Purchase Order Template and PO Generator

A purchase order (PO) is the document a buyer sends to a supplier to order goods or services. It lists what is being bought, the quantities, agreed prices, delivery date and terms. Once the supplier accepts it, the purchase order becomes a binding contract, and its PO number links every later document: the order confirmation, the delivery note and the invoice.

What to include in a purchase order

How to create a purchase order

1. Enter your company as buyer, then the supplier and the delivery address.
2. Give the PO a unique number and set the order and delivery dates.
3. For an import, choose the Incoterm and named place; it decides who pays freight, insurance and duty.
4. Add each item with its code, description, quantity, unit and price. Line totals and the order total are calculated.
5. Add discount, tax and freight if they apply, then the payment terms and instructions.
6. Sign and send it to the supplier.

Download the finished document as a PDF, as an editable Word file, or as an Excel sheet of the lines and totals, or print it. Your draft is saved in this browser only, so you can come back to it; nothing is uploaded to our servers.

Purchase order vs invoice

The buyer sends the purchase order before delivery; the supplier sends the invoice afterwards to ask for payment. For the full comparison, see purchase order vs invoice.

Purchase orders for imports

• State the Incoterm and place, such as FOB Ningbo or DAP your warehouse, so the supplier's price and your freight plans match.
• Ask for HS codes and origin on the supplier's documents; they drive your duty.
• Budget the full landed cost, not only the PO total; see landed cost.
• Your supplier can reply with a proforma. The "Create proforma invoice" button under the form turns your PO into a supplier proforma with the lines already filled in.