Freelancer client payment tracker: know who owes you, in rupees or dollars

A freelancer can track every client payment with a khata app: one account per client, an entry for each piece of work billed, an entry for each payment received, and the balance always on top. Designers, developers, writers, editors, tutors and consultants in Pakistan often have a dozen clients at once, some local and paying in rupees, some abroad paying in dollars through a bank or a platform. Payments come in parts, late, or not at all. A spreadsheet works until you forget to update it. Here is a simpler routine with Munshi, which is free.

Why freelancers lose money

• Milestones are billed in chat and never written anywhere else.
• Advances are received and later forgotten, so the final bill is wrong.
• Small balances from many clients add up to a month’s income.
• Asking for money feels awkward without a clear record to point to.

Set up

1. Install Munshi and sign in.
2. Create a business for your freelance work. If you have foreign clients, create a second business with currency USD (or GBP, EUR, AED) and keep those clients there. Each business has its own totals, so rupees and dollars never mix.
3. Add each client as a customer, with their WhatsApp number.

Recording work and payments

• Work billed: open the client and tap You gave with the amount and a note such as “Logo, milestone 2 of 3”. The balance goes up: the client owes you.
• Payment received: tap You got with the amount and how it came (“Payoneer”, “bank transfer”, “JazzCash”).
• Advance: record it with You got before the work. The balance shows the client has paid ahead.
• Proof: attach the invoice PDF screenshot, the agreed scope in chat, or the bank slip as a photo, up to five per entry.

Platform fees and bank charges are expenses. Record them in Expenses so your income figures are honest.

Asking for payment without awkwardness

1. Open the client’s account and share the statement as a PDF. It lists every milestone and payment with dates.
2. Send a reminder: Munshi opens WhatsApp with a polite message and the amount. You can edit it before pressing Send.
3. Set a due date when a client promises one. Home shows who is due today or late.

For wording that keeps the relationship warm, see polite payment reminders.

Monthly review

At month end, look at You will get on Home: that is money earned but not received. Filter accounts by Not paid in 30 days to see who is slipping. Export a PDF or Excel report if you keep records for tax filing or for a partner.

Agencies and teams

If you pay other freelancers, add them as suppliers. You got records work they deliver to you on credit, You gave records what you pay them. Home shows both what clients owe you and what you owe your team.

What it does not do

• No invoices or quotes. Make them in your usual tool and attach a photo.
• No currency conversion. Each business keeps one currency.
• No tax filing. It gives clean records for whoever files your return.

Personal money stays separate

Freelancers often lend money to family or friends from the same account. Keep that in a Personal khata so your client balances stay clean.

A worked example

A designer in Lahore has three local clients paid in rupees and two foreign clients paid in dollars. She keeps two businesses in Munshi: “Design PK” in PKR and “Design Intl” in USD. A foreign client agrees a $600 project in three milestones. She records the $200 advance with You got. When milestone 1 is delivered she records $200 with You gave and attaches the invoice screenshot; the balance is zero because the advance covered it. Milestones 2 and 3 are recorded the same way; when the client pays $400 through the bank, she records it with You got and a note “bank, after fees”. The $11 bank fee goes in Expenses. At any moment the client’s page shows exactly what is billed, paid and left.

Common mistakes

• Mixing currencies in one business. Keep one currency per business so totals mean something.
• Recording only payments. Record what you billed too, or the balance never shows what is owed.
• Forgetting advances. An advance not recorded means the final bill is wrong.
• Waiting months to ask. Small balances become “we already paid that” if left too long.

Retainers and monthly clients

For a monthly retainer, record the month’s fee with You gave on the first day of the month and the payment with You got when it arrives. The balance then shows any month that has not been paid, and the statement lists each month clearly. Set a due date for the usual payment day so Home shows when a client is late.

Why not a spreadsheet?

A spreadsheet works if you update it every time. Most freelancers do not. A khata app on the phone you already hold, with reminders and statements built in, takes seconds per entry and works offline.

Month-end routine for freelancers

1. Record any work delivered this month that is not yet billed.
2. Check You will get in each business: that is income earned but not received.
3. Send statements to clients with an open balance.
4. Record platform and bank fees in Expenses.
5. Export a report for your own records or tax filing.

Fifteen minutes a month keeps every client balance accurate and turns “I think they owe me something” into an exact number.

Munshi is free, works offline, and is made by DIGIT in Pakistan. For more on getting paid, read how to get paid faster.