"Net 30" means payment is due 30 days after the invoice date — not 30 days after the client gets around to reading it. The term you choose sets the floor for how long you wait to get paid; in practice you'll often wait a bit longer than the stated term. So the real question isn't "what's standard?" but "what's the longest wait my cash flow can absorb, and what will this client's payment process actually support?"
The decision framework
| Term | Payment due | Use when |
|---|---|---|
| Due on receipt | Immediately | New clients, one-off jobs, small invoices, deposits |
| Net 7 / Net 15 | 1–2 weeks | Freelancers and small-business clients with a real person paying bills |
| Net 30 | 30 days | Mid-size and large companies with an accounts-payable process |
| Net 45 / Net 60 | 6–9 weeks | Only when a large client's procurement policy forces it — negotiate first |
Three questions pick the term:
- Who actually pays the invoice? If it's the founder or office manager, short terms work fine — they can pay the day it arrives. If it's an AP department with approval chains and payment runs, anything shorter than Net 30 may be ignored regardless of what you print.
- How much trust exists? New client, no history: Due on receipt or Net 7, ideally with a deposit (how to ask for one). Two years of on-time payments: Net 30 is a reasonable courtesy.
- What can your cash flow absorb? If a 45-day wait on your biggest invoice would make rent stressful, don't offer it. Your terms are a business decision, not a politeness contest.
Whatever you pick, print an explicit date next to the term — "Net 15 — due October 2" — because plenty of clients honestly don't know what Net 15 means. More formats in invoice payment terms examples.
The cash-flow math of shorter terms
Shorter terms aren't about impatience; they're about how much of your money is locked up at any moment. Say you invoice $8,000/month:
- On Net 60 (plus typical slippage to ~70 days), roughly $18,000–19,000 of your money is sitting in other people's bank accounts at all times.
- On Net 30, that float is about $8,000–9,000.
- On Net 15, it's $4,000–5,000.
Moving from Net 60 to Net 15 is a one-time, permanent transfer of about $14,000 from your clients' cash flow to yours — without earning a dollar more. That float is the money you'd otherwise cover with a credit card or a stressful month. Shorter terms also shrink the reminder cycle: an invoice can only become 30 days overdue after it first spends 60 days being "on time."
How to negotiate away from a client's Net 45/60
Large clients often open with "our standard terms are Net 60." That's a default, not a law of physics. Options, in order of preference:
- Ask early, not at invoice time. Payment terms are part of the deal, so raise them when scope and price are being agreed: "My standard terms are Net 15. I can do Net 30 for the engagement, but Net 60 doesn't work for a business my size."
- Trade something explicit. "I can accept Net 45 if we add a 30% deposit at kickoff" or "Net 60 works at my standard rate plus 5% — or Net 15 at the quoted rate." Long terms are financing; price them like it.
- Offer an early-payment discount. Some AP departments will pay in 10 days for a 1–2% discount even when policy says 60 — see when 2/10 Net 30 makes sense.
- Invoice more often. If the term won't move, shrink each invoice's exposure: bill biweekly or at milestones instead of one large invoice at the end.
Get whatever you agree in writing before work starts, and make sure the invoice matches it exactly — a mismatch between contract terms and invoice terms is a classic excuse for delay.
Example: Net 15 invoice with an explicit due date
The term, the calendar date, and the payment method are all stated — nothing left to interpretation.
Whichever term you land on, it only works if it's printed clearly on every invoice. InvoiceKo is a free invoice generator — no signup, no watermark, PDF made in your browser — with a terms field for exactly this, plus 25+ currencies if your clients are abroad.