Net 60 Payment Terms: What They Mean and Whether to Accept Them

Net 60 means the full amount on an invoice is due within 60 calendar days of the invoice date. An invoice dated June 1, 2026 on net 60 terms is due July 31, 2026. That is twice the wait of net 30, and the request usually comes from a large company with a formal accounts payable team.

Net 60 sits at the long end of the common invoice payment terms. This guide shows how to work out a net 60 due date, what the term costs a small business in cash flow, and how to negotiate it down when a client asks for it. If you are weighing shorter options, see net 45 payment terms, net 30 payment terms and net 15 payment terms.

What does net 60 mean on an invoice?

Net 60 is a payment term that gives the client 60 days to pay the full invoice amount. "Net" means the total owed, with no early-payment discount taken off. You will also see it written as "60 days net" or "net 60 days."

The rules are the same as for net 30:

• The clock starts on the invoice date. Delivery, the day the client opens the email, and the day their finance team approves the invoice do not move it, unless your contract says so.
• Days are calendar days. Weekends and public holidays count.
• Day 60 is the deadline. The client can pay sooner, but expect a client who asked for 60 days to use them.

How do you calculate a net 60 due date?

Add 60 days to the invoice date. Sixty days is close to two months, but rarely exactly two months, because months run from 28 to 31 days.

Month-end invoices are where people slip. An invoice dated December 31, 2026 is due on March 1, 2027. Sixty days covers all of January (31 days) and all of February (28 days in 2027), with one day left over.

Write the actual date next to the term, for example "Net 60, due March 1, 2027." Then nobody has to count.

Net 60 vs net 30 vs net 90

Each extra 30 days adds another month of your billing to the money your clients are holding.

The last column uses the same simplified model as our net 30 and net 15 guides: you invoice $4,000 a month, bill evenly through the month, and every client pays exactly on the due date. Real clients often pay after the due date, so real waits run longer.

Net 90 is less common than net 60 and mostly appears with very large buyers. If net 60 already strains a small business, net 90 rarely works without a deposit.

Why do big companies ask for net 60?

Large buyers ask for net 60 because it lets them keep their cash longer. Every day an invoice stays unpaid, the money sits in their account instead of yours. Finance teams track this as days payable outstanding, and longer supplier terms improve the number. J.P. Morgan's guide to net 30, 60 and 90 terms explains the same trade-off from the buyer's side.

There are practical reasons too:

• Their accounts payable team pays on a fixed cycle, often once or twice a month.
• Each invoice has to match a purchase order and a receipt before anyone pays it.
• Net 60 is written into their standard vendor agreement, and changing it means a request to procurement.

The last reason is the useful one. A term that comes from a template can sometimes be changed for a supplier who asks.

The law also limits long terms in some places. In the EU, the Late Payment Directive sets 60 calendar days as the general limit for business-to-business payment terms. Longer terms have to be expressly agreed and must not be grossly unfair to the supplier. UK government guidance says business payment dates should usually fall within 60 days, and anything longer must be fair to both businesses.

What does net 60 cost a small business?

Net 60 means you finance two months of your own work. In the $4,000 a month model above, about $8,000 of finished work is waiting to be paid at any moment. That is double net 30 and four times net 15.

The first months with a new net 60 client hurt the most. Say you start in March 2026 and invoice at the end of each month:

Your first payment is due on May 30. By then you have done almost three months of work for that client and been paid for none of it. If you cover rent, software and taxes with a credit card or a line of credit in the meantime, you are paying interest on money your client owes you. One late payment on top of that adds weeks to the gap.

How do you negotiate down from net 60?

Negotiate before you sign. Once the contract says net 60, every invoice will follow it.

1. Ask whether net 60 is required. Some large companies have shorter terms for small suppliers. Ask before you assume net 60 is fixed.
2. Counter with net 30 plus a deposit. A deposit covers your costs up front and shrinks the amount left on long terms. Our guide to payment in advance shows how to invoice one.
3. Split the work into milestones. Invoice each one when it is delivered, so you are never waiting on the whole project.
4. If they hold firm, price it in. Add the cost of waiting to your rate, or ask for a deposit large enough to cover your out-of-pocket costs.

Here is a reply you can adapt:

Thanks for sending the vendor agreement. I can work with your payment process. For a project this size, my standard terms are a 30% deposit on signing and net 30 on the remaining invoices. That lets me keep the schedule we agreed without carrying two months of costs. Would that work on your side?

If the client will not move to net 30, offer net 45 as a middle ground. If net 60 is non-negotiable, still ask for the deposit. It reduces how much you have waiting, and it tests how the client handles payments before the larger invoices go out. For more on billing larger clients, see our page on invoicing for consultants.

How do you write net 60 on an invoice?

Put the term and the actual due date on the invoice where the client will see them.

Invoice date: June 1, 2026 Payment terms: Net 60 Payment due: July 31, 2026

If you agreed a late fee, add it on the same line:

Payment terms: Net 60. Payment due July 31, 2026. Balances unpaid after the due date incur a late fee of 1.5% per month.

If the client paid a deposit, show it so the balance is clear:

Deposit of $1,500 received May 4, 2026. Balance of $3,500 due July 31, 2026 (net 60).

A late fee clause has to be agreed before the invoice goes out, so put it in your contract or proposal as well. Rules on late fees and interest differ by country and state, and some places cap them.

How do you get paid on time under net 60?

A 60-day invoice has a long time to get lost. These steps keep it moving:

1. Send the invoice the day the work is done. On net 60, a week's delay pushes your payment a week further out.
2. Get the purchase order number first. Accounts payable teams often hold invoices that lack one.
3. Confirm the invoice is in their system within a week. Ask your contact whether it has been approved, so you find problems in week one instead of week nine.
4. Remind the client before the due date. A short note a week ahead catches invoices stuck in an approval queue.
5. Follow up the day after it is late. Start polite, then get firmer. Our guide to handling late-paying clients has email templates for each stage.

SolidInvoice keeps track of deposits and balances for you. You can record a deposit against the invoice, and the pay link then charges only the remaining balance. Clients pay by card or PayPal straight from the invoice, and on Pro and higher plans, payment reminders send automatically on the schedule you set. See pricing for what each plan includes.

Net 60 payment terms FAQ

Is net 60 normal?

Net 60 is common with large companies and uncommon between small businesses, where net 30 or shorter is the norm. In the EU and the UK, 60 days is the usual limit for business-to-business terms, and longer terms have to be agreed and fair to the supplier.

Does net 60 start from the invoice date?

Yes, unless the contract says otherwise. Net 60 counts 60 calendar days from the invoice date. The delivery date and the date the client approves the invoice do not change the clock. If you want terms to run from delivery, write that into the contract.

Can I charge a late fee on net 60?

You can if the late fee was agreed before the invoice was sent. Put the clause in your contract and repeat it on the invoice. A common clause is 1.5% per month on overdue balances. Check the late fee and interest rules where you and your client are based, since some places cap them.

What is the difference between net 60 and net 90?

Net 60 gives the client 60 days to pay and net 90 gives them 90. An invoice dated June 1, 2026 is due July 31 on net 60 and August 30 on net 90. If you bill $4,000 a month, net 90 adds about $4,000 to the amount you are waiting on at any time.

Should a freelancer accept net 60?

Accept net 60 only from a reliable client you want to keep, and only if you can cover two months without that income. Ask for a deposit either way. For new clients, small projects, or tight cash, counter with net 30 plus a deposit.

Send invoices with the due date on them, and let reminders do the chasing. Start a free 14-day trial of SolidInvoice.