--- title: Purchase Order Definition and Types in Precoro description: In this article, we summarize the Purchase Order types you can create and utilize in Precoro. This way, you can select the specific document that best meets your company’s needs. --- [Skip to content](https://help.precoro.com/different-purchase-order-types#main-content) [Contact us](https://help.precoro.com/kb-tickets/new?hsLang=en) [Customer portal](https://help.precoro.com/tickets-view?hsLang=en) [![Property 1=Default](https://help.precoro.com/hubfs/Property%201=Default.svg)](https://app.precoro.com/login) Open main navigation Close main navigation - [Contact us](https://help.precoro.com/kb-tickets/new) - [Customer portal](https://help.precoro.com/tickets-view) - [Contact Us](https://share.hsforms.com/1-5JilMA_Qv6AOSVjFtNhDg14slf) [Contact Us](https://share.hsforms.com/1-5JilMA_Qv6AOSVjFtNhDg14slf) Hi there! How can we help you today? - There are no suggestions because the search field is empty. 1. [Knowledge Base](https://help.precoro.com/?hsLang=en) 2. [How to use Precoro](https://help.precoro.com/how-to-use-precoro?hsLang=en) 3. [Purchase Orders](https://help.precoro.com/how-to-use-precoro?hsLang=en#purchase-orders) # Purchase Order Definition and Types in Precoro ## Learn what a purchase order is and which types to use for your company's purchasing needs. **TABLE OF CONTENTS** - [What Is a Purchase Order?](https://help.precoro.com/different-purchase-order-types#po) - [Purchase Order Types](https://help.precoro.com/different-purchase-order-types#types) - [Comparison Table](https://help.precoro.com/different-purchase-order-types#table) - [Key Characteristics by Type](https://help.precoro.com/different-purchase-order-types#types) ### What Is a Purchase Order? A purchase order (PO) is an official document a business (buyer) sends to an external supplier (vendor) confirming the intent to purchase specific goods. It typically includes: - Product descriptions - Quantities and agreed prices - Delivery schedules - Payment terms Once the supplier approves the PO, it becomes a legally binding contract, protecting both sides if either party doesn't meet their obligations. For tips on managing purchase orders, please visit our [blog post](https://precoro.com/blog/purchase-order-management/). ### Purchase Order Types #### Comparison Table The table below helps you compare PO types and choose the one that best fits how you buy, invoice, and receive items or services. | PO Types | Choose when | Key difference | | --- | --- | --- | | Standard | You know the items or services you need, their quantities, and their prices. | Tracks items by quantity and price. | | Blanket per Total | You agree on a total spending limit with a supplier, but you don’t know the exact items or purchases in advance. | Tracks the overall PO amount instead of pre-specified item lines. | | Service | You buy services and need to track spend by amount rather than by item quantity. | Tracks service amounts and supports partial invoicing. | #### Key Characteristics by Type ##### Standard PO Standard POs in Precoro track purchases by **quantity and price** and can be created [from scratch](https://help.precoro.com/how-to-create-a-purchase-order?hsLang=en), an [approved purchase requisition](https://help.precoro.com/how-to-create-a-purchase-order-from-requisitions?hsLang=en), or [requests for proposals](https://help.precoro.com/how-to-create-a-request-for-proposal#turn-into-po). **💡 Tip:** Process PO faster and with less manual effort—upload a supplier document and let[AI Document Scanning](https://help.precoro.com/using-ai-document-scanning#po-scanning) extract the details and match the supplier and items for you. It’s included in your package starting from the Automation plan. When working with standard POs, you can: - Create receipts to track delivered quantities. - Create partial or full invoices against the PO. - Use 2-way or 3-way [matching](https://help.precoro.com/matching-process?hsLang=en). - Track the purchase against a budget. - Apply [tolerance limits](https://help.precoro.com/tolerance-limits?hsLang=en) when matching the invoice with the PO. **Best for:** office supplies, equipment, hardware, fixed-price services, and other purchases where the scope is known before ordering. ##### Blanket PO When working with blanket POs, you can: - Define the total amount available for the agreement. The actual items and costs are added later when creating invoices. - Create multiple invoices against the same order until its total amount is used. - Record budget consumption based on the invoices created against the PO. **Best for:** ongoing supplier relationships, repeated purchases, recurring deliveries, and agreements where the exact purchase details become known over time. ##### Service PO Service Orders are amount-based, which makes them a better fit for services where the exact usage or final cost may vary over time. When working with service POs, you can: - Create partial or full invoices against the SO. - Define a service period. - Use a budget breakdown to distribute costs across periods. - Create receipts if service confirmation is required. - Use 3-way matching when receipts are part of your process. - Track the purchase against a budget. **Best for:** consulting, maintenance, utilities, subscriptions, professional services, and other purchases where value matters more than quantity. ##### Recurring Order Instead of creating each PO manually, you define the recurrence once, and Precoro generates future documents based on the original order. When working with recurring POs, you can: - Choose the needed Validity Period and Repeat frequency. - Select Budgets for future recurring documents. - Use the original PO as the template for each new document. - Let each generated PO follow the Approval Workflow, or enable automatic approval for recurring documents. Learn how to configure it [here](https://help.precoro.com/how-to-design-set-up-the-approval-workflow#auto-approval). **Best for:** subscriptions, recurring supplies, scheduled deliveries, regular service fees, and other predictable repeat purchases. **✍️ Note:** Recurring order isn't a separate purchase order type. It is a scheduling option available for standard and service orders. - [Precoro Setup](https://help.precoro.com/precoro-setup?hsLang=en#main-content) - [Configurations](https://help.precoro.com/precoro-setup?hsLang=en#configurations) - [User Management](https://help.precoro.com/precoro-setup?hsLang=en#user-management) - [Custom Fields and Forms](https://help.precoro.com/precoro-setup?hsLang=en#custom-fields-and-forms) - [Supplier management](https://help.precoro.com/precoro-setup?hsLang=en#supplier-management) - [Working with Items](https://help.precoro.com/precoro-setup?hsLang=en#working-with-items) - [Approval Workflow](https://help.precoro.com/precoro-setup?hsLang=en#approval-workflow) - [Location Management](https://help.precoro.com/precoro-setup?hsLang=en#location-management) - [Precoro Payments](https://help.precoro.com/precoro-setup?hsLang=en#precoro-payments) - [Two-factor authentication](https://help.precoro.com/precoro-setup?hsLang=en#two-factor-authentication) - [Security](https://help.precoro.com/precoro-setup?hsLang=en#security) - [US Based Server](https://help.precoro.com/precoro-setup?hsLang=en#us-based-server) - [How to use Precoro](https://help.precoro.com/how-to-use-precoro?hsLang=en#main-content) - [Warehouse Requests](https://help.precoro.com/how-to-use-precoro?hsLang=en#warehouse-requests) - [Requests for Proposals](https://help.precoro.com/how-to-use-precoro?hsLang=en#requests-for-proposals) - [Purchase Requisitions](https://help.precoro.com/how-to-use-precoro?hsLang=en#purchase-requisitions) - [Purchase Orders](https://help.precoro.com/how-to-use-precoro?hsLang=en#purchase-orders) - [Service Orders](https://help.precoro.com/how-to-use-precoro?hsLang=en#service-orders) - [Receipts](https://help.precoro.com/how-to-use-precoro?hsLang=en#receipts) - [Invoices](https://help.precoro.com/how-to-use-precoro?hsLang=en#invoices) - [Expenses](https://help.precoro.com/how-to-use-precoro?hsLang=en#expenses) - [Budgeting](https://help.precoro.com/how-to-use-precoro?hsLang=en#budgeting) - [Inventory](https://help.precoro.com/how-to-use-precoro?hsLang=en#inventory) - [Reports](https://help.precoro.com/how-to-use-precoro?hsLang=en#reports) - [AP Inbox and Intelligent AP Automation](https://help.precoro.com/how-to-use-precoro?hsLang=en#ap-inbox-and-intelligent-ap-automation) - [Working with documents](https://help.precoro.com/how-to-use-precoro?hsLang=en#working-with-documents) - [Suppliers Portal](https://help.precoro.com/how-to-use-precoro?hsLang=en#suppliers-portal) - [Supplier Registration](https://help.precoro.com/how-to-use-precoro?hsLang=en#supplier-registration) - [Attachments, Filters, and Search](https://help.precoro.com/how-to-use-precoro?hsLang=en#attachments-filters-and-search) - [Mobile App](https://help.precoro.com/how-to-use-precoro?hsLang=en#mobile-app) - [FAQs and Troubleshooting](https://help.precoro.com/how-to-use-precoro?hsLang=en#faqs-and-troubleshooting) - [Precoro Integrations](https://help.precoro.com/precoro-integrations?hsLang=en#main-content) - [QuickBooks Online Integration](https://help.precoro.com/precoro-integrations?hsLang=en#quickbooks-online-integration) - [NetSuite Integration](https://help.precoro.com/precoro-integrations?hsLang=en#netsuite-integration) - [Xero Integration](https://help.precoro.com/precoro-integrations?hsLang=en#xero-integration) - [API Requests and Webhooks](https://help.precoro.com/precoro-integrations?hsLang=en#api-requests-and-webhooks) - [SSO Setting](https://help.precoro.com/precoro-integrations?hsLang=en#sso-setting) - [Google Integration](https://help.precoro.com/precoro-integrations?hsLang=en#google-integration) - [Power BI](https://help.precoro.com/precoro-integrations?hsLang=en#power-bi) - [Integration with Slack](https://help.precoro.com/precoro-integrations?hsLang=en#integration-with-slack) - [PunchOut Catalogs](https://help.precoro.com/precoro-integrations?hsLang=en#punchout-catalogs) - [Integrations via Connectors](https://help.precoro.com/precoro-integrations?hsLang=en#integrations-via-connectors) - [Bill.com Integration](https://help.precoro.com/precoro-integrations?hsLang=en#bill-com-integration) - [Precoro Updates](https://help.precoro.com/precoro-updates?hsLang=en#main-content) - [Releases, 2026](https://help.precoro.com/precoro-updates?hsLang=en#releases-2026) - [Releases, 2025](https://help.precoro.com/precoro-updates?hsLang=en#releases-2025) - [Releases, 2024](https://help.precoro.com/precoro-updates?hsLang=en#releases-2024) - [Releases, 2023](https://help.precoro.com/precoro-updates?hsLang=en#releases-2023) - [API Updates](https://help.precoro.com/precoro-updates?hsLang=en#api-updates) - [General changes](https://help.precoro.com/precoro-updates?hsLang=en#general-changes) [![Precoro](https://help.precoro.com/hubfs/Precoro.svg "Precoro")](https://precoro.com/) Copyright © 2026, Precoro