WooCommerce NET 30/60/90 Payment Terms: B2B Invoicing That Works

In B2B commerce, NET 30/60/90 payment terms are standard — buyers expect to receive goods first and pay later via invoice. WooCommerce's "pay at checkout" model doesn't support this. Here's how to add invoice-based payment terms to WooCommerce, manage accounts receivable, and avoid the cash flow trap that kills B2B sellers.

What Are NET Payment Terms?

NET payment terms define when payment is due after an invoice is issued. "NET 30" means the buyer has 30 days from the invoice date to pay. "NET 60" gives them 60 days. "NET 90" gives them 90 days. These are standard in wholesale, manufacturing, and B2B services.

Variations include:

2/10 NET 30: 2% discount if paid within 10 days, full amount due in 30 days. This incentivizes early payment — and the 2% discount is worth offering because the annualized cost of waiting 20 extra days for payment far exceeds 2%.

NET 30 EOM (End of Month): Payment due 30 days after the end of the month in which the invoice was issued. If you invoice on March 15, payment is due April 30 (30 days after March 31). Simplifies accounting for buyers who batch payments monthly.

COD (Cash on Delivery): Payment due when goods are delivered. Used for new customers who haven't established credit terms.

54% of B2B invoices are paid late. Offering NET terms is necessary to win B2B business, but you need systems to manage receivables and enforce payment deadlines.

Why WooCommerce Doesn't Support NET Terms Natively

WooCommerce is built around a B2C checkout flow: customer adds items to cart, enters payment details, pays immediately, and receives an order confirmation. The entire order lifecycle assumes payment happens at the point of purchase. There's no concept of "ship now, bill later" in WooCommerce core.

B2B buyers operate differently. They place an order, receive the goods, get an invoice, and pay within the agreed terms — often through their accounts payable department, which processes payments on a schedule (weekly, bi-weekly, or monthly). This mismatch between WooCommerce's architecture and B2B buyer expectations is the biggest barrier to using WooCommerce for wholesale.

The workaround: a custom payment gateway that accepts orders without immediate payment, generates invoices, and tracks payment status separately from WooCommerce's standard order flow.

Methods to Add NET Payment Terms

Method 1: WooCommerce Invoice Payment Gateway Plugins

B2BKing (Free + Pro from $139/year): The most integrated solution. B2BKing's Pro version includes an invoice payment method available only to approved B2B customer roles. When a wholesale customer checks out, they can select "Pay by Invoice" instead of credit card. The order processes normally (inventory decremented, order email sent), but no payment is collected. B2BKing generates a PDF invoice with payment terms and tracks the due date. Overdue invoices trigger reminder emails.

WooCommerce PDF Invoices & Packing Slips ($79/year from WP Overnight): Generates professional PDF invoices automatically. Doesn't add a payment gateway by itself, but pairs with a manual payment method. Create a custom payment method called "Invoice / NET 30" (WooCommerce allows adding a BACS-style payment method with custom instructions), generate invoices via this plugin, and track payments manually.

SUMO WooCommerce B2B Payments (from $49): Dedicated B2B payment terms plugin. Adds NET 15/30/45/60/90 payment options at checkout for approved customers. Automatically generates invoices, sends payment reminders, and blocks further orders if payment is overdue. One-time purchase (not annual), making it cost-effective.

In WooCommerce → Settings → Payments, enable "Direct bank transfer (BACS)." Customize the instructions to include your payment terms: "Payment due within 30 days to [bank details]." It's basic but functional for stores with fewer than 20 wholesale accounts.

Method 2: Manual Invoice via the Built-In BACS Gateway

The simplest approach, requiring no plugins:

1. Go to WooCommerce → Settings → Payments → Direct bank transfer
2. Enable it and set the title to "Invoice — NET 30"
3. Add instructions: "Payment due within 30 days of order date. Please reference your order number. Bank details: [your details]"
4. Under WooCommerce → Settings → Payments → manage BACS, restrict this payment method to wholesale user roles using a snippet or a payment method restriction plugin
5. When orders come in via this method, manually track payment in a spreadsheet or accounting software

This works for 5-10 wholesale accounts. Beyond that, manual tracking becomes unsustainable.

Method 3: Integration with Accounting Software

The most robust approach for serious B2B operations: connect WooCommerce to proper invoicing/accounting software that handles NET terms, payment tracking, and dunning (automated payment reminders) natively.

QuickBooks Online + WooCommerce: Sync orders to QuickBooks as invoices. QuickBooks handles NET terms, payment tracking, aging reports, and automated reminders. Plugins like WooCommerce QuickBooks Integration by MyWorks ($24.99/month) sync orders, customers, and payments bidirectionally.

Xero + WooCommerce: Similar to QuickBooks. WooCommerce Xero Integration ($79/year from Woo.com) creates invoices in Xero when orders are placed. Xero manages the receivables workflow — payment terms, reminders, and reconciliation.

Zoho Books + WooCommerce: Zoho's accounting platform has native WooCommerce integration. More affordable than QuickBooks for small businesses (from $15/month). Handles NET terms, multi-currency invoicing, and automated payment reminders.

For stores with 20+ wholesale accounts, connect WooCommerce to QuickBooks, Xero, or Zoho Books. These platforms are purpose-built for accounts receivable management — something WooCommerce was never designed to handle.

Managing Accounts Receivable

Offering NET terms means you're extending credit to your customers. Without proper management, this credit turns into bad debt. Here's how to manage B2B receivables:

Credit Limits

Set a maximum outstanding balance per customer. A new wholesale account might get a $1,000 credit limit — they can have up to $1,000 in unpaid invoices at any time. Once they hit the limit, they can't place new orders until they pay down their balance. B2BKing Pro supports credit limits natively. For other setups, track limits in your accounting software.

Aging Reports

An aging report categorizes outstanding invoices by how overdue they are: Current (not yet due), 1-30 days overdue, 31-60 days overdue, 61-90 days overdue, and 90+ days overdue. The further an invoice ages, the less likely it is to be collected. Run aging reports weekly and act on anything over 30 days immediately.

Payment Reminders

Automate payment reminders at these intervals:
- 7 days before due date: "Friendly reminder — invoice #123 is due on [date]"
- On due date: "Invoice #123 is due today. Please arrange payment."
- 7 days overdue: "Invoice #123 is now past due. Please pay immediately to maintain your account."
- 14 days overdue: "Second notice — account will be suspended if payment is not received within 7 days."
- 30 days overdue: Suspend account, send final notice, consider collections.

QuickBooks, Xero, and Zoho Books all automate this dunning sequence. If you're managing manually, calendar reminders are your friend.

Cash Flow Management with NET Terms

NET 30 means you're financing your customers' inventory for 30 days. You've paid for the goods (supplier costs, shipping, warehousing), shipped them to the customer, and now you're waiting 30 days for payment. This creates a cash flow gap that can cripple growing businesses.

Calculate your cash flow gap: If your average supplier payment terms are NET 0 (you pay on order) and your average customer payment terms are NET 30, your cash cycle is 30 days. You need enough working capital to cover 30 days of operations without customer payments.

Strategies to reduce the gap:

1. Early payment discounts: Offer 2/10 NET 30 (2% discount for paying within 10 days). Most finance-savvy buyers take this because the annualized return on that 2% is ~36%.
2. Negotiate supplier terms: If you can get NET 30 from your suppliers while offering NET 30 to your customers, the cash flow gap closes. Your bargaining power increases with order volume.
3. Invoice factoring: Sell your outstanding invoices to a factoring company for 80-95% of their value immediately. The factor collects payment from your customer. This converts receivables to cash but reduces your margin by 2-5%. Services like BlueVine, Fundbox, and C2FO specialize in this.
4. Shorter terms for new customers: Start new wholesale accounts on COD or NET 15. Move them to NET 30 after 3-6 months of reliable payment. Extend NET 60/90 only to your highest-volume, most reliable customers.

2% discount for paying 20 days early = 36.7% annualized return for the buyer. Smart B2B buyers ALWAYS take early payment discounts. Offering them reduces your average days sales outstanding (DSO) dramatically and is cheaper than factoring.

Setting Up Payment Terms Per Customer

Not every wholesale customer deserves the same terms. A framework for assigning terms:

New customers (first 6 months): COD or NET 15. Credit limit: $500-$1,000. Prove reliability before extending longer terms.

Established customers (6-12 months, consistent payment): NET 30. Credit limit: $2,500-$5,000. The standard tier for most wholesale accounts.

Premium customers (12+ months, high volume, never late): NET 30-60. Credit limit: $10,000+. These are your best customers — reward reliability with flexibility.

Strategic accounts (largest buyers, critical relationships): NET 60-90 case by case. Credit limit: negotiated. Only for accounts where the volume justifies the cash flow cost.

In WooCommerce, implement this by creating user roles for each tier (wholesale-cod, wholesale-net15, wholesale-net30, wholesale-net60) and configuring the available payment methods per role. B2BKing and Wholesale Suite both support payment method restrictions by role.

Legal Protections

When you offer NET terms, you're extending trade credit. Protect yourself:

Credit application: Require a formal credit application before extending NET terms. Include business financial information, trade references (other suppliers who extend them credit), and a personal guarantee from the business owner. This is standard in B2B and gives you legal recourse.

Terms and conditions: Publish clear payment terms and conditions. Include: payment due date calculation, late payment fees (typically 1.5% per month / 18% annually), collections procedures, and jurisdiction for disputes. Have customers agree to these during registration or first order.

Late payment fees: Clearly state late fees in your terms and apply them consistently. Even if you rarely enforce collections, the stated fees incentivize timely payment. Most B2B sellers charge 1-2% per month on overdue balances.

Lien rights: Depending on your jurisdiction, you may have rights to the goods until payment is received (retention of title). Consult a business attorney to include appropriate clauses in your terms.

A formal credit application with trade references, a personal guarantee, and clear payment terms isn't bureaucracy — it's the foundation that makes NET terms sustainable. Skip it, and you're lending money with no protection.

Recommended Setup by Store Size

Under 10 Wholesale Accounts

Use WooCommerce's built-in BACS gateway renamed to "Invoice — NET 30." Generate PDF invoices with WooCommerce PDF Invoices & Packing Slips (free version). Track payments in a spreadsheet or basic accounting software. Manual but functional.

10-50 Wholesale Accounts

Install B2BKing Pro ($139/year) for role-based payment terms, credit limits, and automated invoice generation. Connect to QuickBooks or Xero for receivables management and dunning. Set up wholesale pricing tiers with different payment terms per tier.

50+ Wholesale Accounts

Full accounting integration (QuickBooks/Xero/Zoho) with automated sync. B2BKing or Wholesale Suite for WooCommerce-side management. Consider invoice factoring for cash flow management. Implement a formal credit application process. Hire or designate an accounts receivable manager — at this scale, AR management is a part-time job.

For the complete wholesale setup including pricing, minimum orders, and registration workflows, see our WooCommerce wholesale pricing guide. And for the full B2B feature set including quote management, see our guide on B2B quote-to-order workflows.

NET payment terms are the cost of doing B2B business. Implement them with proper controls — credit limits, payment reminders, aging reports, and early payment discounts — and they become a competitive advantage. Implement them carelessly, and they become a cash flow black hole. Start with shorter terms for new customers, extend gradually based on payment history, and always protect yourself with formal credit applications and clear terms.