Free Purchase Order Template

A purchase order (PO) is a document a buyer sends to a vendor to formally request goods or services. It commits the buyer to a specific list of items, quantities, prices, and delivery terms. Once the vendor accepts the PO, it becomes a legally binding contract between both parties.

• Buyer creates the PO — listing what they want, at what price, by when
• Vendor accepts — by acknowledging receipt or by fulfilling the order
• Goods or services are delivered — referencing the PO number
• Vendor invoices against the PO — the invoice references the PO number for matching

POs are widely used in B2B procurement, especially in enterprises where every purchase must be authorised before the supplier ships or starts work.

POs and invoices are often confused because they look similar. The key difference is direction:

• Purchase order: Sent by the buyer to the vendor — "Please supply us with these items at these prices."
• Invoice: Sent by the vendor to the buyer — "Here is the bill for what we supplied. Please pay."

In a typical procurement cycle, the PO comes first (authorising the spend), goods or services are delivered, and the invoice follows (requesting payment). The buyer's accounts payable team matches the invoice against the PO before approving payment — a process called "PO matching" or "3-way matching" (PO + goods receipt + invoice).

A complete PO contains:

• PO number — your unique reference (e.g., PO-2025-0042) — vendors will use this on their invoice
• Issue date and required delivery date
• Buyer details — your company name, address, contact person, billing address
• Vendor details — supplier name and address
• Ship-to address — if different from the billing address
• Itemised line items — description, SKU or product code, quantity, unit price, line total
• Subtotal, applicable taxes (VAT/sales tax), shipping, and grand total
• Payment terms — Net 30, Net 60, etc., agreed in advance
• Delivery terms / Incoterms for international orders (EXW, FOB, DDP)
• Authorised signatory — the person approving the spend

invoicePrivate generates POs using the same editor as invoices — just change the document label. Steps:

1. Open the editor and set the document type to "Purchase Order"
2. Enter your company details as the buyer and the supplier details as the vendor
3. Assign a sequential PO number
4. Add line items with quantities, unit prices, and tax rates
5. Set the required delivery date and payment terms in the notes
6. Download the PDF and send it to your vendor

Your PO data stays on your device — no server, no account, no third-party access. Save it locally to reference when matching the supplier's invoice later.