • Changing it later: Edit on the recurring invoice changes the invoices still to come. Invoices already created keep their lines.
  • Subscriptions are different. A subscription bills a plan, usually to a saved card. A recurring invoice bills your own lines and works with or without a card.
  • More: Subscriptions covers plans and subscriptions. To set up your catalog first, see Add Your Products and Services.