By: Money Navigator Research Team
Last Reviewed: 04/02/2026
FACT CHECKED
Quick Summary
Tide Invoice Assistant is a paid invoicing add-on priced at £5.99 + VAT per month, and charges typically begin as soon as the add-on (or a bundle that includes it) is activated, with the first charge calculated pro rata for the remainder of the month.
Billing then repeats monthly, and cancelling changes future charges based on calendar-month timing rather than per-invoice usage.
This article is educational and not financial advice.
What Tide Invoice Assistant includes (and the headline price)
Tide describes Invoice Assistant as an invoicing add-on that enables unlimited invoices/quotes, automated invoice chasing, and automatic matching of payments to invoices, priced at £5.99 + VAT per month for limited companies and sole traders. See What is Invoice Assistant and how much does it cost?
A practical way to think about the pricing is that it’s access-based (a subscription for the feature set), rather than a fee that’s calculated per invoice. That distinction matters when looking at what triggers charges and when charges stop.
What triggers charges
1) Exceeding Tide’s free invoicing allowance
Tide states that, each month, members can create and send up to 3 invoices and quotes in total for free. Creating more than 3 in a month requires subscribing to Invoice Assistant. See Is Tide Invoicing free?
2) Activating Invoice Assistant (even mid-month)
Tide bills Invoice Assistant in advance, charging immediately when the option is activated. The first charge is pro rata for the remainder of the current month, followed by full monthly charges thereafter. See When will I be billed for Invoice Assistant?
3) Being on a bundle that includes Invoice Assistant
Tide indicates Invoice Assistant can be taken on its own or as part of bundles (including Admin-related bundles). Tide’s accounting add-on overview also references Admin bundles combining accounting features with Invoice Assistant. See What accounting add-ons do Tide offer, and how much are they?
4) Free trials that route usage through a bundle first
Tide notes that if a member has an available free trial for certain Admin bundles, Tide may require that the free trial is used first before switching to Invoice Assistant only, with the option to downgrade before the trial ends. See What is Invoice Assistant and how much does it cost?
Summary Table
| Scenario | Outcome | Practical impact |
|---|---|---|
| Create up to 3 invoices/quotes in a month | No Invoice Assistant fee triggered by that usage | Fits very low-volume invoicing without the add-on |
| Create 4+ invoices/quotes in a month | Invoice Assistant subscription becomes the route to continue invoicing | Costs can shift from £0 to a monthly subscription |
| Subscribe to Invoice Assistant mid-month | Immediate charge (pro rata for the rest of the month) | Charges can appear straight away even with few invoices |
| Invoice Assistant included via a bundle | Invoice Assistant functionality provided through that bundle | Charges may show under the bundle rather than standalone add-on |
| Cancel Invoice Assistant during a paid month | Cancellation/downgrade typically applies from the following calendar month | Billing and access are driven by month boundaries, not last-use time |
| Cancel during a free trial | Cancellation can take effect immediately (per Tide) | Trial state can change what “stop” means in practice |
How billing works (timing, pro rata, and VAT)
Tide states Invoice Assistant is billed in advance and charged immediately on sign-up. The first charge is calculated pro rata so it reflects only the remainder of the current month. See When will I be billed for Invoice Assistant?
After that, Tide states it collects the full £5.99 + VAT per month in the first week of each month until the subscription is cancelled. VAT is described as additional to the advertised price; for general UK VAT context, the standard VAT rate is described at VAT rates (GOV.UK)
How to stop charges (what cancellation changes and when)
Tide’s cancellation article describes cancelling via app or web and explains what happens if Invoice Assistant is part of an accounting subscription (where the flow becomes downgrade or cancel via plan management). See How do I cancel Invoice Assistant and what happens when I do?
Two timing rules Tide highlights are easy to miss:
Tide states downgrades/cancellations take effect at the beginning of the following calendar month, and that re-subscribing is only possible after the current subscription is inactive. See How do I cancel Invoice Assistant and what happens when I do?
Tide also states that if a subscription is cancelled after the last day of the current month, Tide will still charge for that month, and access continues until the end of the month of cancellation. See When will I be billed for Invoice Assistant?
Scenario Table
| Scenario-level trigger | Process-level billing behaviour | Outcome-level (access / charges) |
|---|---|---|
| Start Invoice Assistant mid-month | Charged immediately; first charge calculated pro rata | Subscription active right away; cost appears before month-end |
| Ongoing subscription into a new month | Full monthly fee collected in the first week of the month | Charges repeat even if invoicing volume is low that month |
| Cancel/downgrade while not in trial | Change takes effect at the beginning of the following calendar month | Access typically continues to month-end; next-month charges depend on timing |
| Cancel after the last day of the month | Tide states the month is still billable | Charge for that month still applies; access continues to month-end |
| Cancel during a free trial | Tide states change becomes effective immediately | Trial-state cancellation can end access straight away |
| Try to re-subscribe immediately after cancelling | Tide states re-subscribe only after subscription is inactive | Waiting period may exist until the current subscription ends/inactivates |
How this interacts with Tide plans and other pricing on your account
Invoice Assistant is only one part of what might appear on a Tide invoice. Tide also has separate billing categories such as memberships/paid plans and accounting add-ons, each with their own billing logic and cancellation effects.
For plan-level rules (when billing stops versus when access changes), the closest match in our Tide pricing cluster is Cancelling a Tide paid plan: when billing stops and what access remains and, for how Tide presents billing dates and VAT lines on invoices, Tide membership billing: monthly fees, VAT, billing dates and invoices
For a broader view of how Invoice Assistant fits alongside accounting add-ons and bundled pricing, see Tide accounting add-on pricing, billing cycles, invoices, cancellation
Tide Business Bank Account
Invoice Assistant is an in-app invoicing feature and subscription, not a bank account product on its own. In practice, businesses often evaluate invoicing tools alongside account features (payments, statements, admin controls) because operational workflows (getting paid, reconciling, chasing) cross over.
For a neutral overview of Tide’s broader business account proposition and how it compares within the UK business banking landscape, see our Tide hub page: Tide business bank accounts
Frequently Asked Questions
Tide states Invoice Assistant costs £5.99 + VAT per month and includes unlimited invoices and quotes, plus automation features like chasing and payment matching. The pricing is presented as a subscription fee rather than a per-invoice tariff. See What is Invoice Assistant and how much does it cost?
The practical implication is that charges can apply even in months where invoicing volume is low, because the fee relates to feature access during the month. This is different from services that charge only when an invoice is issued or paid.
Tide states that Tide Invoicing is free up to 3 invoices and quotes per month in total, and that creating more than this requires subscribing to Invoice Assistant. See Is Tide Invoicing free?
That means the trigger is not “sending invoices” in general; it’s exceeding a monthly allowance or activating the paid add-on (including via bundles). In months where invoicing stays within the allowance, Invoice Assistant may never be needed for basic invoicing.
Yes. Tide states the free allowance is up to 3 invoices and quotes in total each month, not 3 invoices plus 3 quotes. See Is Tide Invoicing free?
This matters for businesses that use quotes heavily as part of their sales process. A quote-first workflow can reach the limit without issuing many invoices, which is often where “unexpected” Invoice Assistant charges are first noticed.
Tide states Invoice Assistant is billed in advance and charged immediately when you sign up, with the first charge calculated pro rata for the remainder of the current month. See When will I be billed for Invoice Assistant?
In other words, the first charge is about gaining access during the current month, not about whether invoices have already been issued. That month-bound approach also explains why ongoing billing is described as repeating monthly until cancelled.
Tide states that after the initial pro rata charge, it collects the full £5.99 + VAT per month in the first week of each month. See When will I be billed for Invoice Assistant?
This timing can matter for cashflow planning because the charge may appear early in the month, regardless of when invoices are actually sent. It also means the billing rhythm is calendar-driven rather than linked to the date of first activation.
Tide states that when Invoice Assistant is cancelled (or downgraded as part of a plan), the change typically takes effect at the beginning of the following calendar month, and access generally runs until month-end. See How do I cancel Invoice Assistant and what happens when I do?
Tide also states that if cancellation happens after the last day of the current month, it will still charge for that month, with access continuing until the end of the month of cancellation. See When will I be billed for Invoice Assistant?
Tide describes Invoice Assistant as available standalone or via Admin-related bundles, and its accounting add-on overview describes Admin Extra as a bundle combining accounting features with Invoice Assistant. See What accounting add-ons do Tide offer, and how much are they?
Operationally, this means the “charge trigger” may be the bundle activation rather than the Invoice Assistant toggle itself. In cancellation flows, Tide notes that if it’s part of an accounting subscription, the pathway becomes downgrade/cancel via plan management rather than a single add-on switch. See How do I cancel Invoice Assistant and what happens when I do?
Tide states that if a member is on a free trial, the downgrade or cancellation becomes effective immediately. See How do I cancel Invoice Assistant and what happens when I do?
This is a different outcome from non-trial cancellation, where Tide describes changes taking effect from the start of the next calendar month. The practical impact is that trial status can change both feature access and when any paid billing begins.
Invoice Assistant can automate creation, sending and chasing, but it does not replace legal or tax rules about invoice content. GOV.UK summarises what invoices must include (for example, names/addresses, a unique invoice number, and clear descriptions/prices). See Invoices: what they must include (GOV.UK)
Where VAT applies, Tide presents the Invoice Assistant fee as “+ VAT”, and VAT treatment depends on the underlying supply and the business context. For VAT-rate context, see VAT rates (GOV.UK)
Invoice Assistant can automate chasing, but it does not determine legal rights around late payment. GOV.UK explains the concept of statutory interest on late commercial payments in business-to-business contexts (subject to contract terms and other conditions). See Interest on late commercial payments (GOV.UK)
In practice, tools that chase invoices can reduce admin time, but outcomes still depend on what was agreed with the customer and how disputes are handled. “Chasing” is an operational workflow; rights and enforceability sit outside the tool.
Invoice Assistant pricing is easiest to understand as a calendar-month access model with a built-in usage gate: Tide allows a small amount of invoicing for free (invoices and quotes combined), then switches to a subscription when higher volume or automation is needed.
That structure makes charges predictable for the provider, but it also means the timing of activation and cancellation can matter more than the number of invoices sent.
The key constraint is that “stop” is defined by subscription state and month boundaries, not by last use.
Tide’s stated rules (pro-rata on sign-up, monthly collection early in the month, and cancellation taking effect from the next calendar month except during trials) are all consistent with a system optimised for clear billing cycles rather than pay-as-you-go invoicing.
Sources & References
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