Delivery Note Generator: Create a Delivery Note Online

Create a delivery note: template, required details, example

A delivery note travels with the goods to the customer and records what was handed over, when, and to whom. For caterers, party services and rental companies it is the paper that counts at the handover point: the recipient counts, signs, and both sides share the same picture before the invoice is written. With the generator above you fill in sender, recipient, line items and remarks, watch the document build live, and receive it as a print-ready PDF by email.

What a delivery note is and why you need one

A delivery note is a goods-accompanying document, not a request for payment. It lists the delivered line items with quantities and descriptions, but without prices. It does three jobs:

• Document the handover. With the recipient's signature you have proof that 120 portions, 15 kg of salad and 200 glasses actually arrived — and in what condition.
• Provide the basis for the invoice. What is on the signed delivery note is what you bill; extra orders on site or shortfalls are recorded.
• Settle complaints. If something is missing later or rental items never come back, the delivery note decides what was handed over.

There is no obligation to issue a delivery note. It is good commercial practice — and, in a dispute, the document you are glad to have. Once it serves as an accounting record or the invoice refers to it, it belongs in the files like the invoice itself.

What belongs on a delivery note

There are no binding rules for the content; the following details are generally established and make the document reliable:

• Sender with company name and address, ideally with a phone number or email for questions from the handover point.
• Recipient with company or personal name and address — for events, add the delivery location if it differs from the billing address.
• Delivery note number and delivery date, so the document can be identified.
• Reference to the order or quote number, so kitchen, driver and bookkeeping mean the same order.
• Line items with running number, quantity, unit and a clear description. Notes per line (“chilled”, “rental”, “batch 0917”) save questions later.
• Remarks for the whole document, such as collection dates or storage instructions.
• Signature fields for recipient and driver with date and name.

Prices have no place on a delivery note. It is often received by staff who do not need to know the terms, and it is not meant to replace the invoice.

Delivery note, invoice, packing list: which is which?

| Document | Purpose | Prices | Who signs | |---|---|---|---| | Packing list | internal: what goes into the van | no | nobody, ticked off in the kitchen or warehouse | | Delivery note | document the handover to the customer | no | recipient and driver | | Invoice | request payment, bookkeeping | yes | nobody |

The packing list is created before the delivery and stays internal. The delivery note comes from the same list of items, rides along and comes back signed. The invoice follows from what was actually handed over — which is why all three should come from one source, otherwise the quantities drift apart.

What is different in catering and rentals

A catering delivery note looks different from a wholesale one:

• Portions instead of pieces. Food is delivered in portions, kilograms or litres. The unit belongs on every line, otherwise “120 finger food” cannot be checked.
• Rental items and empties. Glasses, crockery, bar tables, cool boxes: whatever has to come back gets its own line with a quantity, and the collection date goes into the remarks. That turns “pick up sometime” into a date.
• Cold chain. For chilled food, add a note such as “cold chain maintained until handover, handed over at 11:40”. That records where responsibility changes hands.
• Partial deliveries. For multi-day events, every delivery gets its own delivery note referring to the same order.

Example: what a finished delivery note looks like

Salt & Sun Catering delivers for Sample Ltd's summer party. Delivery note LS-2026-0042 dated 19 September 2026 references quote Q-2026-0107 and lists three items: 120 portions of finger food, 15 kg of potato salad with the note “chilled”, and 200 champagne flutes as rental items. The remarks say: “Collection of glasses and cool boxes on 21 September from 10 am.” The driver has the note signed on unloading and leaves one copy with the customer. That is the document you build with the generator above in two minutes.

Frequently asked questions about delivery notes

Is a delivery note mandatory?

No. No rule obliges you to issue one. It is customary anyway, because it documents the handover and backs up the invoice. Some customers, especially companies with incoming-goods checks, explicitly require one.

Does a delivery note have to be signed?

Not mandatory either — but it is the whole point of the document. Without the recipient's signature it only records your side. Have the goods counted and the note signed on unloading, and take a signed copy back with you.

How long do I have to keep delivery notes?

That depends on its role. If it only accompanies the goods and the invoice contains every detail, it can go once the invoice is issued. As soon as it serves as an accounting record or the invoice refers to it, keep it together with the invoice. When in doubt, ask your accountant.

Does a delivery note need prices?

No, and it should not have any. Prices belong in the quote and on the invoice. The delivery note confirms quantities and condition — not terms.

From delivery note to invoice, without retyping

In Univents the delivery note is created straight from the event's booked items — the same list the packing list and the invoice come from. The recipient signs in the portal, the collection of rental items is tracked as an appointment, and the invoice takes over the confirmed quantities. See Angebote & Rechnungen and Partyservice Software for how that fits together.