For WooCommerce stores selling to EU customers – particularly UK and DACH region (Germany, Austria, Switzerland) – invoice compliance requirements are stricter than what a simple PDF generator covers. Legal invoice requirements include specific data fields, sequential numbering without gaps, and immutability after issue. This comparison covers the three main options for EU-compliant WooCommerce invoices.
PDF Invoices and Packing Slips (Free)
WooCommerce PDF Invoices and Packing Slips handles the visual invoice generation competently. For most purposes outside strict German tax law compliance, it covers the requirements: sequential numbering, company details, product line items, tax amounts, and payment information.
Where it falls short for strict compliance: it does not prevent invoice editing after issue (technically invoices should be immutable), it does not handle all German-specific required fields (Steuernummer, USt-IdNr. format requirements, specific return right wording), and sequential numbering without gaps requires configuration care.
WooCommerce Germanized
WooCommerce Germanized is specifically built for German legal compliance – not just invoices, but the full range of German e-commerce law requirements: right of withdrawal notices, SEPA direct debit support, small business regulation (Kleinunternehmerregelung) invoices, and specific checkout consent requirements. For stores selling primarily to German customers, Germanized covers the legal requirements that generic WooCommerce plugins cannot.
The invoice functionality within Germanized handles German-specific requirements: correct Steuernummer display, VAT exempt invoices, and invoice immutability. For stores where German compliance is the priority, Germanized is the appropriate choice rather than attempting to configure the generic PDF plugin to meet German requirements.
Not sure which fits your store? Describe your setup and get a free recommendation.
WooCommerce German Market
An alternative to Germanized with similar scope – full German legal compliance for e-commerce, including invoice management, product-specific legal notices, and checkout compliance. German Market and Germanized cover similar ground and the choice between them often comes down to which has better compatibility with your specific theme and other plugins. Both are paid plugins; German Market is available from MarketPress and Germanized Pro from vendidero.
Which to Use
For non-EU stores or EU stores with simple compliance requirements: PDF Invoices and Packing Slips free is adequate. For German, Austrian, and Swiss stores with strict legal requirements: WooCommerce Germanized or German Market, which include invoice functionality as part of broader compliance coverage. For UK stores post-Brexit: PDF Invoices free plus careful configuration of VAT number fields and Making Tax Digital (MTD) compatible accounting exports.
UK-Specific Invoice Requirements
UK VAT-registered businesses must issue VAT invoices that include: your VAT registration number, the tax point (time of supply), description of goods/services, amount excluding VAT, VAT rate, VAT amount, and total amount including VAT. The PDF Invoices and Packing Slips plugin handles all of these fields when configured correctly with your VAT number and tax settings. For Making Tax Digital (MTD) compliance, the invoice data needs to feed into MTD-compatible accounting software – the PDF invoice is the customer-facing document, but VAT reporting to HMRC requires accounting software integration separate from the WooCommerce invoice plugin.
For UK stores using Xero or QuickBooks, the WooCommerce integrations for those platforms export order data in the correct format for MTD reporting. The PDF invoice plugin handles the customer document; the accounting integration handles HMRC compliance. Both are needed for a complete UK VAT-registered store setup.