Home 9 Advanced Features 9 Using Quick Items (Presets)

Using Quick Items (Presets)

Quick Items (also called Presets) are saved templates for frequently used products or services. Instead of typing the same line item details repeatedly, create a Quick Item once and insert it with a single click.

Time savings: Quick Items can reduce invoice creation time by 50% or more for businesses with recurring services or products.

What Are Quick Items?

Quick Items are predefined line item templates that store:

  • Description
  • Unit price
  • Default quantity (optional)
  • Tax rate
  • Duration (for time-based services)

Common Use Cases

  • Consulting: “Hourly Consultation – $150/hr”
  • Web Design: “Logo Design – $500”
  • Products: “Website Hosting (Annual) – $120”
  • Services: “SEO Audit – $800”
  • Packages: “Basic Support Package – $200/month”

Example: If you frequently bill for “Website Maintenance,” create a Quick Item with description, rate, and tax settings. Every time you need it, select it from the Quick Items menu instead of retyping.

Creating Quick Items

Method 1: From Settings

  1. Click Settings (gear icon) in the header
  2. Navigate to “Quick Items” section
  3. Click “Add Quick Item”
  4. Fill in the form:
    • Name: Short identifier (appears in dropdown)
    • Description: Full line item description
    • Unit Price: Default price
    • Quantity: Default quantity (usually 1)
    • Tax Rate: GST/tax rate to apply
    • Duration: For time-based services (hours, days)
  5. Click “Save Quick Item”

Method 2: From Line Item

Create a Quick Item directly from an existing line item:

  1. Create a line item in any invoice/quote
  2. Fill in description, price, etc.
  3. Click the “Save as Quick Item” icon (⭐)
  4. Give it a name
  5. Click “Save”

💡 Tip: Method 2 is faster if you’re building an invoice and realize you’ll use the same item again.

Using Quick Items in Invoices

Inserting a Quick Item

  1. Open an invoice or quote
  2. Click “Add Line Item” (Cmd/Ctrl + I)
  3. Click the “Quick Items” dropdown at top of line item form
  4. Select your Quick Item from the list
  5. Fields auto-populate with saved data
  6. Adjust quantity or price if needed
  7. Click “Save” or press Enter

Keyboard Workflow

For power users:

Cmd/Ctrl + I → Click Quick Items dropdown → Type to filter → Enter

Inserting a Quick Item takes ~3 seconds vs ~30 seconds to type manually.

Editing Quick Items

Update Existing Quick Item

  1. Go to Settings → Quick Items
  2. Find the Quick Item in the list
  3. Click “Edit” (pencil icon)
  4. Modify any fields
  5. Click “Save Changes”

⚠️ Note: Editing a Quick Item does NOT update existing invoices that used it. It only affects future uses.

Price Updates

If your pricing changes:

  1. Edit the Quick Item with new price
  2. Future invoices will use the new price
  3. Old invoices remain unchanged

Best practice: Review and update Quick Items quarterly or when prices change.

Deleting Quick Items

  1. Go to Settings → Quick Items
  2. Find the Quick Item
  3. Click “Delete” (trash icon)
  4. Confirm deletion

What happens to old invoices? Existing invoices that used the deleted Quick Item are NOT affected. The line item data is stored in the invoice, not linked to the Quick Item.

💡 Tip: Instead of deleting, consider archiving by prefixing the name with “[OLD]” so it’s clear it’s deprecated.

Organizing Quick Items

Naming Conventions

Use clear, descriptive names:

✅ Good names:

  • “Web Design – Logo (Flat Rate)”
  • “Consulting – Hourly”
  • “Hosting – Annual Plan”
  • “SEO – Monthly Retainer”

❌ Poor names:

  • “Item 1”
  • “Service”
  • “Thing”

Grouping by Category

Use prefixes for easy filtering:

  • Services – Consulting, Design, Development
  • Products – Software, Hosting, Domains
  • Packages – Bronze, Silver, Gold tiers
  • Hourly – Time-based services

Example:

  • “Services – Website Design”
  • “Services – Website Maintenance”
  • “Products – SSL Certificate”
  • “Hourly – Development”

When you type “Services” in the Quick Items filter, all service items appear.

Advanced Quick Item Features

Variable Pricing

Some items have varying prices:

  • Create base Quick Item with standard price
  • When inserting, adjust price as needed
  • Original Quick Item remains unchanged

Example: “Consulting – Hourly ($150)” Quick Item can be adjusted to $200 for rush projects.

Quantities and Calculations

Set smart defaults:

  • Hourly services: Default quantity = 1 hour
  • Products: Default quantity = 1
  • Bulk items: Default quantity = typical order size

You can always override the quantity when inserting.

Extended Descriptions

Quick Items can include extended descriptions:

  1. Enable extended description in the Quick Item form
  2. Add formatted text (bullet points, bold, etc.)
  3. When inserted, the full rich text description appears

Use case: Standard service packages with detailed scope descriptions.

Quick Items Best Practices

1. Start Small

  • Create Quick Items for your top 5-10 most used items
  • Add more over time as you identify patterns
  • Don’t create 100 Quick Items upfront – it’s overwhelming

2. Review Regularly

  • Quarterly price audits
  • Remove obsolete items
  • Update descriptions as services evolve

3. Consistent Descriptions

  • Use the same terminology across all Quick Items
  • Match how you describe services to clients
  • Professional, clear language

4. Tax Accuracy

  • Ensure correct tax rates are set
  • Some items may be tax-exempt (check local laws)
  • Different tax rates for different item types

5. Team Alignment

If multiple people create invoices:

  • Standardize Quick Item names
  • Document which Quick Items to use for specific scenarios
  • Prevent duplicate Quick Items for the same service

Quick Items vs Manual Entry

When to Use Quick Items

✅ Use Quick Items for:

  • Services you offer regularly
  • Products you sell repeatedly
  • Standard packages or bundles
  • Hourly rates that don’t change often

❌ Don’t use Quick Items for:

  • One-off custom projects (unique descriptions)
  • Items with highly variable pricing
  • Expenses that change each time

Time Comparison

Method Time per Line Item For 10 Items
Manual typing ~30 seconds 5 minutes
Quick Items ~3 seconds 30 seconds

Time saved: 90% faster with Quick Items!

Importing/Exporting Quick Items

Exporting Quick Items

To back up or share Quick Items:

  1. Go to Settings → Quick Items
  2. Click “Export”
  3. Download CSV file
  4. Contains all Quick Items with all fields

Importing Quick Items

  1. Prepare CSV with columns: Name, Description, Price, Quantity, Tax Rate
  2. Go to Settings → Quick Items
  3. Click “Import”
  4. Upload CSV file
  5. Review preview
  6. Click “Import”

Use case: Migrating from another invoicing system or sharing Quick Items across team members.

Syncing Quick Items with Xero

Xero Integration

If connected to Xero:

  • Quick Items are NOT automatically synced to Xero
  • They’re LiteWork-only templates
  • When you use a Quick Item in an invoice and post to Xero, the line item data is sent (not the Quick Item itself)

Xero Items

Xero has its own “Items” feature:

  • You can import Xero Items as LiteWork Quick Items
  • Go to Settings → Quick Items → Import from Xero
  • Select which Xero Items to import
  • They become Quick Items in LiteWork

Best practice: Keep LiteWork Quick Items and Xero Items in sync manually or import periodically.

Troubleshooting

Quick Item Not Appearing in Dropdown

Solutions:

  1. Check if Quick Item was saved (visit Settings → Quick Items)
  2. Refresh the page
  3. Type the Quick Item name to filter the dropdown

Wrong Price Auto-Fills

Solutions:

  1. Check the Quick Item settings (may have old price)
  2. Edit the Quick Item to update the price
  3. In the current invoice, manually adjust the price after inserting

Deleted Quick Item Still Shows

Solutions:

  1. Refresh the page
  2. Clear browser cache
  3. Check Settings → Quick Items to confirm deletion

Common Questions

How many Quick Items can I create?

No hard limit. Practically, 20-50 is manageable. More than 100 can be hard to navigate.

Can I use Quick Items in both invoices and quotes?

Yes! Quick Items work the same in both invoices and quotes.

Will updating a Quick Item change old invoices?

No. Once a line item is saved in an invoice, it’s independent of the Quick Item. Updates only affect future uses.

Can I set different tax rates for different Quick Items?

Yes. Each Quick Item can have its own tax rate (GST, tax-exempt, etc.).

Can Quick Items include discounts?

Yes. Set a discount percentage in the Quick Item settings, and it will auto-apply when inserted.

What’s Next?

Optimize your workflow further:

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