InvoiceForge FAQ
Questions and answers about the invoice generator. Everything it does happens in your browser.
Last Updated: October 6, 2026
1. General Questions
Q1: What is InvoiceForge?
A1: InvoiceForge is a free tool for making invoices in your browser. You fill in a form on the left, the finished invoice takes shape on the right as you type, and one click downloads it as a PDF or prints it. It handles four templates, your logo, 17 currencies, tax presets for 20 countries, discounts and payment terms, and it keeps saved invoices, clients and business profiles in your browser for next time. There is no server: nothing you type is uploaded.
Q2: How much does it cost?
A2: Nothing. There are no plans, no watermark and no limit on the number of invoices you make. Like every page on ZeroDataUpload, the tool is supported by advertising.
Q3: Do I need an account?
A3: No. InvoiceForge has no sign-up or login: the form is ready as soon as the page opens. Without an account there is nowhere on our side to keep your invoices, so no server copy exists (section 2 explains where they live).
Q4: How is InvoiceForge different from Bill Generator, the other invoice tool on this site?
A4: InvoiceForge is one form beside a live preview, with 17 currencies, a second currency on the invoice, tax presets by the client's country, discounts and payment terms, and saved clients and profiles in pop-up windows. Bill Generator is organised in sections with a dashboard, invoice status (draft, sent, paid, overdue), a client book and export-of-services fields for Indian businesses. Both are free and both keep everything in your browser; pick the one that matches how you bill.
Q5: Does it work on a phone?
A5: Yes. On narrow screens the preview moves above the form and the line items stack. Entering many lines is quicker on a desktop, but a short invoice is no problem on a phone.
2. Where Your Data Lives
Q6: Where are my saved invoices, clients and business profiles stored?
A6: Only in this browser on this computer, in its local storage; none of it is sent anywhere. That also means the lists belong to this one browser profile: another browser or another machine starts empty until you import a backup file into it.
Q7: Is the invoice uploaded to make the PDF?
A7: No. Your browser turns the preview into an image and lays it on an A4 page right on your computer; Print simply opens your browser's print window. Nothing about the invoice travels over the network.
Q8: What about my logo?
A8: The logo you choose is read by the browser and kept with the invoice or the business profile you save. It is printed on the invoice and included in the backup file. It is never uploaded.
Q9: What happens if I clear my browser data?
A9: They are deleted. Your invoices, clients and profiles are stored as site data for zerodataupload.com, so clearing that data, removing the browser profile or resetting the device wipes them. A regular Export, kept with your business records, protects you against that.
Q10: Does the page use cookies or analytics?
A10: InvoiceForge's own code keeps nothing but your invoices, clients, profiles and the next invoice number, all in the browser. Separately, this page loads Google's advertising and analytics code, as every page on the site does; what those collect is set out in the Privacy Policy and the Cookie Policy. Invoice contents are never shared with them.
3. Making an Invoice
Q11: Which fields are required?
A11: To save an invoice, your company name and the client name. Everything else is optional, though an invoice without line items is not much use. The country field is marked because it fills the tax fields; the invoice can still be made without it.
Q12: How are invoice numbers generated?
A12: The number field starts at the number after your last saved invoice, padded to three digits (001, 002 ...), behind the prefix you type (INV- by default; 2026- or your initials work too). You can type any number by hand. Saving an invoice records its number as the last one used.
Q13: How does the tax get filled in?
A13: Choosing the client's country fills the Tax Name and Tax Rate fields with the standard rate used there: VAT 20% for the United Kingdom, GST 18% for India, MwSt 19% for Germany, and so on. Both fields can be edited afterwards, and "Other" leaves them blank. The United States starts at 0% because sales tax varies by state. The full table is on the tool page.
Q14: Can I apply a discount?
A14: Yes. Choose Percentage or Fixed Amount under Discount Type and enter the value. The discount is taken off the subtotal before the tax is calculated, and the invoice shows it as its own line.
Q15: How do the payment terms and the due date work together?
A15: Due on Receipt, Net 15, Net 30, Net 45 and Net 60 set the due date that many days after the invoice date, and changing the invoice date moves the due date with it. Custom shows a text field for terms of your own and leaves the due date for you to set.
Q16: Which currencies are supported?
A16: Seventeen: US dollar, euro, pound sterling, Japanese yen, Indian rupee, Canadian dollar, Australian dollar, Swiss franc, Chinese yuan, Hong Kong dollar, Singapore dollar, Swedish krona, New Zealand dollar, Mexican peso, Brazilian real, UAE dirham and South African rand. The choice sets the symbol, its position and the decimals (yen has none). Amounts are not converted.
Q17: What does "Also Show In" do?
A17: It prints an approximate figure in a second currency under the amount due, for example "≈ €920.00" on a dollar invoice. The figure comes from fixed reference rates built into the tool, not from live exchange rates, so treat it as a courtesy to the reader. The invoice total itself stays in the main currency.
Q18: What are the four templates?
A18: Modern (blue accents, a coloured table header), Classic (slate, serif title, a ruled header), Minimal (grey, light lines, thin title) and Bold (a purple band across the top). Switch between them in the toolbar at any time; the content stays.
4. Clients and Business Profiles
Q19: What is the difference between a client and a business profile?
A19: A business profile is you: company name, contact details, address and logo, saved from the Your Business section and loaded back into it. A client is who you bill, saved from and loaded into Bill To. Save Profile and Save Client keep the current details; Load Saved and Load Client open a list to pick from.
Q20: How many can I keep?
A20: Ten business profiles, 100 clients and the 50 most recent saved invoices. When a list is full, the oldest entry drops off as a new one is saved. The backup file is the archive beyond those limits.
Q21: Can I edit a saved client?
A21: Load the client, change the details in the form and click Save Client again; the new entry appears at the top of the list. Delete the old one from the list with the bin button.
5. Saving, PDF and Print
Q22: What does Save Invoice do?
A22: It adds the whole invoice, logo included, to the history, which opens from the History button or Ctrl+H. Load puts it back into the form to change or reprint; the bin button deletes it. Saving also records the invoice number so the next one counts on from it.
Q23: Which output should I send?
A23: Send the PDF in nearly every case; any device can open it and it matches the preview exactly. Use Print for a paper copy. If the client needs to search or copy the text, print to "Save as PDF" from the browser instead, which produces a text-based PDF.
Q24: The PDF is cut off or has a blank area.
A24: The PDF button fits the whole preview onto a single A4 page as a picture, so an invoice with dozens of lines or lengthy notes can overflow the bottom edge. Cut down the notes, spread the items over two invoices, or print to PDF from the browser, which adds extra pages automatically.
Q25: What is the downloaded file called?
A25: The prefix and the number, for example INV-042.pdf, so the file is easy to find later. Change the number before you download, or rename the file afterwards.
6. Backups
Q26: What does Export save?
A26: A single backup file containing the invoice you are working on, all saved invoices, all clients and business profiles, the invoice counter and your logos. It is a readable text file and lands in your usual downloads folder.
Q27: Does Import add to my records or replace them?
A27: It replaces the saved invoices, clients and profiles with the file's, sets the counter from the file, and loads the invoice that was in the form when the backup was made. If the browser already holds records you want to keep, export a backup first.
Q28: How do I move to a new computer?
A28: Export on the old computer, copy the file across, Import on the new one (from the toolbar or from the History window). Logos travel inside the file.
7. Shortcuts and Theme
Q29: Are there keyboard shortcuts?
A29: Ctrl+P prints, Ctrl+D downloads the PDF, Ctrl+S saves the invoice, Ctrl+N adds a line item, Ctrl+H opens the history, Ctrl+E exports a backup, Ctrl+L clears the form, ? shows the list and Escape closes a window. On a Mac use Cmd instead of Ctrl. The shortcuts do not fire while you are typing in a field.
Q30: Can I use a dark theme?
A30: Yes, use the moon button in the top right corner; the setting applies across all of ZeroDataUpload. Only the page changes: the invoice itself keeps its paper colours, so your PDF looks the same in either theme.
8. Troubleshooting
Q31: "Please enter a company/business name before saving".
A31: Save Invoice needs your company name and the client name. Fill in the empty one and save again.
Q32: The logo does not appear on the PDF.
A32: Select the logo file once more and check that it appears in the preview straight away. Huge images slow the PDF down, and a logo a few hundred pixels wide is plenty. If it shows in the preview but not in the PDF, update your browser and try again.
Q33: Import says the file cannot be read.
A33: Import only reads backups that InvoiceForge's Export created. Make sure you picked the right file and that nobody changed it in an editor; if you keep several backups, start with the newest.
Q34: The tax rate is not the one I pay.
A34: The presets are the standard rates; reduced rates, provincial additions and state sales taxes differ. Type the rate you need into Tax Rate and the name into Tax Name; the invoice uses what the fields say.
9. Support
Q35: Where can I report a problem or suggest a feature?
A35: Use the contact form, and mention your browser, your device and the steps that led to the problem. For how each part of InvoiceForge works, see the help documentation.