Do I need a Shopify invoice app, or just a payment link?

What’s the difference between an invoice and a payment link in Shopify?

A PDF or printout with the order, prices and tax is an invoice in the usual sense, kept for records and the customer’s accounts team. A payment link opens your checkout, where the customer pays. Shopify’s draft order “invoice” is the second kind: an email carrying a checkout link. For an occasional printable invoice, Shopify’s free Order Printer makes one.

For each kind of Shopify link, see Shopify payment links explained.

What does “Send invoice” on a Shopify draft order actually send?

It sends an email with your message and a link to your checkout, where the customer enters billing information, selects a shipping method and pays. The draft then becomes an order marked Paid. There’s no PDF: as Shopify’s help describes it, the invoice is the email and its checkout link.

To send it from the Shopify admin:

1. Go to Orders > Drafts, then open a draft or create one.
2. In the Payments section, click Send invoice.
3. In the Send invoice dialog, type the message to include.
4. Click Review invoice, check it, then click Send invoice.

For a link to paste into your own message, open the draft and click Share > Copy link; you can also send a Shopify payment link by text. If the email needs different wording, or never arrives, our guides on customizing the invoice email and invoice emails that aren’t received cover both.

Don’t mark the draft Paid before the money arrives, or the link stops working. If a customer still can’t pay, see every reason a customer can’t pay a Shopify invoice link.

The customer chooses a shipping method at checkout, so the total can differ from the one you quoted. If they’re collecting, set Pickup in store on the draft, or turn on pickup for your location. See payment links with shipping and local pickup.

Can Shopify invoice an order that’s already been placed?

Yes, if it’s in Payment pending: open the order and click Collect payment > Send invoice to email a checkout link. Orders can also carry payment terms: due on receipt, on fulfillment, a fixed date, or net 7, 15, 30, 45, 60 or 90 days. If the customer hasn’t paid by the due date, the order shows as Overdue.

You can schedule up to five reminder emails, from the due date to 30 days after it. See how to send a payment link for an existing order and how to chase unpaid payment links.

How do I make a PDF invoice with Shopify’s own tools?

Use Shopify Order Printer, Shopify’s own free app. It pulls order data from your admin and prints custom invoices, packing slips, receipts and labels. You can print invoices and packing slips from the Shopify admin or from Shopify POS. It uses your browser’s print function, so you can save an invoice as a PDF from the print dialog.

To change the layout, you edit the template in HTML, CSS and Liquid. You can print up to 50 orders at a time.

Which Shopify invoice apps include a payment link, and where does the customer pay?

It depends on the app. B2B Draft Order Invoices, and Simple Invoice for draft orders, send the customer to your Shopify checkout. Others take payment on their own Stripe or PayPal page. The table shows where each one sends them.

Prices, ratings and reviews as of October 2026, from each Shopify App Store listing; payment details from each app’s own help pages:

Does it matter if an invoice app takes payment through Stripe instead of Shopify checkout?

Yes: it decides who marks the order paid. Take Sufio vs a draft order invoice. Through a draft’s Shopify checkout link, the draft becomes an order and Shopify marks it Paid automatically. Through Sufio’s Stripe integration, Sufio’s FAQ says you mark the order paid manually in your Shopify admin.

Merchants have asked on the Shopify Community for an invoice app that takes payment through Shopify Payments. If you want Shopify to mark the order paid for you, use an app that sends a draft’s checkout link, such as B2B Draft Order Invoices or Simple Invoice for drafts.

When is an invoice app worth adding?

Add one when the document itself is the job. Invoice Hero makes automatic PDF invoices, which it describes as “tax-compliant”. Sufio turns refunds into credit notes on its Professional plan and submits e-invoices in standards such as Peppol, ZUGFeRD and Factur-X.

For pro forma invoices on drafts, Invoice Hero has them from Gold and Sufio from Growth. B2B Draft Order Invoices puts invoices in the customer’s account to download. For quotes before a customer commits, see quotes in Shopify POS.

How do I send a payment link for an order I took at the POS counter?

On Shopify POS Pro, build the cart, tap More actions (⋯), then Send cart. The customer gets an email with a cart summary and a link to your online checkout, and the cart is saved as a draft until they pay. Shopify allows it only when you take payment for the whole order.

Or save the cart as a draft (⋯ > Create draft order) and email it later from Load Drafts > Email to customer.

Native POS options compared covers the other counter routes, and Pay Link vs Checkout Links vs Quick Sale compares the link-building apps.

Can I make a payment link straight from the Shopify POS cart?

Yes, with Pay Link from Countermade. Before staff share the link, Pay Link shows them the total up front, with a note when checkout will add shipping. If staff tap twice, it still makes one link, not two, and staff can see whether the link has been paid.

The customer pays on Shopify’s own secure checkout, so staff never see or type card details. Turn on local pickup at the store so the customer can choose pickup at checkout. Pay Link needs Shopify POS Pro.

Use your invoice app for the paperwork and Pay Link for the payment link.

Next step

If the customer only needs to pay, send the link today from the draft; add an invoice app when your accountant or customer needs the document. Pay Link is part of Countermade, the Shopify POS apps from Invenire Studios. If you’d like the link to come straight from the POS cart, join early access and we’ll email you when Pay Link is ready to try.