Are the 10 days counted from the invoice date or the delivery date?

Usually from the invoice date, unless your terms say otherwise. State the basis on your invoices.

Is the discount calculated before or after sales tax?

It depends on your terms and local rules. Many businesses apply it to the invoice total; if you mean the amount before tax, say so on the invoice.

What does net 30 mean on its own?

The full amount is due within 30 days of the invoice date, with no early-payment discount.

2/10 net 30 explained: early-payment discounts, the math, and when to offer them

5 min readUpdated September 29, 2026By the thruflow team

The short answer

2/10 net 30 means the customer may take 2% off if they pay within 10 days of the invoice date; otherwise the full amount is due within 30 days. On a $10,000 invoice dated March 1, paying $9,800 by March 11 settles it; otherwise $10,000 is due by March 31. For the customer, passing up the discount is like borrowing at about 37% a year, which is why many pay early.

How to read the terms

The first number is the discount, in percent (2).
The second is how many days the customer has to take it (10).
"Net 30" is how many days they have to pay the full amount.
Other common versions: 1/10 net 30, 2/10 net 45, plain net 30 (no discount), and due on receipt.

A worked example

	2/10 net 30
Invoice total	$10,000.00
Invoice date	March 1
Discount if paid by	March 11
Discount (2%)	$200.00
Paid by March 11	$9,800.00 settles it
Otherwise due	$10,000.00 by March 31

What the discount is worth as an annual rate

Paying on day 10 instead of day 30 moves the payment 20 days earlier. The annual rate of that trade is: discount ÷ (100 − discount) × 365 ÷ (net days − discount days).

Terms	Calculation	Annual rate
2/10 net 30	2 ÷ 98 × 365 ÷ 20	about 37.2%
1/10 net 30	1 ÷ 99 × 365 ÷ 20	about 18.4%
2/10 net 45	2 ÷ 98 × 365 ÷ 35	about 21.3%

Seen from your side, that's what it costs you to be paid 20 days sooner. Compare it with what financing costs you before offering it.

When offering it makes sense

You'd rather have cash sooner than the full amount later.
Customers pay slowly, and a discount changes their priorities.
The discount costs you less than borrowing or factoring the same invoices.
You can offer it consistently: state the terms, the discounted amount and the last day on every invoice.

Handling a discount taken late

Decide your policy in advance and state it on your terms.
Check the payment date against the discount window, counted from the invoice date unless your terms say otherwise.
Treat a discount taken after the window as a deduction: accept it, or ask for the difference.

How thruflow does it

Set a customer's terms once (for example 2/10 net 30). thruflow prints the terms and the early-payment amount on every invoice and in the invoice email, sends the terms to QuickBooks with the invoice, takes the discount automatically when a payment arrives in time, and treats a late one as a deduction for you to accept or dispute.

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Questions

Are the 10 days counted from the invoice date or the delivery date?: Usually from the invoice date, unless your terms say otherwise. State the basis on your invoices.
Is the discount calculated before or after sales tax?: It depends on your terms and local rules. Many businesses apply it to the invoice total; if you mean the amount before tax, say so on the invoice.
What does net 30 mean on its own?: The full amount is due within 30 days of the invoice date, with no early-payment discount.