Bill and invoice both refer to a document that is requiring money to be paid for
goods or services provided.
In everyday conversation, we usually talk about bills:
▶️ The electrical company sends you an electrical bill.
▶️ The phone company sends you a phone bill.
▶️ After you get treated in a hospital, if you don’t have health insurance, you’ll
have a lot of medical bills to pay.
When talking about a business or professional relationship, then we usually use the
word invoice:
▶️ A consultant who gave advice to a company would then send the company an
invoice (requiring payment for his time).
▶️ When a factory sends products to a store, it will also send the store an
invoice requiring payment for those products.
Both bills and invoices are sent BEFORE payment. They are requiring the payment
to be made. A receipt, on the other hand, is sent AFTER payment. It is the
confirmation and proof that the payment was made.
▶️ After you buy something in a supermarket, you get a receipt.
▶️ After the store pays the factory for the products, the factory will provide a
receipt.