Record a payment on a purchase order
Last updated: November 3, 2026
When you pay a vendor, record the payment on the purchase order. Payments track how much of the purchase order has been paid and mark it Paid when it’s paid in full. Purchase order payments are recorded manually.
You can record a payment only after the purchase order is saved.
Record a payment
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Open the purchase order.
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In the Payments section, select Add payment.
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Enter the Payment date. Today’s date is filled in.
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Enter the Payment Amount, or select Apply to enter the remaining balance.
The amount can’t be more than the remaining balance.
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Optional: choose a Payment method (ACH, Cash, Check, Credit Card, Wire, or Other), and enter a Reference and a Note.
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Select Save.
Record each payment separately. A purchase order can have several payments. When recorded payments reach the purchase order’s total, Add payment isn’t available.
What happens after you record a payment
- When recorded payments reach the purchase order’s total, the purchase order is automatically marked Paid. Partial payments don’t mark it Paid.
- Recording a payment doesn’t change the purchase order’s status, such as Draft or Pending. Paid isn’t a status, so you can change the status regardless of recorded payments. For more about statuses, see Purchase order statuses.
- Payments recorded on purchase orders don’t sync with QuickBooks.
Note: If you lower a purchase order’s total below the amount already paid, Amount due in the Payments section shows a negative amount. For more, see Create and edit a purchase order.
Mark a purchase order as paid or unpaid
You can also mark a purchase order as paid or unpaid yourself:
- Mark as paid: In the purchase order menu, select Mark as paid. While a balance remains, you can still record payments.
- Mark as unpaid: In the purchase order menu, select Mark as unpaid to remove a Paid mark you set yourself.
If recorded payments marked the purchase order Paid, you can’t mark it unpaid. To change it, edit or delete a payment.
Edit or delete a payment
To change a payment, select its menu (⋯) in the Payments section, then choose an option:
- Edit: Change the payment’s details. Payments can’t add up to more than the purchase order’s total.
- Delete: Remove the payment from the purchase order.
If you edit or delete a payment so recorded payments no longer reach the purchase order’s total, the purchase order is no longer marked Paid.