Free Copy Editor Invoice Template

What is a Copy Editor invoice?

A copy editor invoice is issued by a professional copy editor or editorial freelancer to a publisher, author, business, or communications team for the copyediting of manuscripts, reports, marketing materials, website content, books, and other documents. Copyediting involves improving clarity, consistency, grammar, style, and structure while preserving the author's voice. Copy editors in the UK typically work for trade publishers, academic publishers, business communications teams, or independently. The Chartered Institute of Editing and Proofreading (CIEP) is the UK professional body, offering training, resources, and membership grades that signal professional competency to clients. Copyediting is distinct from proofreading (final error-checking) and from developmental or structural editing (restructuring and reorganising content). Each level of editing requires different skills and commands different rates.

What to include on a Copy Editor invoice

• Editor's name, CIEP membership grade
• Client name: publisher, author, or company
• Document title and type
• Word count
• Editing level: copyediting, proofreading, or both
• Style guide followed: CMOS, New Hart's Rules, house style
• Whether a stylesheet was prepared
• Turnaround date met
• Rate: per 1,000 words or per hour
• Invoice number, date, and payment terms

Common copy editor invoice line items

How to invoice as a copy editor

Invoice on delivery of the edited document. For long manuscripts (books, academic theses), consider invoicing in two stages: 50% on receipt of the manuscript and 50% on delivery of the edited version. Include the word count and editing level on every invoice. Word counts should be confirmed from the document properties before invoicing, as client word count estimates can be inaccurate. For publisher clients, confirm their payment schedule. Many trade publishers pay 30 days after invoice. Academic publishers can take 60-90 days. Account for this in your cash flow. For heavy editing (manuscripts that require significant rewriting beyond standard copyediting), renegotiate the rate or scope before completing the work. Heavy editing is more labour-intensive than standard copyediting and should not be delivered at the standard rate.