Credits & Refunds

Credits and refunds help you manage adjustments when clients are owed money — whether for returned items, overpayments, or project changes. Blueprint Studio makes it simple to issue, apply, and track these transactions.

💡 Tip: Credits reduce what a client owes, while refunds return money already paid.

Creating a Credit

Credits can only be issued for Invoiced products or services.

Credits are used when a client is due an adjustment that can be applied to future invoices. This is usually due to a return of part or all of an invoiced line.

1

Create a credit

Navigate to the invoice you would like to issue a credit for. For example, go to Projects → Select your Project → Invoices → Select your invoice. Scroll down to the Credits Created section and click Create a Credit.

2

Enter credit details

Fill in:

  • Credit Name (A user friendly identifier for this credit)

  • Credit Date

  • Note (This is an internal note, typically referencing the reason for the credit, for example: damaged wallpaper)

3

Select the items from the invoice

Using the checkbox in the item list, select the items you would like to issue a credit for

4

Save

Click Create Credit. After the credit is created a confirmation will appear in the top and you can click into it to see the credit that was created. The credit will now appear as available to apply to future invoices.

5

Adjustments to Credit

If you are not crediting the entire amount of the products or services selected, you can navigate to the Credit and adjust the price or quantity

  • Go to Retainers & Credits tab in the project.

  • Select the credit you would like to adjust (the one that was just created)

  • Click edit on the line item you would like to adjust

  • Modify unit price, quantity, shipping to the desired values

  • The amount credited cannot exceed the invoice amount for the related invoice line

6

Entering Price, Quantity, or Subtotal

When creating a credit, you can edit Price, Quantity, or Subtotal. Blueprint Studio uses whichever field you change to drive the calculation.

  • Edit Quantity → Subtotal is calculated from price × quantity.

  • Edit Subtotal → You’re setting an exact credit amount. Subtotal stays as entered, and the system calculates the matching quantity.

  • Edit Price → Subtotal is recalculated unless you already entered a specific Subtotal.

This gives you flexibility to credit a precise dollar amount, a specific quantity, or correct pricing—without forcing everything to follow “price × quantity” math.

💡 Tip: Credits are often issued when items are canceled, returned, or overcharged.

Applying a Credit to an Invoice

You can apply all or part of a credit balance to any open invoice for the same client.

1

Open the invoice

Navigate to the invoice you want to apply the credit to.

2

Apply credit

Scroll down the invoice page to the Applied Credits section and click Apply Credit

3

Select Payment method

Under the payment method drop down, select Credit

4

Select credit

From the Pay using a credit dropdown, select the credit you would like to apply

5

Adjust amount

If you would like to apply part of the credit to the invoice, you can adjust the amount down. You cannot apply more than the balance due on the invoice, or the amount of the credit

6

Complete

Click Save. The invoice balance is reduced and the credit balance is reduced automatically.

💡 Tip: Multiple credits can be applied to a single invoice if necessary. Credits can also be applied partially to invoices but can never exceed the balance due of the invoice, or the credit amount.

Issuing a Refund

Refunds are used when money should be returned to the client instead of held as a credit.

1

Navigate to a credit

Go to Projects home → Retainers & Credits and open the credit you would like to refund

2

Start a refund

Click Issue Refund from inside the credit page

3

Enter refund details

Fill in:

  • Payment Method (Check, ACH, or Card)

  • Amount

  • Date

  • Reference # (optional)

4

Save

Click Save. The refund is recorded in the project ledger and reflected in financial reports. The balance of the credit is reduced and will no longer be available to apply to future invoices.

⚠️ Note: Refunds should be tied to a credit or retainer when possible for accurate tracking. The refund itself is not issued to your client. You would need to manually handle payment to the client.

Reporting on Credits

You can view company-wide activity in the Transactions Report under Reports → Transactions Report.

  • Select transaction type Credits

  • Enter a date range (based on credit date)

  • Select a project (optional)

  • Click Run Report

The report includes:

  • Credits created by project

  • Credit amount

  • Remaining open credit balances

  • Exported to Excel

💡 Tip: Regularly review this report to ensure all client adjustments are properly applied or refunded.

Best Practices

  • Use credits for adjustments that will apply to future invoices.

  • Use refunds for closing out unused funds or canceled projects.

  • Always link refunds to their originating source (invoice, deposit, or retainer).

  • Keep detailed notes for transparency in client and accounting records.

Next Steps

Now that you can handle client adjustments, you can move on to managing vendor side transactions with Purchase Orders & Vendor Management.

Next → Purchase Orders & Vendor Management

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