Creating a purchase order takes a minute, and three of its fields decide whether the eventual invoice matches automatically or lands on somebody's desk as an exception. The rest of the document is bookkeeping. Knowing which three, and checking them before the order is sent, converts order raising from clerical work into prevention.
The six fields
A unique number, the date, the supplier's legal entity, the lines with description, quantity, unit of measure and unit price, the delivery address and date, and your payment terms. That is a complete order. Anything else is useful context rather than a requirement, and long order templates tend to be filled in less carefully.
The three that decide later work
The supplier's legal entity, because groups invoice from entities whose names differ from the trading name. The unit of measure, because ordering by case and being invoiced by unit mismatches every time. And what the price includes, because an order silent on freight will mismatch every invoice that adds it.
Before you send it
Check those three, confirm the approval happened, and record that the order was sent and when. That last point answers whether the supplier ever received it, which is the first question in a good share of delivery disputes and is otherwise reconstructed from somebody's sent items.
Questions people ask about how to create a purchase order
Does an order need terms on it?
Yes. Terms on the order are what you rely on when the supplier's invoice states different ones, which happens more often than people expect.
What if the price is not known yet?
Give an estimate marked as such, or a not-to-exceed value. An order with no price leaves the match nothing to compare against.
Can an order be amended?
Yes, as a dated revision rather than an overwrite, with re-approval above a threshold.