Xero invoice reminders: how they work and when you need more

Xero's help article describes invoice reminders as emails sent to customers when an invoice payment is due or overdue. Three reminders are set up for overdue invoices by default, and you can add more, up to five. Each reminder is set to go a number of days before the due date ("due in") or after it ("overdue by"). Setting the number of days to 0 sends it on the due date.

Xero's product page adds that Xero stops sending as soon as payment arrives, and that you can keep track of the reminders you have sent.

Before you start, Xero says you need:

• a current email address in Xero for each customer you want to remind
• the invoices marked as sent
• the administrator or standard user role

These steps follow Xero's help article on setting up invoice reminders.

1. In the Sales menu, select Invoices.
2. Click Invoice Reminders: Off.
3. Select the Email customers when an invoice is checkbox. Xero's default reminders are now set to go out for overdue invoices.
4. Optionally include a button to the online invoice and a detail summary (amount due, due date and invoice ID) at the top of each reminder.
5. Optionally include a link to the invoice PDF.
6. Optionally set a minimum, so no reminder goes for amounts owing under a figure you choose.
7. Click Save.

The PDF link and minimum amount settings apply to all reminders. Xero then sends the reminders you have set up for invoices marked as sent.

To add a reminder, for example a courtesy note before the due date:

1. In the Sales menu, select Invoices, then open the invoice reminders settings.
2. Click Add reminder.
3. Choose due in to send before the due date, or overdue by to send after it.
4. Enter the number of days. Use 0 for the due date itself.
5. Optionally edit the email template and use Insert placeholder to add details from the invoice.
6. Click Save.

Xero also points to its App Store for more advanced reminder options.

Yes. Xero's help article on turning reminders on or off says you can do it for your whole organization, for a particular customer, or for specific invoices. This helps when a customer has agreed a payment plan or raised a query.

Built-in reminders deserve credit.

• They are already in your books. No new system, and due dates come straight from Xero.
• They stop when payment arrives. Xero says so on its product page, which avoids the worst kind of reminder: one for money already paid.
• They cover before and after the due date. That matches the pattern most payment reminder email templates follow.
• They are flexible. Up to five reminders, your own wording, a minimum amount, and on or off per customer or invoice.

Xero's reminders are scheduled emails. The help article explains where customer replies go: to the login email of the person who first turned reminders on, which you can change. In other words, a reply lands in someone's inbox, and that person decides what happens next. The article does not describe reminders reading replies or changing course because of them.

So, alongside Xero's reminders, someone still needs to:

• Read and answer every reply.
• Handle disputes. Turning reminders off for an invoice is a manual step. Our guide to invoice disputes covers how to resolve one.
• Track promises. A customer who says "we'll pay next Friday" needs someone to check on Friday.
• Clear blockers. A missing PO or a wrong billing contact has to be fixed by a person before the invoice can be paid.
• Decide what comes next. Our collections email sequence covers later stages.

Xero's own reminders are likely all you need when:

• You have a modest number of customers who mostly pay after a nudge.
• Replies are few, and one person reads them the same day.
• Disputes are rare and easy to spot.
• Nobody is spending hours a week on chasing.

Consider adding something that reads replies when:

• Replies sit unanswered because the inbox they go to is busy.
• Promised dates come and go without anyone noticing.
• Reminders keep reaching someone who does not pay invoices.
• A disputed invoice keeps getting reminders because nobody switched them off.

An AI collections agent works from the same due dates in Xero, reads replies and decides the next step for each invoice, with a person approving where it matters. It works alongside Xero rather than replacing it. If you use QuickBooks, see our page on QuickBooks invoice reminders.