Difference between Bill and Voucher

Key Difference: A bill is an itemized statement of money owed for products sold or for the services that are provided from the seller to the buyer. A voucher can be described as a written instruction that is used to confirm the deal of goods and services for the specified amount of money.

Bills and vouchers both are the terms that are used in businesses including transactions. The term voucher is also used in many contexts and thus can create some confusion. However, both are related with the products and prices.

A voucher is a document that contains the listing of items purchased or the services that have been provided. The information on the voucher may differ from voucher to voucher, as it depends upon the usage of vouchers. A voucher is also referred as a bond indicating the goods and services, and this bond indicates that the amount is associated with specified goods and services.  They are widely used in housing, travel and food. A food voucher for example indicates that the amount mentioned in the voucher can only be spent on food and the conditions are mentioned in the voucher. The conditions may include the name of the stores, where the voucher can be used in exchange of food items, the validity of the voucher, etc.

Vouchers are also used in tourism industry where the specifications about the customer and the services that the customer can avail, the time that these services can be availed, etc are mentioned. Once these vouchers are handed over to customer in exchange of the amount, the customer can easily avail the services.

In accounting terms, a voucher is also used as an internal document for the company; it lists the quantities of items, credit terms, terms of payment etc, and this list is given to the vendor before paying an invoice. The other details regarding the transaction between the company and vendor are generally attached with this document. A voucher may also refer to a recharge number to recharge the mobile account and to extend the validity period. Once the voucher is sold, it depends upon the consumer to use the voucher at any time, within the validity period of the voucher, in order to get the recharge done.

A bill can simply be referred as a statement that contains the list of items along with their prices that is provided from the seller to the buyer regarding the products bought by the buyer. A bill is issued by the seller to the buyer, stating the products, quantities, agreed prices of the product or service that is being provided to the buyer.

An invoice or bill states the sale transactions only. Payment terms are also mentioned on the invoice stating how and when the buyer is expected to pay, or if the buyer has already paid money in advance. A due date is also mentioned indicating the number of days the buyer has to pay the money. Sometimes, sellers also offer a discount if the buyer pays the amount before the due date.

As both bills and vouchers are regarding the information of the products and their prices, the difference seems to get diminished. However, they both are different. A bill is generally provided to the consumer after the consumer had purchased the amount, whereas vouchers are referred as a bond confirming the details of goods or services and the prices.

The vouchers in many cases have the flexibility to be used later within the validity period of the voucher. As the voucher acts as a confirmation instruction, therefore it can only be used in exchange of the goods or services mentioned in the voucher. In accounting, the word voucher takes a different meaning of an internal document that contains the information regarding the various transaction related details between vendors and companies; and is also provided to the vendors before giving them the bill. These vouchers confirm the transaction and the transaction terms between the two. In this sense it has more details like mode of payment, etc., compared to bill that mostly contains just the listing of items and prices. 

Image Courtesy: invoicetemplatez.org, packyourbags.com

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