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PerPlate

Free template · Invoice

A catering invoice that adds itself up

A clean catering invoice template in Excel: per-person line items, service charge, tax, deposit tracking, and balance due — with the formulas already wired so changing a headcount can't break your math.

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Why catering invoices go wrong in spreadsheets

Catering invoices have a property normal invoices don't: almost every line depends on the headcount. Dinner at $68.50 per person, bar package at $22 per person, staffing scaled to guest count. When the count moves from 100 to 120 the week of the event, a hand-built invoice needs five edits — and the version that goes out usually gets four of them. The template wires quantity × rate → subtotal → service charge → tax → minus deposit → balance due as one chain, so one edit updates everything below it.

The four numbers clients dispute (and how the template prevents it)

  • Service charge vs. gratuity. The template labels the service charge as a separate, clearly-percentaged line — and leaves gratuity off unless you add it. Clients pay what they can see and understand.
  • The deposit.A “deposit received” line with the date paid sits right above balance due. Nobody emails “didn't we already pay something?” when the answer is printed on the invoice.
  • Tax on the right base.Most states tax catering food and service charges, but rules differ on rentals and delivery. The template lets you mark lines taxable or not — check your state's rules once and encode them.
  • Changes after the contract.Added a cheese course on a Tuesday call? It goes on as its own line — “change order” — matching your contract's scope language, so extras read as agreed additions, not padding.

A clean invoice workflow for independent caterers

  1. Quote with the quote template; on acceptance, collect the deposit against a deposit invoice.
  2. At final headcount (7–14 days out), duplicate the quote numbers into the invoice — they should match line for line — and send with balance due before event day.
  3. Log payment date and method on the invoice file itself. Your BEO's billing block should point at this invoice number.

That's three documents describing one event — which is exactly the problem PerPlate exists to solve. In PerPlate the quote, BEO, and invoice are one connected record: change the headcount once, everything updates, deposits and balances track themselves. Join the waitlist for early access.

Common questions

What should a catering invoice include?

Your business details and the client's, an invoice number and date, the event name and date, line items (per-person menu items, staffing, rentals, delivery), service charge, tax, deposit already received, balance due, the due date, and how to pay. The template includes every one of these with the math pre-built.

What's the difference between a service charge and a tip on a catering invoice?

A service charge is a mandatory percentage you set and keep to cover labor and admin — it's revenue, and in most states it's taxable. A tip or gratuity is voluntary and goes to staff. Label them clearly and separately; conflating them is the most common invoice dispute and, in some states, a legal problem.

When should caterers send the final invoice?

Best practice: issue the final invoice at your final-headcount cutoff (7–14 days before the event) with the balance due before event day. Invoicing after the event turns you into a collections agency with a chef's knife.

Does the Excel template calculate totals automatically?

Yes — quantities × rates roll up to a subtotal, then service charge and tax apply, the deposit subtracts, and the balance due updates live. Change the headcount and the whole invoice recalculates.