Free Excavation Invoice Generator
Put machine hours, attachment time, trucking and mobilization on separate lines, then export a PDF a project manager can check against the daily tickets.
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INVOICE
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| Description | Qty | Rate | Amount |
|---|---|---|---|
| Item description | 1 | — | $0.00 |
- Subtotal
- $0.00
- Total
- $0.00
Machine time, attachments and the conditions you hit
Dirt work is billed two ways at once — machine time and material moved — so keep them on separate lines. Give each machine its own line with the operator included in the rate: "Excavator with operator — CAT 336, pad and trench excavation to grade" at your hourly figure, with the hours in the quantity column. The quantity field carries up to three decimal places, so 18.5 hours goes in as 18.5 and the line total works itself out. Name the machine and the attachment, because a mini-ex with a hammer and a 30-ton hoe are not the same charge and the project manager knows it.
What you hit in the ground is what turns a clean invoice into an argument, so give changed conditions lines of their own. Rock in a trench line, unsuitable material that had to come out and be replaced, a day lost to dewatering — each gets billed separately with the change order number written into the description, never absorbed into the base hours where nobody can see what was approved. Trucking follows the same rule: bill haul-off the way you priced it, per load with the load count in the quantity column or per ton against the scale weight, so the line reconciles with the haul tickets. Mobilization is a per-move charge, not a daily one — one line for the lowboy in and back out, and a second line only if you demobilized and returned after another trade finished.
The notes field carries everything the form has no box for: the site or lot address, the general contractor's PO, your local contractor registration, and the 811 locate ticket. If the subcontract holds retainage, invoice the full value and set the discount to a percentage so the PDF shows what is payable this month, then say so in the notes or it reads as a price cut. What you download is a plain invoice PDF — not an AIA G702/G703 pay application, not a lien waiver, not certified payroll — so a GC who pays against those forms will still need them from you separately. The tax line is preset to Sales Tax, though excavation on a real property improvement is often untaxed labor: Colorado, for one, leaves the labor alone and has the contractor pay tax on materials at purchase. Set your rate or clear it, check with an accountant, and note that the draft autosaves in this browser, which helps when you bill the same site month after month.
Rock in the trench line, and the change order it became
A commercial pad and utility trench in northern Colorado, billed off the daily machine tickets. Machine time is quoted wet — machine, fuel and operator in one hourly rate — and the trench line hit rock on the second day, so the breaker hours sit on their own line under the approved change order instead of disappearing into the excavation hours. Spoil went to a fill site eight miles out that takes clean material at no gate charge, so trucking appears once, by the load. Mobilization is a single charge for getting the lowboy in and back out.
| Description | Qty | Rate | Amount |
|---|---|---|---|
| Excavator with operator — CAT 336, pad and trench excavation to grade | 18.5 | $215.00 | $3,977.50 |
| Hydraulic breaker with operator — rock in trench line, change order 2 | 6.5 | $265.00 | $1,722.50 |
| Skid steer with operator — backfill and rough grade | 6 | $135.00 | $810.00 |
| Tandem dump haul-off — spoil to fill site, 8 miles (per load) | 22 | $95.00 | $2,090.00 |
| Mobilization — lowboy in and back out, one move | 1 | $450.00 | $450.00 |
| Subtotal | $9,050.00 | ||
| Total due | $9,050.00 | ||
The tax line is cleared because Colorado does not tax the labor on a real property improvement and the contractor pays tax on materials at purchase — set your own rate if your state taxes excavation as a service.
Reconcile the invoice with the daily tickets
Machine, attachment and hours
Name the machine and what was on the end of it — "CAT 336 with 36 in bucket" — and put the hours in the quantity column so the line reads straight off your daily tickets.
Changed conditions on their own lines
Rock, unsuitable material and dewatering get billed separately with the change order number in the description; there is no change-order field, so the wording of the line is what proves it was approved.
Haul tickets behind every load
Enter the load count or the scale weight in the quantity column so the trucking line matches the tickets — a round number with nothing behind it is the first thing a project manager queries.
Mobilization billed per move
One line for each move in and out, with the description saying which trip it covers; a return after another trade finished is a second mobilization, not a bigger first one.
Retainage explained in the notes
If you set the discount to a percentage to hold retainage, write the percentage and the subcontract clause in the notes so nobody books it as a discount off your price.
How to create an invoice online
- 1
Fill in the details
Add your business info, your client, line items, tax, and an optional logo or discount.
- 2
Watch the live preview
The invoice updates as you type, so you always see exactly what your client will receive.
- 3
Download the PDF
One click generates a clean, professional PDF invoice — free and without a watermark.
A simple invoice maker for freelancers and small businesses
Everything you need to bill a client properly — and nothing you don't. Create an invoice, check the live preview, download the PDF, get paid.
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Frequently asked questions
Do I bill machine time with the operator included?
Most excavation contractors quote a wet rate — machine, fuel and operator in one hourly figure — so put that in the rate column and the hours in the quantity column, which carries three decimals for part hours. If you bill the operator separately, give labor its own line so the customer can see both.
How do I bill rock or unsuitable material?
Give the changed condition its own line with the change order number in the description — "Hydraulic breaker with operator — rock in trench line, change order 2" — and the hours or tons in the quantity column. There is no change-order field in the form, so the description and the notes are what tie the line back to what the GC approved; folding the extra hours into the base excavation line is what gets an invoice held.
Where do the PO number and the locate ticket go?
In the notes field. There are no dedicated boxes for PO, job, permit or change-order numbers, so the site address, the GC's PO, your contractor registration and the 811 ticket all belong there. Bear in mind this produces an invoice only — if your GC pays against an AIA G702/G703 pay application with a schedule of values, that form still has to come from elsewhere.
Do I charge sales tax on excavation work?
It depends on your state and on whether the work counts as an improvement to real property. Colorado, for example, does not tax the labor and has the contractor pay sales tax on materials at purchase, while other states tax the service outright. The tax line is preset to Sales Tax with one rate for the whole invoice, so set your rate or clear it, and check with an accountant since the rules vary.