
Learn what an aging report is, how to read aging buckets, and how to use it to prioritize collections—with a sample layout.
An aging report groups unpaid invoices by how long they have been outstanding or past due. It turns a messy list into a prioritized action plan.
Typical buckets: Current, 1–30 days past due, 31–60, 61–90, and 90+. The farther right, the hotter the follow-up.
If you only look at total AR, a pile of nearly current invoices can hide a dangerous 90+ balance.
Columns: client, invoice number, invoice date, due date, amount, current, 1–30, 31–60, 61–90, 90+. Each invoice amount sits in one bucket.
Example: INV-120 for $2,000 due 40 days ago appears in the 31–60 column. INV-130 for $500 due next week sits in Current.
Totals by bucket show where risk concentrates. Many small-business problems live in 61–90 before anyone admits it.
Call or email the oldest and largest balances first. Spot clients who repeatedly slide into 60+ and tighten their terms next time.
Assign owners and next actions per row if you have a team. Solo: block time and work top to bottom.
Do not treat every bucket the same. Current needs monitoring; 1–30 needs reminders; 61+ needs calls and decisions.
One client always appears in 31–60: their AP cycle may need earlier invoicing or different due dates.
Many invoices jump straight to 90+ with little activity: your reminder process is missing, not just client behavior.
Disputed invoices aging quietly need a dispute path, not identical reminder spam.
Build a simple aging view this week—even a spreadsheet sorted by days overdue is enough.
Take action on everything in 61+ days within five business days: collect, plan, or decide write-off path.
Revisit aging every week. The report only helps if it changes behavior.