Profit is what the books say. Cash is what is in the account on Friday. Here is how to keep the second one healthy.
3 November 2026 · 5 min read
Good cash flow comes down to two things: get money in sooner, and stop it leaving before you planned. For a tradie that mostly means taking deposits, invoicing on the day the job ends and chasing on a fixed timetable, then putting tax money somewhere you cannot spend it. None of it needs an accountant or a spreadsheet, just a few habits you stick to every week.
The ones that work on the tools are simple. Take a deposit before you buy materials. Invoice the day you finish, not on Sunday night. Use short payment terms, seven days or on completion, rather than thirty. Chase on the day an invoice falls due, not when you remember. Move a fixed slice of every payment into a separate tax account. And know, roughly, what is owed to you right now. Each one on its own helps; together they stop most cash shocks.
The quickest way to run short is buying £1,500 of materials for a customer who pays you in six weeks. A deposit fixes that. Ask for it when the quote is accepted and size it to cover materials at least. Our guide on how much deposit to ask for has the numbers. On longer jobs, agree stage payments in writing before you start, so you are never more than a week or two out of pocket.
Every day between finishing a job and sending the invoice is a day added to when you get paid. Send it while you are still on the drive, and give the customer an easy way to pay. On GraftG, text END JOB AND INVOICE and the invoice is ready in seconds. On the Pro plan it can carry a pay-online link, which is free for you when customers use bank transfer and has a 0.8% platform fee only when they pay online through GraftG. See getting paid on the day.
Most late payers are disorganised, not dishonest. A polite reminder the day an invoice is due, another a week later, then a firmer one, gets most invoices paid without a row. Doing that by hand is the job everyone puts off, which is why the Pro plan has a late-payment chaser that sends the reminders for you. Our guide to chasing late payments politely has wording you can copy.
The January tax bill is the cash flow shock most tradies see coming and still get caught by. Open a second account and move a fixed share of every payment into it the day it lands. Your accountant can tell you the right share for your profits; the habit matters more than the exact number. If you are VAT registered, the VAT you charge belongs in there too.
Ten minutes on a Friday is enough: what is owed to you, what is due out, and what is in the tax pot. If you log jobs, receipts and invoices as you go, that check is a glance rather than an evening. Ask GraftG “how much am I owed?” and it tells you over WhatsApp. Compare the plans to see which tools come with each.
Take deposits that cover materials, invoice on the day the job ends, use short payment terms, and send reminders on the due date. Those four changes usually bring money in weeks sooner without finding a single extra job.
For domestic customers, payment on completion or within seven days is normal and reasonable. Thirty-day terms suit some commercial work, but agree them in writing before you start and chase on the day they fall due.
It depends on your profits, so ask your accountant for the share that suits you. The important part is moving it into a separate account every time you are paid, so the January bill is never a surprise.
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