What do the credit terms 2/15, n/30 mean

2/10 net 30 is a trade credit offered by the seller to the buyer for their purchase. If a buyer is able to pay an invoice in full within the first ten days, they will receive a 2 percent discount on the net amount. Learn why this is important for your business cash flow.

Nurturing long-term relationships with suppliers as your business grows is a worthwhile investment. Consistently paying vendor and supplier invoices on time, if not before the due date, is the best way to build trust. Further, understanding how credit terms impact your business, as well as that of your suppliers, gives you an edge in contract negotiations.

Overview of 2/10 net 30

One beneficial credit term between a buyer and a seller to consider is 2/10 net 30. Simply put, 2/10 net 30 is a trade credit offered by the seller to the buyer for their purchase. If a buyer is able to pay an invoice in full within the first ten days, they will receive a 2 percent discount on the net amount. However, if a buyer misses the 10-day window, they must pay the full amount of the invoice on or before 30 days.

How is 2/10 net 30 calculated?

For example, if your business purchases goods on the 1st of the month for $100, your business has now entered into a credit agreement. If you are able to pay the invoice in full anytime from the 1st-10th of that month, you receive a 2 percent discount, here's the calculation:

Term Discount (100%-2%) * Invoice Amount ($100.00) = Reduced Payment ($98.00)

However, if you do not pay the full amount on or before the 10th, then $100 is the full amount due by the 30th. When considering 2/10 net 30, or any payment terms, it is important to keep in mind that weekends, holidays, and transit time are included, and not just business days.

Benefits and drawbacks of 2/10 net 30

When your business is healthy, being able to take advantage of savings opportunities keeps money in your pocket. And the more you are able to demonstrate timely payments, vendors will be more likely to extend terms and/or offer other advantages. However, it is always best practice to put your own business needs first. There may be times that paying early will cause cash flow problems that prohibit your own ability to purchase equipment or invest in product R&D. If faster payments impede your ability to take advantage of the discount, it's counter-productive.

How to use 2/10 net 30 to your advantage

Suppliers who offer 2/10 net 30 are indicating that they prefer cash on hand to conduct their business. It is a win-win for the supplier who gains a market advantage over competitors as well as ensuring they have available means to conduct their business. A buyer who takes advantage of early payment discounts demonstrates that they understand the supplier’s needs. This relationship encourages a supplier to keep more product on hand, meaning your business doesn’t run into back-orders on the supply chain.

Similar payment terms

Payment terms are a good indication of the health of the relationship with that supplier, and 2/10 net 30 is just one credit option that a supplier may prefer. The longer the window of credit the more financial burden the supplier assumes. A supplier that sees the benefit of a relationship with a buyer may offer longer terms as a contractual incentive. Some examples of supplier terms are:

  • Immediate payment: net due on receipt

  • Non-discount terms: net 10, net 30, net 60

  • Longer, short-term payment incentives: 3/15 net 60

Conclusion

As a small business owner, developing a good relationship with vendors is key to ensuring you have supplies on hand to continue to support your client base and take advantage of growth opportunities. While a supplier may be less willing to take on longer credit terms with a new buyer, as a business demonstrates the ability to avoid late payments, those terms can be negotiated giving you access to the benefits of short-term discounts and overall savings.

Credit terms are the payment requirements stated on an invoice. It is fairly common for sellers to offer early payment terms to their customers in order to accelerate the flow of inbound cash. This is especially common for cash-strapped businesses, or those that have no backup line of credit to absorb any short-term cash shortfalls. The credit terms offered to customers for early payment need to be sufficiently lucrative for them to want to pay early, but not so lucrative that the seller is effectively paying an inordinately high interest rate for the use of the money that it is receiving early.

The term structure used for credit terms is to first state the number of days you are giving customers from the invoice date in which to take advantage of the early payment credit terms. For example, if a customer is supposed to pay within 10 days without any discount, the terms are "net 10 days," whereas if the customer must pay within 10 days to qualify for a 2% discount, the terms are "2/10". To expand upon the last example, if the customer must pay within 10 days to obtain a 2% discount, or can make a normal payment in 30 days, then the terms are stated as "2/10 net 30".

The table below shows some of the more common credit terms, explains what they mean, and also notes the effective interest rate being offered to customers with each one.

The concept of credit terms can be broadened to include the entire arrangement under which payments are made, rather than just the terms associated with early payments. If so, the following topics are included within the credit terms:

  • The amount of credit extended to the customer

  • The time period within which payments must be made by the customer

  • Early payment discount terms

  • The penalty to be charged if payments are late

What is the Cost of Credit?

You should be aware of the formula for determining the effective interest rate that you are offering customers through the use of early payment discount terms. The formula steps are:

  1. Calculate the difference between the payment date for those taking the early payment discount, and the date when payment is normally due, and divide it into 360 days. For example, under 2/10 net 30 terms, you would divide 20 days into 360, to arrive at 18. You use this number to annualize the interest rate calculated in the next step.

  2. Subtract the discount percentage from 100% and divide the result into the discount percentage. For example, under 2/10 net 30 terms, you would divide 2% by 98% to arrive at 0.0204. This is the interest rate being offered through the credit terms.

  3. Multiply the result of both calculations together to obtain the annualized interest rate. To conclude the example, you would multiply 18 by 0.0204 to arrive at an effective annualized interest rate of 36.72%.

Thus, the full calculation for the cost of credit is:

Discount %/(1-Discount %) x (360/(Full allowed payment days - Discount days))

Accounting for Credit Terms

When a customer takes an early payment discount to pay for an invoice, the accounting for the transaction is:

Debit cash for the amount of cash received
Debit sales discounts for the amount of the early payment discount
     Credit accounts receivable for the full amount of the invoice

This entry effectively clears the invoice from the aged accounts receivable report, since it has now been paid in full.

Credit Terms Table

The following table contains a number of standard payment terms, what they mean, and the effective annual interest rate being offered under these credit terms (if any).

What does 2 15 n 30 mean?

If the terms specified on an invoice are 2/15, n/30, this means that a discount of 2% will be allowed if payment is made within 15 days from the date of the invoice.

What does credit terms 2 10 N 30 mean?

2/10 net 30 is a trade credit extended to the buyer from the seller. A buyer will receive a 2% discount on the net amount if they pay the invoice in full within the first ten days of the invoice date. Otherwise, the full invoice amount is due in 30 days without a discount.

What does 3 15 n 30 mean?

Credit terms: 3/15, n/30. means you get a 3% purchase discount if payment is made within 15 days. or the net (full) amount is due in 30 days. n/eom. means that the net amount is due at the end of the month.

What does terms 1 15 n 30 mean?

Credit terms of 1/15,n/30 means that the buyer will get a 1% discount of the invoice amount for paying within 15 days of the invoice date; alternatively, he may take 30 days and pay the full invoice amount without discount.