Document Templates

Document templates control how your invoices, quotes, and other PDF documents look. Navigate to Settings > Templates.

Creating a Template

1. Click New Template.
2. Choose the document type and a starting style:
   • Classic – today's look: a coloured bar at the top, a details list and a plain table.
   • Banded – filled heading bars, the title on the right, a gridded table and a boxed total.
   • Minimal – light rules and whitespace, no bars.
3. Enter a name and click Create and edit. The editor opens.

You can also start from a picture of a document you used before: see Match my design.

The first template of a type becomes that type's default. The default template is used for that type's PDFs, portal copies and email attachments, and only that type: a Quote template is never used for invoices.

Credit notes and debit notes. Until you set a default Credit Note template, credit notes use the default Invoice template. Until you set a default Debit Note template, debit notes use the default Purchase Order template.

Customer statements. Statements of account (Contacts → Statement, the customer portal and statement emails) are PDFs styled by your default Customer Statement template. Until you set one, statements borrow the look of your default Invoice template: colours, logo, layout, fonts, header text and footer text. They do not borrow the invoice's notes, payment instructions or bank details. Statement bank details come from the statement template's Bank Details, else from Settings → Banking details when Show on statements is on.

Match my design

If you already have a quote or invoice you like (from Word, Excel or another program), Anchor can copy its look. Click Match my design on Settings > Templates (or in the New Template window), then:

1. Choose the document type and, if you like, a name.
2. Add 1 to 3 pictures of the document: PNG, JPEG or a one-page PDF. A photo or scan works; large pictures are made smaller before they are sent.
3. Tick the consent box. The pictures are sent to Anthropic (Claude) to read the layout and are not kept by Anchor. Remove customer details from them first if you can; customer names, addresses, phone numbers and amounts are never copied into the template either way.
4. Click Match my design. It takes up to two minutes.

Anchor makes a draft template that is never the default, and shows what it could not match (for example a watermark, which you upload in the editor). If your old document prints extra details, such as a salesperson code or standing terms, they are listed as suggested document fields: tick the ones you want, rename them if needed, and Anchor creates them under Document fields and places them on the draft. A field with the same name that you already have is reused. Then the editor opens; check the draft, upload your logo and save.

If the layout cannot be matched exactly, the draft starts from the Classic style with your brand colour, and the notes say what was not matched.

AI allowance. Anchor pays for Match my design. Each person has an allowance of US$5.00 for their sign-in, across all their organisations; it does not reset. A run usually costs US$0.10–0.25. While a run is going, up to about US$0.52 is held and the rest is given back when it finishes; a run that fails before Claude answers costs nothing. The window shows what is left. You can run it 10 times a day, one run at a time. If you need more, ask support. The Match my design button only shows once Anchor has switched the feature on for you (it may be offered to a few people first), and it pauses for everyone until the next month if Anchor's monthly limit is reached.

The Editor

Settings are on the left; the real PDF of the template on sample data is on the right and refreshes a moment after each change. Nothing is stored until you click Save. Download sample saves the preview PDF.

Drag rows by their handle to reorder fields, columns and sections. Type in a row's box to rename it; switch it off to hide it.

Locked fields. Rows with a lock cannot be hidden. Tax invoices, credit notes and debit notes must show the document number, date of issue, your business name, address and VAT number, and the description, quantity and amount columns, and their title cannot be changed. Statements always show the balance column. The "Created with Anchor" strip prints on every page of every document and cannot be removed.

Template list

Each template's menu has Edit, Preview PDF, Duplicate (a copy that is not the default, with its own copy of any letterhead image), Make default and Apply style to other types. Applying a style copies the colours, fonts, logo, header, heading bars, table and totals style, footer lines and letterhead or watermark onto the default template of every other document type. Their fields, columns, labels and text stay as they are, so the locks above still hold. Types without a default template are skipped.

Content Fields

These fields are in the editor's Sections and text group and support template variables. On delivery notes, which show no prices, only the notes are printed.

Bank Details

Add your banking information so customers know where to send payment.

Bank: FNB
Account: 62000000000
Branch code: 250655
Reference: {{invoiceNumber}}

Invoices whose template has no bank details use the organisation's banking details from Settings → Banking details (when "Show on invoices" is on).

Only an owner can change a template's Bank Details and Payment Instructions, with their password (and 2FA code), and the new text reaches documents 24 hours later; owners and admins are emailed and can cancel it under Settings → Bank details changes. See Changing the banking details. Other people can still edit the rest of the template.

Payment Instructions

Freeform instructions for how to pay.

Please reference invoice {{invoiceNumber}} when making payment.

Notes

Default notes on every document using this template. Individual invoices can also have their own notes; template notes take priority when both exist.

Tagline

Short text under the logo or above the title (Header group), e.g. a registration line. Templates made before the editor keep their old header text as the tagline.

Closing Text

Text printed after the other sections, e.g. terms and conditions.

Template Variables

Use these placeholders in any content field. They are replaced with actual values when the document is generated.

In the tagline and footer lines, a placeholder with no value also drops the · or | beside it, so {{orgName}} · {{orgPhone}} · {{orgEmail}} prints just your name until you add a phone number and email under Settings → Organization.

Statement templates use {{orgName}}, the {{contact…}} variables, {{startDate}} and {{endDate}} (the period), {{openingBalance}}, {{closingBalance}} and {{currency}}. Bank details on statements accept {{orgName}}, {{contactName}} and {{contactCode}}. Document variables such as {{invoiceNumber}} and {{total}} stay as typed on statements.

Letterhead and watermark

If you already have printed stationery, upload it as a picture and Anchor prints your documents on it.

• Full-page letterhead fills the whole A4 page behind the document. Best results: an A4 image at 150 dpi (1240 × 1754 pixels) with your logo, address and footer as you want them printed.
• Watermark is one image (for example your logo) drawn faintly over the page, in the centre or bottom right, small, medium or large. A PNG with a transparent background works best.

Images must be PNG or JPEG, up to 5 MB. A PDF letterhead is not supported; save it as a PNG first. Strength sets how strongly the image prints (100% for a letterhead, about 10–15% for a watermark).

Space at top / bottom (in points; 72 pt is about 2.5 cm) keeps the document's content clear of the letterhead's own printed header and footer. If your letterhead already shows your logo and address, you can hide the template's logo (Header → Logo → Hide) and business details.

The upload and Remove take effect straight away; the other settings are kept when you click Save. The image prints on every page, under the "Created with Anchor" strip, which always prints on white so it stays readable.

Word templates

If you have a quote, invoice or other document you made in Microsoft Word, you can use that document itself as the layout. Anchor fills in your details and converts it to PDF for downloads, emails, the portal and pay links. Word templates work for every template type (invoices, credit notes, quotes, sales orders, delivery notes, purchase orders, debit notes and statements). If the group is not in the editor, Word templates are not switched on for your site.

Open the template in Settings > Templates and expand Word template:

1. Download starter file. You get a Word document laid out like the Classic style, with your logo (PNG or JPEG) and brand colour, and every tag the upload check looks for on that type. It passes the check as it is.
2. Change it in Word. Move things around, add your own text and pictures, change fonts and colours. Keep the tags you need, or start from your own document and type the tags into it.
3. Upload Word file. Anchor checks the file with a sample document before saving it, and the preview then shows your documents through the Word file.

Download gets the file back to edit it again; Replace uploads a new version (the old one stays until the new one passes); Remove goes back to the layout settings. Duplicating a template copies its Word file.

Tags

Type tags in single braces, exactly as listed under Tags you can use in the editor (click one to copy it). Each type has its own list; on invoices, credit notes and quotes:

Sales orders, purchase orders and debit notes use the same tags (on purchase orders and debit notes {contact.…} is the supplier). Delivery notes have no amounts and add {disclaimer} (This is not a tax invoice.). Every type has {numberLabel} and {partyLabel} (Bill to, Supplier, Deliver to …).

Lines: make a table with a heading row and one more row. Put {#lines} at the start of that row's first cell and {/lines} at the end of its last cell; the row repeats for every line, with {description}, {quantity}, {unitPrice}, {discount} and {amount} in its cells. To repeat the heading row on every page, select it and tick Table Properties > Row > Repeat as header row at the top of each page.

Printing only when there is a value: wrap text in a section. {#hasTax}VAT {tax}{/hasTax} prints only when there is VAT (on tax invoices, credit notes and debit notes {tax} is R 0,00 without VAT), and any tag works the same way: {#reference}Your order {reference}{/reference}. {^hasPayments}…{/hasPayments} prints only when nothing has been paid. A section from the first cell of a table row to the last removes the whole row.

Values come formatted, so do not format numbers or dates in Word. Text you type around the tags (labels, terms) prints as you typed it.

Statements

A statement's Word file repeats a row per transaction: put {#ledger} at the start of the row's first cell and {/ledger} at the end of its last, with {date}, {type}, {number}, {reference}, {debit}, {credit} and {balance} in its cells. Around it you can use {statementDate}, {startDate}, {endDate}, {openingBalance}, {closingBalance}, {totalDebits}, {totalCredits}, {amountDue} with {amountDueLabel} (Amount due, or Credit balance when the customer is in credit; {#inCredit}…{/inCredit} prints only then), the business and customer tags, and the template's text. The starter file puts opening and closing balance rows around the ledger row. Ageing (30, 60, 90 days) is not available, as on the normal statement layout.

Statement runs to many customers convert two documents at a time, so a large run with a Word statement takes longer than with the layout.

What the upload checks

• A .docx file up to 5 MB. Old .doc files, macro files (.docm) and Word templates (.dotx) are refused; open them in Word and Save As Word Document.
• Every tag must be one Anchor knows, and every {#…} needs its {/…}. The upload lists each problem.
• Tax invoices, credit notes and debit notes must show the particulars of a full tax invoice (VAT Act s20(4), s21(3)) on the sample: the title, number and date, your name, address and VAT number, the customer's (or supplier's) name, address and VAT number, each line's description, quantity and amount, the VAT and the total. Anything missing is named and the file is refused. Other types, and invoices of an organisation without a VAT registration number, get the same kind of list as warnings (a delivery note: no amounts, but its notice).
• Linked pictures and embedded objects are removed, and fields that pull in other files (INCLUDETEXT, LINK) are refused; put pictures into the document instead of linking them.
• Fonts are drawn with the same open fonts as the layouts (see Fonts); a font Anchor does not have is named and replaced with a similar one.

Things to know

• The "Created with Anchor" strip is added at the bottom of every page. Leave the bottom 1 cm of the page clear (the starter file does); the upload warns when something prints there.
• Documents are converted with LibreOffice, so they come out close to, not identical to Word: spacing and line breaks can differ slightly. Check the preview and a real document before you make the template the default.
• While a Word file is attached, the look settings (colours, fonts, header, table and totals styles) are not used. The text settings (notes, bank details, tagline, closing text) fill their tags, and Money and Quantities still set how amounts and quantities are written. If the Word converter cannot be reached, documents are sent with the layout settings instead, so a customer always gets their document.
• A credit note without its own default template uses the invoice's look, but never the invoice's Word file; the same goes for debit notes (purchase order's look) and statements (invoice's look).

Previewing

The editor shows the real PDF as you change settings. From the template list, Preview PDF shows a saved template on sample data of its type (a Quote template previews as a quote; a statement template on a sample ledger).

Delivery notes print descriptions and quantities only, with "This is not a tax invoice."

Fonts

Layouts can use the fonts most people know from Word. Microsoft's own font files cannot be used on Anchor's servers, so each Word font is drawn with an openly licensed font made to match it:

Compatible fonts have the same character widths as the Word font, so text takes the same space and lines break in the same places. Look-alike fonts are the closest open design. Helvetica, Times and Courier are also available. The fonts are embedded in the PDF, so customers see them without installing anything.

Country-Specific Behavior

The documents adapt to your organization's country setting.

Number format

South African organisations get South African number formatting on documents and statements: R 6 180,00. Other organisations get R 6,180.00 / $6,180.00 style formatting.

Tax ID Labels

Invoice Title

Invoices are titled "Tax Invoice" when your organisation has a VAT registration number in Settings → Organization. Without one they are titled "Invoice": only VAT vendors may issue tax invoices. The same title prints on downloads, emails, the customer payment page and Word templates ({title}). A sent invoice uses the VAT number it was sent with, so adding or removing the number later only changes drafts and invoices sent after that. An invoice without a VAT number prints the VAT row only when it has VAT, and the South African tax-invoice warnings below are not shown.

Compliance Warnings

When viewing an invoice, you may see compliance warnings based on your organization's country. These flag missing information that may be legally required.

For EU B2B invoices (when the contact has a tax number), the contact's address is also recommended.

Compliance warnings are informational only and do not block invoice creation. You can check compliance via:

• The invoice detail page (warning banner at top)
• API: GET /api/v1/invoices/{id}/compliance
• MCP: check_invoice_compliance tool

In the template editor

The editor checks the template as you change it and lists anything to fix above the preview:

• Required (red): something a tax invoice, credit note or debit note must show that is missing, such as your business address, or a layout change the locks do not allow.
• Warnings (amber): colours too light to read on white paper, a heading-bar text colour that does not stand out from the bar, letterhead settings without an image, a letterhead with no space kept clear, or a watermark stronger than about 30%.

Whatever the layout, a tax invoice (an invoice of an organisation with a VAT registration number), credit note or debit note always prints what the VAT Act requires: the title, your name, address and VAT number, the customer's name, address and VAT number, the number and date, each line's description, quantity and amount, the VAT amount (R 0,00 when there is no VAT) and the total. Show tax row is locked on for these types; it only switches the VAT row on quotes and orders.

API

GET /api/v1/document-templates/{id} also returns backgroundPreviewUrl, a link to the uploaded image that works for one hour.

MCP Tools

AI agents connected to Anchor can manage templates with list_document_templates, get_document_template, create_document_template, update_document_template, duplicate_document_template, apply_document_template_style, set_document_template_background (image as base64, with mode, strength, position, size and margins), remove_document_template_background, delete_document_template and preview_document_template (returns the text the sample PDF prints: title, headings, amounts and footer, plus the same compliance warnings as the editor).

Word templates have get_document_template_docx_tags, download_document_template_docx_starter, set_document_template_docx (the .docx as base64), get_document_template_docx and remove_document_template_docx. A Word file is checked before it is saved: no macros, linked files or embedded objects; every tag must be known; and a tax invoice, credit note or debit note must show the SA tax particulars on a sample render. Every template type, statements included, can use a Word file. The "Created with Anchor" strip is added at the bottom of every page. If the Word converter cannot be reached, documents are sent with the template's normal layout.

ai_design_document_template runs Match my design and spends the user's AI allowance; most agents can read a picture themselves and build the layout with get_document_template_layout_schema and create_document_template for free, which the tool's description recommends. get_ai_allowance shows what is left.

Agents can also change a template's layout: start from the classic, banded or minimal preset, or send a full layout described by get_document_template_layout_schema. The same locks apply as in the editor. On Settings → Templates, in-page agents get the list, get, create, update, duplicate, apply style and delete tools, plus the AI allowance and Match my design; deleting asks you to confirm, and Match my design only opens its window: you pick the pictures, tick consent and start it yourself. Uploading or removing a letterhead is done in the editor's Letterhead / watermark group.