Turn signed retainers into FreshBooks recurring invoices
Agencies and studios sell retainers and care plans in QuoteCloud and bill them every month from FreshBooks. When the retainer is signed, a Zap sets up the recurring invoice with the monthly lines the client agreed to, from the right month.
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- Building QuoteCloud since 2013
Build a Zap with QuoteCloud's Zapier app, on Essentials and up. Document Signing Complete starts it when the retainer is signed; FreshBooks' Find or Create Client finds the client and Create Recurring Invoice sets up the monthly invoice with the agreed lines, tax and first date. QuoteCloud takes the first payment on signing; FreshBooks bills the rest.
Last reviewed by the QuoteCloud team
Two overlapping panels with sample data. Behind, Ambergrove Digital's 12-month growth retainer AD-R-2207 for Kinroy Outdoor Co.: six monthly services totalling $8,530 a month plus tax. In front, an illustration of the FreshBooks recurring invoice a Zap set up from it: the same six lines, $9,383.00 each month including tax, monthly from Fri 1 Jan 2027, 11 invoices.
Who bills the retainer after it's signed?
Ambergrove Digital's retainers run for 12 months. Account director Rina Takahashi sells them in QuoteCloud; the first payment, the first month plus onboarding, is paid by card as the client signs. Operations lead Sam Petrakis bills the other eleven months from FreshBooks.
QuoteCloud shows the monthly charges in the agreement; it doesn't bill them. So when Kinroy's second signer signs, a Zap sets up the FreshBooks recurring invoice with the six monthly lines from the agreement, starting in January because December is already paid.
- The monthly lines and tax come from the signed agreement, so the recurring invoice matches it.
- The first payment is taken in QuoteCloud; the payment Zap can record it in FreshBooks.
- Studios do the same with care plans: Glasswing's $149 a month plan becomes a recurring invoice from launch.
How do I set up a FreshBooks recurring invoice from a signed retainer?
Three steps, one Zap. Every name is the exact event you pick in Zapier.
ZapSigning complete: recurring invoice in FreshBooks
-
When
QuoteCloudTriggerDocument Signing CompleteFires once both Elena and Daniel have signed.Passes on
- Document reference
- Line items
- Signer email
-
Then
FreshBooksSearchFind or Create ClientSearches on
- Search Value (email)
- Organization
-
Then
FreshBooksActionCreate Recurring InvoiceThe monthly lines, the tax and the first month FreshBooks bills.Mapped in
- Client
- Line Item Name
- Line Item Unit Cost
- Line Item Tax1 Percent
- Date of Issue
- Is Infinite?
-
Or
SlackAction · optionalSend Channel MessageTell the account team the retainer is live.Mapped in
- Channel
- Message
Is Infinite? set to no ends the profile; how the frequency and the number of invoices are set depends on the fields Zapier shows for your FreshBooks account, so check them in the editor or adjust the profile in FreshBooks after the first test. In Make, bring your own: QuoteCloud's API beside Make's FreshBooks modules.
Elena Marsh signs AD-R-2207 on Tuesday afternoon and Daniel Kwan at 9:05 am on Wednesday, paying $11,363.00 for December and onboarding. At 9:06 Kinroy has a FreshBooks recurring invoice: six monthly lines, $9,383.00 a month with tax, from Fri 1 Jan 2027, eleven invoices to the end of the term.
Result
Every signed retainer is billing from FreshBooks on the right date at the agreed monthly fee, without anyone setting it up from the PDF.
QuoteCloud's Zapier app: Essentials and up
How agencies write retainer proposalsSold for 12 months, billed for 12 months
The signed retainer agreement, and the FreshBooks recurring invoice the Zap set up from it.
Your monthly retainer
| Service | Visits | Per month |
|---|---|---|
| SEO · Growth | Monthly | $2,600.00 |
| Social · Growth | Monthly | $2,100.00 |
| Paid search & social · Growth | Monthly | $1,600.00 |
| Email · Foundation | Monthly | $750.00 |
| Content · Foundation | Monthly | $1,100.00 |
| Monthly review call | Monthly | $380.00 |
- Monthly
- $8,530.00
- Term
- 12 months · $102,360
- D
- J
- F
- M
- A
- M
- J
- J
- A
- S
- O
- N
Accept and sign
2 of 2 signed
- Elena MarshHead of e-commerce SignedTue 20 Oct 2026, 4:12 pm
- Daniel KwanFinance director SignedWed 21 Oct 2026, 9:05 am
Agreement summary
- Monthly fees
- $8,530 + tax
- Term
- 12 months, 1 Dec 2026 to 30 Nov 2027
- Paid on signing
- $11,363.00 through Stripe (December + onboarding)
- Months 2 to 12
- Invoiced monthly from FreshBooks
Certificate of authenticity and audit trail attached
Zap
- Document Signing Complete
- Find or Create Client
- Create Recurring Invoice
Recurring invoice · AD-R-2207 · monthlyKinroy Outdoor Co.Daniel Kwan · daniel.kwan@example.com
Active| Line | Qty | Rate | Amount |
|---|---|---|---|
| SEO · Growth | 1 | $2,600.00 | $2,600.00 |
| Social · Growth | 1 | $2,100.00 | $2,100.00 |
| Paid search & social · Growth | 1 | $1,600.00 | $1,600.00 |
| Email · Foundation | 1 | $750.00 | $750.00 |
| Content · Foundation | 1 | $1,100.00 | $1,100.00 |
| Monthly review call | 1 | $380.00 | $380.00 |
Lines added by a Zap from the signed document
- Subtotal
- $8,530.00
- Tax (10%)
- $853.00
- Each invoice
- $9,383.00
Illustration with sample data: a generic invoicing record, not FreshBooks’ screen.
The recurring invoice is our illustration of a generic invoicing app with sample data, not FreshBooks' screen. Every business here is fictional.
Care plans work the same way
Glasswing's website proposals end with an optional care plan: hosting, updates, backups and two hours of changes for $149 a month. Ella and Luca ticked it.
The one-off build goes on the invoice; the care plan goes on a recurring invoice from the launch month, set up by the same kind of Zap with one monthly line.
How studios sell care plansRecurring invoice · Care plan · GS-2611Sparrow & Pine FloristElla Mancini
Active| Line | Qty | Rate | Amount |
|---|---|---|---|
| Care plan · StandardHosting, updates, weekly backups, 2 h of changes | 1 | $149.00 | $149.00 |
- Subtotal
- $149.00
- Tax (10%)
- $14.90
- Each invoice
- $163.90
Illustration with sample data: a generic invoicing record, not FreshBooks’ screen.
Variations on this recipe
Record the first payment
Create Invoice for the first month and onboarding, then a payment Zap adds the $11,363.00 paid on signing.
Renewals
Send next year's retainer as a new QuoteCloud proposal. When it's signed, the same Zap sets up next year's recurring invoice. See renewals and reviews.
Tell the account team
Add Send Channel Message for Slack or Microsoft Teams with the start date and monthly fee.
Build it in Make instead
Bring your own: Make's built-in OAuth connection to QuoteCloud and QuoteCloud's API or Zapier endpoints, beside Make's FreshBooks modules. No ready-made QuoteCloud app on Make.
Sign once, bill every month
QuoteCloud's Zapier app is on the Essentials plan and up. Start a free 14-day trial and set up a recurring invoice from a test retainer.
Build the retainer Zap in five steps
Start with Document Signing Complete
In Zapier, choose QuoteCloud's Document Signing Complete trigger and test it with a signed test retainer.
Find or create the client
Add FreshBooks' Find or Create Client on the signer's email, with the organization for new clients.
Map the monthly lines
Add Create Recurring Invoice: the client's ID, then the monthly lines' names and prices, and your tax name and rate.
Set the start and the end
Set Date of Issue to the first month FreshBooks bills, and Is Infinite? to no for a fixed term; check the frequency.
Test, then turn it on
Sign a test retainer with @example.com signers, check the profile in FreshBooks, then switch the Zap on.
Questions about retainers
Can a signed QuoteCloud retainer create a FreshBooks recurring invoice?
Yes, with a Zap. Document Signing Complete starts it once every signer has signed. FreshBooks' Find or Create Client finds the client, and Create Recurring Invoice sets up the invoice with the monthly lines, the tax, the first date of issue and whether it runs indefinitely.
Does QuoteCloud bill the monthly fee?
No. QuoteCloud shows the monthly charges in the agreement and can take a first payment as the client signs, through Stripe or PayPal. The monthly invoices after that come from FreshBooks, on the recurring invoice the Zap set up.
How do we stop the recurring invoice when the term ends?
Set Is Infinite? to no in the Zap and check how your FreshBooks recurring invoice ends, by date or by number of invoices, in your first test. You can also change or stop the profile in FreshBooks at any time; the signed agreement in QuoteCloud doesn't change.
What happens at renewal?
Send next year's retainer as a new QuoteCloud proposal, with any change of tier or channels. When it's signed, the same Zap sets up a new recurring invoice for the new term. Stop the old one in FreshBooks if it hasn't ended on its own.
More on QuoteCloud and FreshBooks
Six use cases with the exact Zapier steps, then how to connect, map the fields and what it costs.
- Invoice the signed proposal in FreshBooksWhen every signer has signed, a Zap finds or creates the FreshBooks client and creates the invoice from the proposal's lines.
- Turn a signed statement of work into a FreshBooks projectThe accepted scope opens the FreshBooks project: title, client, fixed price and due date, with the first payment invoiced.
- Time-and-materials SOWs into FreshBooksA signed hourly estimate opens an hourly FreshBooks project at the agreed rate, ready for your team's time.
- Record QuoteCloud deposits and payments in FreshBooksA deposit or payment taken on the proposal through Stripe or PayPal is added to the matching FreshBooks invoice.
- Keep QuoteCloud contacts and FreshBooks clients matchedNew QuoteCloud contacts become FreshBooks clients, and new FreshBooks clients are found or created in QuoteCloud.
- Connect FreshBooks to QuoteCloud, step by stepCheck the plan, connect both apps in Zapier, build the invoice Zap, test it and fix the usual problems.
- QuoteCloud to FreshBooks field mapEvery field the FreshBooks Zaps on this site pass, which way it travels and a sample value.
- What QuoteCloud with FreshBooks can and can't doWhat the Zaps do, where they stop, Zapier or Make, and what we haven't confirmed yet.
- What the FreshBooks connection costsEssentials and up for Zapier. The FreshBooks recipes here create no QuoteCloud documents, so no per-document fee.
- FAQAnswers to the questions freelancers and studios ask before connecting QuoteCloud and FreshBooks.
Signed for the year. Billed every month.
Start a free 14-day trial and turn every signed QuoteCloud retainer into a FreshBooks recurring invoice.