Automate retainer billing so nothing gets missed

Set up a recurring invoice for any retainer client and WorkRate generates it automatically on your schedule — monthly, quarterly, or weekly. Review, adjust, and send. No more forgetting to invoice a retainer on the 1st.

Setting up a recurring invoice

1
Open the Invoice section inside the client workspace.
2
Click Set Up Recurring Invoice.
3
Choose the frequency: Monthly, Quarterly, or Weekly.
4
Set the billing date. For monthly, choose the day of month — e.g., the 1st or the last day. For quarterly, choose the month and day.
5
Set the recurring amount. This is the fixed retainer amount charged each cycle. For retainer clients with a flat monthly fee, enter that fee here.
6
Write a line item description — e.g., "Monthly retainer — June 2026" or "SEO management retainer." This prints on the invoice.
7
Set the tax rate. It defaults to the tax rate in Client Settings but can be overridden here.
8
Save the recurring schedule. WorkRate will generate the invoice automatically on the next billing date.

💡 Tip: Set up the recurring invoice before the first billing date rather than after. WorkRate won't backfill missed cycles — set it up now so the next cycle generates automatically.

How invoice generation works

On the billing date, WorkRate automatically creates a draft invoice for the client using the configured amount and line item. Here's what happens:

1
WorkRate generates the invoice draft on the scheduled date. It appears in the client's invoice list with Draft status.
2
You receive a notification (in-app) that a recurring invoice has been generated and is ready to review.
3
You review the draft. If the retainer amount or description needs adjusting for this cycle, edit it before sending.
4
Generate the payment link (if using Stripe Connect) and send to the client.
5
The next cycle schedules automatically. You don't need to re-configure anything.

⚠️ WorkRate does not send recurring invoices automatically. Generation creates a draft — your team reviews and sends it. This is intentional: retainer amounts sometimes change, and you should always have a human in the loop before a client receives an invoice.

Editing a generated invoice before sending

1
Open the Draft invoice from the client's invoice list.
2
Update the amount if this month has a different total — e.g., an overage from extra hours, or a one-time adjustment.
3
Add additional line items for any billable work done outside the retainer this cycle.
4
Update the description to reflect the current month — change "June 2026" to "July 2026" if the template auto-populated incorrectly.
5
Save changes and send.

Pausing or stopping a recurring invoice

1
Open Invoice Settings for the client and find the recurring schedule.
2
Click Pause to temporarily stop generation. The schedule is saved and can be resumed at any time.
3
Click Stop to end the recurring schedule permanently. This does not delete any invoices already generated — only future automatic generation is stopped.
4
To resume a paused schedule, go back to the recurring invoice settings and click Resume. Generation picks up from the next scheduled date.

Tips & best practices

Review every generated invoice before sending. Even if the amount is identical, glance at it. A draft waiting for three weeks before someone sends it is cash flow delayed unnecessarily.
Use recurring for flat retainers only. If a client's monthly amount varies based on hours, use the standard invoice generator from the session log instead. Recurring invoices are best for fixed monthly fees.
Combine recurring with billable time. A client can have a flat recurring retainer plus separate billable time invoiced from the session log. Both can coexist — the recurring handles the retainer, and the session log handles project work.
Set it up when the client signs. Create the recurring schedule the same day the retainer agreement is signed. Set the first billing date correctly — don't wait until the first payment is "due."