Everhour connects billable time to invoicing, while media-agency billing still depends on IOs, retainers, and pass-through costs.
Fill in your details, add line items, hit Print when ready.
| Description | Qty | Rate | Tax | Amount |
|---|
The calculator gives you the number — Everhour takes it from there.
One click and you're timing. Start a timer, add an entry, edit the details. This is exactly how it feels in Everhour.
Set a budget, assign rates, and get alerted before you're over.
Measurement
Track your budget through time or costs
Every report you need — configured your way, always up to date.
Tracked hours flow straight into a polished invoice — no copy-paste, no manual math.
Media-agency invoicing usually starts with a client, campaign, statement of work, or insertion order. You need a clean invoice that names the advertiser, brand or campaign, billing period, services delivered, pass-through expenses, payment terms, and tax treatment where applicable. A monthly retainer invoice looks different from an IO-based media-buy invoice because the client expects different references and backup.
A practical agency invoice also separates agency labor from media costs. Strategy, planning, creative trafficking, reporting, optimization, and account management can sit under hourly, fixed-fee, or retainer lines. Media spend belongs on its own line or schedule when the client needs to reconcile spend against campaign delivery, insertion-order limits, and proof-of-performance reports.
A media-agency invoice should include the agency name and address, client billing details, invoice number, invoice date, due date, payment terms, campaign or brand reference, line descriptions, quantities or hours, rates, extended amounts, discounts, taxes, and total due. For United States private-sector invoices, no single federal invoice-format statute applies; invoice content is mainly a recordkeeping and contract matter.
Sales tax handling belongs in a separate decision, not as a generic default. The United States does not use a national VAT or GST invoice regime. State and local sales and use tax rules control whether a service, digital product, production asset, or pass-through item is taxable. California generally taxes retail sales of tangible personal property and only some service or labor charges, while Texas defines 16 broad taxable-service categories.
Media agencies commonly bill through project-based arrangements, agency-of-record retainers, hourly rates, cost-plus structures, and media commissions. Rate pricing remains a predominant service-pricing method in agency compensation research, so a credible invoice needs clear labor categories and rates when the engagement bills by time. A sample line can read: "Paid social campaign optimization, June 1-30, 18 hours at $150 per hour."
Insertion-order billing adds another layer. The IAB/4As standard insertion order identifies deliverables, prices, maximum spend, campaign start and end dates, and third-party ad server details before media runs. Publisher invoices commonly include IO number, advertiser name, brand name, or campaign name, and media companies invoice agencies using net cost after agency commission when the IO terms apply.
A free invoice tool works for one campaign, one retainer, or a clean project invoice when you already know the hours, costs, terms, and tax line. It is enough when the invoice is a document you create after the work is done and the client does not need a detailed reconciliation trail.
A managed workflow becomes necessary when billable hours, non-billable work, custom task rates, media costs, and client approvals feed every invoice. Everhour can keep project billing status, task-level non-billable controls, custom task rates, and member-rate exceptions tied to reports for billable time, non-billable time, billable amount, and cost, which gives agency admins a cleaner billing record before invoicing.
This content is for general information only, may not be fully up to date, and is provided without any warranty or liability.
High Performer
G2
Summer 2026
Best Ease Of Use
Capterra
Summer 2026
Rated in the top time trackers across G2, Capterra, and TrustRadius — with consistent praise for ease of use, integrations, and support.
Media-agency invoicing software should support client and campaign references, invoice numbers, billing periods, payment terms, line-item detail, taxes, discounts, pass-through costs, and attachments or backup where the client requires them. Agency work also needs flexible line structure because retainers, hourly services, project fees, media commissions, and IO-based media spend do not fit one invoice layout.
An IO-based media invoice should reference the IO number, advertiser, brand or campaign, billing period, deliverables, spend basis, and payment term stated in the IO. IAB/4As standard terms use monthly invoicing or invoicing within 30 days after IO completion, whichever comes earlier, and set 30 days from invoice receipt unless the IO states another schedule.
A media agency can invoice retainer work and campaign spend on the same invoice when the client contract allows that structure. The clean approach is to separate retained services from pass-through media costs, production expenses, and any commission or markup. That separation helps the client approve service fees without losing visibility into campaign spend.
The most common dispute trigger is a missing connection between the invoice and the client's approval document. A media-buy invoice without the IO number, campaign name, billing period, spend basis, or delivery support forces the client to reconstruct the charge. Retainer invoices create similar friction when they lack scope, period, or out-of-scope work detail.
A United States media-agency invoice does not need a VAT or GST number because the United States does not use a national VAT or GST invoice regime. A seller that makes taxable sales may need state-level sales-tax registration where required. Taxability depends on state and local rules, nexus, service type, product type, and place of sale.
Everhour lets agency admins set project billing status, mark specific tasks as non-billable, use custom task rates, and apply member-rate exceptions. Reports can show billable time, non-billable time, billable amount, and cost, so campaign work, internal coordination, and client-chargeable activity stay separated before invoicing.
Everhour Billing & Invoicing can generate invoices from uninvoiced billable time and expenses, then calculate amounts from rates while excluding non-billable work. Invoice data can be grouped by project, task, person, date, or other available breakdowns, which helps agencies match client billing formats.
Track campaign work, separate billable from non-billable activity, and invoice from approved agency records. Everhour gives media teams cleaner billing detail without rebuilding every invoice from spreadsheets.
14-day free trial · No credit card · Cancel anytime
