One job.
Three invoices.
No spreadsheet.
You don't get paid once. You collect a deposit, draw at rough-in, finish, and bill the final. Send the invoice before the ladder goes back on the truck. Every invoice carries the same job reference. The homeowner sees one story. You see one running balance.
Henderson · Bathroom remodel
$24,000 total · 4 invoices
Deposit
Paid by ACH
$6,000
PaidRough-in
Paid by Check
$8,000
PaidTile + fixtures
$7,000
SentFinal
$3,000
DraftCollected
$14,000
In flight
$7,000
Remaining
$3,000
How trades actually bill
Bill in stages.
Get paid in stages.
Material drops Tuesday. Crew shows up Wednesday. Rough-in done Friday. The bill goes out Friday afternoon. The homeowner pays the next week. By the time you order the tile, the deposit covers it.
Settle handles every invoice on the same job under the same name. You stop running a spreadsheet to remember what's collected and what's still out.
How a job actually moves
Mon · materials drop
Tile, fixtures, fittings. Vendor invoice expected next week.
Tue–Fri · work
Crew on site. Rough-in finished by Friday afternoon.
Fri 4 PM · invoice
Stage 2 invoice goes out · $8,000 · from your phone.
Wed · paid
Homeowner pays by ACH. Job balance updates.
Same job name on every invoice. One running record.
Filter by reference
Deposit
$6,000
Rough-in
$8,000
Material advance
$2,200
Tile supplier
$2,180
Tile + fixtures
$7,000
Electric sub
$1,400
Same reference across invoices, requests, and vendor bills.
One reference, every record
The job number ties the whole record together.
Every invoice, payment request, and vendor bill carries a reference field. You decide what it means. A job number on a remodel. An engagement ID on a consulting retainer. A project code on a design brief. A PO number when procurement asks.
Filter by that reference and every related record lines up. The record is the work, not the invoice.
Trust on both sides
The homeowner sees the same numbers you do.
When your client has a Settle Invoice Inbox, every invoice you send lands there automatically. Same amounts. Same statuses. No reconciliation phone calls.
Your view · contractor
Henderson · bathroom remodel
Deposit
$6,000
PaidRough-in
$8,000
PaidTile + fixtures
$7,000
SentFinal
$3,000
DraftCollected
$14,000 / $24,000
Same record
Homeowner's view · Invoice Inbox
Henderson · bathroom remodel
Deposit
$6,000
PaidRough-in
$8,000
PaidTile + fixtures
$7,000
SentFinal
$3,000
DraftPaid so far
$14,000 / $24,000
The homeowner doesn't need a Settle account for you to send the invoice. But when they have one, the trust upgrade is automatic.
Every job in flight
What you owe yourself. What's already in.
Five jobs. One screen. Real numbers from real invoices.
All jobs · May
5 active · 1 closed
Henderson · bathroom remodel
In progress$14,000 / $24,000
Brookfield · kitchen remodel
Closed$38,000 / $38,000
Garcia · deck rebuild
In progress$6,250 / $12,500
Cole · roof replacement
Started$5,400 / $18,000
Mendez · fence install
Quoted$0 / $4,800
Total billed
$97,300
Collected
$63,650
Outstanding
$33,650
Common questions
What every contractor asks.
Question
How do I bill a deposit before I start the work?
Send a payment request for the deposit before kickoff. The homeowner pays by card, ACH, or whatever works. The moment it clears, you can order materials and start the job. The deposit lives under the same job label as every invoice that follows.
Henderson · bathroom
Payment request before kickoff
Deposit
$6,000
Card · ACH · Apple Pay
When paid, order materials and start the job
Question
How do I send a progress invoice without rebuilding the scope?
Open the job, hit New invoice, type the amount for the current stage. The customer's information, your branding, the job reference are already there. The invoice goes out in two minutes from the cab of your truck or the kitchen counter at home.
New invoice on Henderson
Stage 2 · rough-in done
Customer
Henderson, Linda
Job
Bathroom remodel
Branding
From your settings
Amount
$8,000
Type amount. Hit send. Two minutes.
Question
What if the homeowner pays the deposit by check?
Mark it paid in the invoice and pick the method: check, cash, Zelle, Venmo, wire, card. The invoice closes. The job's running balance updates. Your history stays complete whether or not the money came through Settle.
Mark as paid · $6,000
Henderson · deposit
Paid by
Question
How do I track what's collected on a job vs what's still owed?
Every invoice on a job shows up in the same view. The total billed, the total collected, the outstanding balance. Filter by job name and the math is done. No spreadsheet.
Henderson · balance
Billed
$24,000
Collected
$14,000
Outstanding
$10,000
Question
Can I send an invoice from my phone?
Yes. The web app works on a phone. Type the amount, pick the job, send it. Done before the ladder goes back on the truck. The homeowner gets the email before you pull off the curb.
4:18 PM
New invoice
Henderson · bathroom
Amount
$8,000
Question
How do I show the homeowner a clean record of what's paid?
Every invoice you send carries your branding and the job reference. The homeowner sees a consistent set of bills they can reconcile against their own records. When the job is done, they have a complete paper trail without you producing one.
Henderson · history
From your contractor
Deposit
INV-101
$6,000
Paid
Rough-in
INV-102
$8,000
Paid
Tile + fixtures
INV-103
$7,000
Sent
Final
INV-104
$3,000
Draft
Question
What if the homeowner has a Settle account of their own?
Every invoice you send lands in their Invoice Inbox automatically. All four bills for the bathroom remodel sit under one job, with a running balance they can see. When they reference the job two years later for a refi or a sale, the record is right there in their account.
Homeowner's Invoice Inbox
Bathroom remodel
From your contractor · all bills
Deposit · Mar 2
$6,000
Paid
Rough-in · Mar 28
$8,000
Paid
Tile + fixtures · Apr 18
$7,000
Sent
Final · May 6
$3,000
Draft
Paid so far
$14,000 / $24,000
Question
How do I handle bills from material vendors and subs?
Share your Invoice Me link with your tile supplier, your electrician sub, your lumber yard. They submit a structured bill with PO and amount. The bill lands in your Bills inbox with sanctions and fraud checks already run. No more PDFs lost in your email.
Submit a bill to
Your Contracting Co
Sanctions cleared · in your Bills inbox
Cash flow
Know if the deposit covers the next material drop.
Materials Tuesday. Crew Wednesday. Invoice Friday. The math has to work in advance.
Henderson · this week
Cash flow on one job
Mon
Henderson deposit
Tue
Tile order
Wed
Crew payout
Thu
Work day
Fri
Invoice sent
In · this week
$6,000
Out · this week
$4,000
Job balance
+$2,000
As the business grows
From one truck to a real shop.
The system that handles three jobs handles thirty.
When
When you hire your first sub
Then
Open Settle Intake
Your sub submits their bill through your branded link. Sanctions and fraud checks run before the bill reaches you. No more lost PDFs.
Learn more →When
When materials vendors start billing you
Then
Use Settle Intake for vendor bills
Lumber yard, tile supplier, fixture dealer. Bills land in your Bills inbox with the vendor auto-tracked.
Learn more →When
When cash flow becomes the bottleneck
Then
Open Cash Pulse
See what's collected this week vs what's due to vendors. Know whether to push for the final invoice before ordering next week's materials.
Learn more →When
When invoicing every stage becomes routine
Then
Hand it to a Revenue agent
The agent drafts and sends each stage invoice from a template, within your spending caps and approved homeowner list. You stay in control.
Learn more →Built for
The trades that show up to the site.
Stop running every job
through a spreadsheet.
Sign up free. See how the whole platform connects. Your first deposit invoice takes minutes.