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Purchase Orders

This guide explains how to order goods from a supplier with a purchase order, how to send and print it, and how to connect it to the bill when the goods arrive.

Overview

A purchase order is the order that the company sends to a supplier before the goods or the services arrive. It lists what the company wants to buy, the quantities, and the prices. The supplier receives it as a PDF or through a link in an email.

A purchase order has no accounting effect. It creates no journal entry, it does not change the stock, and it does not change the balance of the supplier. When the goods and the supplier's bill arrive, record a bill with the Bills and Expenses screens, and link the purchase order to the bill.

Purchase orders are in the Bills & Expenses list, together with the bills, the expenses, and the drafts. They use the same screen as a bill, with a few differences that this guide explains.

How to open the screen

  1. In the left navigation, click Expenses, then the Bills & Expenses tab.
  2. To create a purchase order, click New, then New Purchase Order.
  3. To see the purchase orders only, select Purchase Order in the Document Type filter.
The New menu of the Bills and Expenses list with New Bill, New Expense, New Purchase Order and Autofill with AI.
Figure 1. The New menu of the list.
  1. 1New Bill.
  2. 2New Expense.
  3. 3New Purchase Order.
  4. 4Autofill with AI. Creates drafts of bills and expenses from pictures of documents.

When the company uses projects, the Edit menu of a project also has New Purchase Order. The new purchase order then opens in the Projects page, with the project on its first line. The Documents tab of a supplier lists the purchase orders of that supplier.

Creating a purchase order

In the example, the coffee shop orders two commercial coffee grinders and six milk frothing pitchers from Metro Equipment Supply for the holiday season.

  1. Click New, then New Purchase Order. The tab New Purchase Order opens.
  2. Select the Supplier. A purchase order must have a supplier.
  3. Type a Ref if you use one, and check the Date. Set the Expected Date if you know when the goods arrive.
  4. Click Product & Services to order products of the product list. For each line, select the Product / Service and type the QTY. Check the Unit Price.
  5. Click Save. The tab title becomes Purchase Order #1.
The New Purchase Order screen for Metro Equipment Supply with two Commercial Coffee Grinders at 420.00 and six Milk Frothing Pitchers at 9.00, total 894.00.
Figure 2. A new purchase order.
  1. 1The tab of the new purchase order.
  2. 2P. Order No. Keep 0, and MyCloudBook gives the next purchase order number.
  3. 3Ref: Restock for the holiday season.
  4. 4Date. The default is today.
  5. 5Supplier. Required.
  6. 6Product / Service. The products that are marked for purchase. The description and the purchase price come from the product.
  7. 7QTY.
  8. 8Unit Price.
  9. 9Line Total. The quantity times the unit price.
  10. 10The total of the purchase order: 894.00.
The saved Purchase Order #1 with the buttons Save, Create Copy, Print Preview, Send and Delete, the empty Expected Date and the amount 894.00.
Figure 3. The saved purchase order.
  1. 1The tab title Purchase Order #1.
  2. 2Save. A purchase order has no Save as Draft.
  3. 3Create Copy. Opens a new purchase order with the same supplier and lines.
  4. 4Print Preview. Saves the purchase order and shows its PDF. The menu has Download PDF Format.
  5. 5Send. Opens the email window. See Sending a purchase order.
  6. 6Delete.
  7. 7P. Order No. The number cannot change after the first save.
  8. 8Expected Date. Optional. Here it is empty.
  9. 9AMOUNT. The total of the purchase order.
  10. 10The tabs Items, Related Documents, Attachments, and Notes.

The fields

FieldRequiredPurpose and rules
P. Order NoRequiredKeep 0, and MyCloudBook gives the largest purchase order number plus 1. Purchase orders have their own number sequence, separate from the bills and expenses.
RefOptionalA reference of your choice, up to 100 characters.
DateRequiredThe date of the order. The default is today.
SupplierRequiredThe active suppliers. A purchase order without a supplier is refused with You must provide 'Contact'.
Expected DateOptionalThe date when you expect the goods. It is printed on the purchase order.
TemplateOptionalA print template of the purchase order type.
LinesRequiredAt least one line with a product or an account. The rules are the same as on a bill. Enter all the lines in one mode.

The number

A purchase order keeps the number 0 until it is saved. The save gives the next purchase order number. Because purchase orders have their own sequence, Purchase Order #1 and Bill #1 can both exist.

From the purchase order to the bill

When the goods arrive with the supplier's bill, record the bill and link the purchase order to it:

  1. Create the bill with New Bill, and enter the lines of the supplier's bill. In the example, Bill #12 of Metro Equipment Supply has the same two grinders and six pitchers, with the reference MES-55120.
  2. Save the bill. Then open its Related Documents tab.
  3. In Search to add, type a part of the reference or the number of the purchase order, for example Restock, and click Add on the purchase order. The message The Bill #12 connected successfully to the Purchase Order #1 appears.
The Related Documents tab of Purchase Order #1 with the linked Bill #12 of Oct 16, 2026 for 894.00.
Figure 4. The purchase order linked to its bill.
  1. 1Related Documents (1).
  2. 2Search to add. Finds other documents to link.
  3. 3The linked bill. Its menu has Open Document and Remove.
  • The link is visible on both documents. A double click on the row opens the other document.
  • One purchase order can be linked to several bills, for example when the goods arrive in two deliveries.

Sending a purchase order

Send emails the purchase order to the supplier. The button is enabled after the first save. MyCloudBook saves the purchase order, then opens the window Send Purchase Order #1.

The Send Purchase Order #1 window with the email of the supplier, the subject Purchase Order #1 from Bright Bean Coffee Co., the text of the email with the button View Purchase Order #1, and the PDF preview.
Figure 5. The Send window of a purchase order.
  1. 1The title of the window.
  2. 2Emails. Required. The email of the supplier's primary contact person is proposed. Separate several emails with commas.
  3. 3Subject. The default is Purchase Order #1 from Bright Bean Coffee Co.
  4. 4The text of the email, with the button View Purchase Order #1. You can change the text.
  5. 5Send. Sends the email.
  6. 6Cancel. Closes the window without an email.
  • Cc and Bcc accept more emails. Each of the three fields accepts up to five emails.
  • The supplier opens the purchase order through the link in the email. The page of the link shows the purchase order, its expected date, its total, and the PDF.
  • The company must have its email (SMTP) settings. Otherwise the message SMTP is not configured. Please configure it to send emails. appears.
  • After the email, the message Message send successfully appears.

Printing a purchase order

Print Preview saves the purchase order and opens its PDF in the tab Print Purchase Order #1. Download PDF Format downloads the file. The row menu of the list has the same two items.

The tab Print Purchase Order #1 with the PDF of the purchase order: the company name, the number, the date, the expected date, the supplier, the lines and the total.
Figure 6. The print preview of a purchase order.
  1. 1The tab Print Purchase Order #1.
  • The PDF shows the company, the number, the date, the expected date, the supplier name, the lines, and the total.
  • The print templates of purchase orders are in the Document Templates window of the Settings menu, in the group Supplier Related.

Purchase orders in the list

In the Bills & Expenses list, a purchase order row has the type Purchase Order, the total, and an empty Status cell.

The row actions menu of Purchase Order #1 with Edit, Print Preview, Download PDF Format and Delete.
Figure 7. The row actions menu of a purchase order.
  1. 1Edit. Opens the purchase order.
  2. 2Print Preview.
  3. 3Download PDF Format.
  4. 4Delete.

Deleting a purchase order

  1. Open the purchase order and click Delete, or use Delete in the row menu of the list.
  2. The question Are you sure you want to delete the Purchase Order No#:1 appears. Click Yes.
  3. The message Purchase Order #1 deleted successfully. appears.
The purchase orderResult of the delete
Has a line of a completed projectRefused: The project '...' is marked as completed. You cannot delete the Purchase Order #1 from it.
Any other purchase orderDeleted. Nothing else changes, because a purchase order has no accounting effect.

Messages and their meaning

MessageCauseWhat to do
Document Saved SuccessfullyThe purchase order was saved.No action is needed.
You must provide 'Contact'.The purchase order has no supplier.Select the supplier.
Document must content at least one lineThe purchase order has no line.Add a line.
You can not have a line without selecting an Account or ItemA line has no product and no account.Select a product or an account on each line.
Error, Expense No : [n] already in use.The typed number is already in use.Keep the number 0.
Please save the document before proceeding to add related documents.The Related Documents tab of an unsaved purchase order.Save the purchase order first.
The Bill #12 connected successfully to the Purchase Order #1The link was added.No action is needed.
The Purchase Order #1 is already connected to the Bill #12The two documents are already in the same group.No action is needed.
Relation Removed SuccessfullyThe link was removed.No action is needed.
Please save the document before sending it.Send on an unsaved purchase order.Save the purchase order first.
'Emails' must not be more than 5
Emails: 'X' is not Valid		Too many emails, or an email with a wrong format. The same messages exist for Cc and Bcc.Correct the emails.
SMTP is not configured. Please configure it to send emails.The company has no email settings.Ask the administrator to set the email settings of the company.
Message send successfullyThe email was sent.No action is needed.
Purchase Order #1 deleted successfully.The purchase order was deleted.No action is needed.

Questions and answers

How do I record the bill of a purchase order in MyCloudBook?

Create the bill with New Bill, enter the lines of the supplier's bill, save it, and link the purchase order in the Related Documents tab of the bill.

Does a purchase order change my accounts or my stock?

No. A purchase order has no journal entry and no stock movement. The bill of the goods changes the accounts and the stock.

Can I email a purchase order to the supplier?

Yes. Save it and click Send. The email has a link to the purchase order. The company needs its email settings.