A corporate buyer wants their PO number on my invoice; where do I put it?

Why buyers care about the PO number

In many companies the accounts team will not pay an invoice until it is matched to an approved purchase order and to what was actually received. An invoice without the PO number means someone has to hunt for it by hand or send it back to you, and either way your payment waits. Printing the number clearly from the start saves that round trip.

Three places that work

1. The customer address: the field takes several lines, so add a last line such as 'PO: PO-7781'. It prints under the customer name near the top, the first thing a clerk sees.
2. The first line description: such as 'Gift boxes, card, per PO-7781'. Good when the whole invoice covers one order.
3. The notes: 'Your purchase order: PO-7781'. These print at the end, so they are less prominent but still clear.

If one invoice covers several purchase orders, put each PO number in the descriptions of its own lines so the accountant can see which line matches which order.

Example: 200 gift boxes for a company

A company ordered 200 gift boxes at 18 SAR each on purchase order PO-7781. The supplier entered it in the Basic invoice generator with 15 typed as the tax rate:

Before sending, check three things against the PO: quantity, unit price and description. If you delivered only 180 boxes because the rest are late, invoice 180, not 200, and note that the rest will follow on a later invoice. An invoice that does not match the quantity received can be rejected even with the right PO number.

Small details that matter

• Copy the number character for character, dashes and zeros included: PO-07781 and PO-7781 may be two different orders in their system.
• One clear mention in a visible place beats repeating it everywhere.
• When you are the buyer, raise your own order with the Purchase-order generator and ask the supplier to quote its number on their invoice.