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Customise invoices, quotes, and sales receipts in QuickBooks Online

by Intuit•44• Updated 1 month ago

QuickBooks Online has got you covered when it comes to making invoices, quotes, and sales receipts that wow your customers.

Before you start

Your quotes or invoices will look different depending on whether you have the old or new quote and invoice experience. Find out which experience you have.

Customise your sales forms with the new layout

The new version of invoices and quotes lets you personalise forms while creating them.
Note that any changes or additions to your invoices or quotes will be applied to existing and future ones. Edits to company info will also change it everywhere in QuickBooks.

  1. Go to Sales, then select Invoices (Take me there).
  2. Select Create invoice to create a new invoice. Or, to edit an existing one, find the invoice from the list and select View/Edit from the dropdown ▼ under the Action column.
  3. To update your company info, select Edit company on the form. Make changes as needed, and then select Save. 
  4. To edit your company logo, select the logo on the form. Then select an image from your computer, and select Open to update the logo. 
  5. To add or remove fields, change the colour scheme, or turn on payments on invoices, select Manage ⚙, if not selected already.
  6. Select the dropdown ▼ for each section to see customisation options. 
  7. Choose what info displays on your form by turning the switches on or off. The form preview updates as you make changes.
  8. Select Payment options or Discounts and Fees to customise payment options, or turn them off.
    Note: Payment processing is an add-on service.
  9. Optionally, in case of invoices, select Automation to set up a Recurring invoice.
    Note: This option takes you to the recurring invoice form.
  10. When you're finished customising, select Save.
  1. Go to Sales, then select Invoices (Take me there).
  2. Select a customer, then select Quote from the New transaction dropdown ▼ to create a new quote. Or, to edit an existing one, find a quote from the list and select View/Edit from the dropdown ▼ under the Action column.
  3. To update your company info, select Edit company on the form. Make changes as needed, and then select Save. 
  4. To edit your company logo, select the logo on the form. Then select an image from your computer, and select Open to update the logo. 
  5. To add or remove fields, change the colour scheme, or turn on payments on invoices, select Manage ⚙, if not selected already.
  6. Select the dropdown ▼ for each section to see customisation options. 
  7. Choose what info displays on your form by turning the switches on or off. The form preview updates as you make changes.
  8. Select Payment options or Discounts and Fees to customise payment options, or turn them off.
    Note: Payment processing is an add-on service.
  9. When you're finished customising, select Save.

Customise your sales forms with the old layout

Important: The "Standard" template is the default for all forms. Customise a specific form by making a new template for it, then set that template as the default to see changes.

Customisation steps are slightly different for different editions of QuickBooks Online. Follow the steps for your edition.

Create customised templates for your invoices, quotes, and sales receipts. You can also save multiple templates for each type, choose a default, or switch between them.

Important: The "Standard" default template represents all your forms. If you make any edits to this template, QuickBooks will apply them to all your forms. If you want to customise a specific form, create a new template for that form first. After you apply customisations to the new template, make it the default template to reflect the changes.

Step 1: Create a new template

  1. Go to Settings ⚙ and then select Custom form styles.
  2. Select New style.
  3. Select the type of sales form you want to create a template for.

Step 2: Customise the appearance

Let's start with the layout. You'll see a preview of changes as you make them.

  1. Select the Design tab.
  2. Give your template a name.
  3. Select Change up the template to choose a layout. These layouts are fixed. We recommend using the Airy new.
    Note: If you plan to use Stock Keeping Units (SKUs) or create progress invoices, you'll have to use the Airy new design.
  4. Select Make logo edits to adjust or hide your logo.
    • To change the logo, select the (+) plus icon on the image. Select one of your saved logos or add a new one. Note: You can save multiple logos but you can only use one at a time.
    • To adjust the logo size and placement, select the size and placement icons.
    • To hide the logo, select Hide logo.
  5. Select Try other colours to pick a colour scheme. You can enter a HEX code (the six-digit combination of numbers and letters for a colour) for a truly custom colour.
  6. Select Select a different font to change the font and size.
  7. Select Add your EFT details to enter payment details.
  8. Select Edit print settings to adjust the margins. This is important if you send printed forms to your customers.

Step 3: Customise the info on your forms

There are several options for customising the details of your forms. We won't cover them all, but here’s how to get started and a few tips for each section:

  1. Select the Content tab.
  2. Select the header, table, or footer on the sample form to start editing that section. You’ll edit each section separately. 
  3. Tick the boxes next to the fields you want to display on your form. Then select the next section (header, table, or footer) on the sample form to customise it.
  4. Whenever you're ready to save your changes, select Done.

Learn more about some customisation options for the header, table, and footer:

Select the header section to customise what displays. Here are some things to keep in mind while customising the header:

  • When you select a box, a preview displays on the sample form. 
  • Your company info automatically appears in sales form headers. Use the check boxes to add or remove what your customers see. You can also update the text fields to edit what displays.
  • Check the Form numbers checkbox to have QuickBooks add invoice or quote numbers to your form. 
  • You can add custom fields to your form. Here's how:
    • In the Header section, select Manage custom fields.
    • In Custom fields, select Add field.
    • Enter the name of field, and select All Sales forms.
    • Turn on Print on form so it appears in your form's header.
    • Select Save.

Note: You can add up to three custom fields for sales forms.

Select the table section to customise it. Here are some things to keep in mind while customising the table:

  • When you select a box, a preview displays on the sample form. 
  • You can choose how you want to display your description, quantities, and rates:
    • To display separate columns for item descriptions, quantities, and rates, select the Description, Quantity, and Rate checkboxes.
    • Or keep things in a single column by selecting the Product/Service checkbox and then the Include description here checkbox. 
    • Or select the Description checkbox and then Include Quantity and Rate. 
  • To reorder the columns, drag a grid icon to a new place on the list. 
  • To change the column name or size, you must select Edit labels and widths and then:
    • Change the column names by editing the text fields.
    • Adjust the width by moving the sliders.

The Show more activity options section contains the following options, depending on the form style (Invoice, Estimate or sales receipt) that you select:

  • Group activity by - with the option to select Day, Week, Month, and Type.
  • Collapse activity rows - Combine rows that have the same rate and description. Omits dates.
  • Show progress on line items (email only).
  • Show markup on billable expenses.
  • Show billable time - with 2 more options when selected:
    • Include employee name
    • Include hours and rate
  • Show tax inclusive amounts - This shows the GST-inclusive amount on the print previews and on the invoices sent to customers.
  • Show tax type indicators

Select the footer section to customise what displays on your footer. Here are things to keep in mind as you customise the footer:

  • When you select a box, a preview displays on the sample form. 
  • Select the Discount checkbox if you're offering a discount and want it to display on the form.
  • You can customise a message to your customer and add text to the footer of the form. Just fill out the message and footer fields. Then choose the font size and/or placement with the dropdown ▼ fields.

Step 4: Personalise your email message

Make things personal by changing the message customers see when they get their quote, invoice, or sales receipt. If you want to use QuickBooks default messaging, you can skip this.

  1. Select the Emails tab. 
  2. Choose if you want to display full details or a summary by selecting Full details or Summarised details. 
  3. If you’d like to attach a PDF with a full pricing breakdown, tick the PDF Attached box. 
  4. Change the subject line, greeting, and message body by entering your customised text. Note: QuickBooks doesn't show shortened URLs when you send emails to customers.

Step 5: Select and use a template for invoices, sales receipts, or quotes

QuickBooks uses your default template each time you create a new invoice, sales receipt, or quote. You can select a specific template for specific transactions directly from the form:

  1. Create a new invoice, sales receipt, or quote, or open an existing one.
  2. Select Customise in the footer. Note: In case of an existing invoice, you may have to edit the invoice to see the Customise option.
  3. Select a custom template from the list.

Step 6: Set a default custom template

QuickBooks uses the first custom template you create as your default for invoices, sales receipts, and quotes. To set another custom template as the default:

  1. Go to Settings ⚙ and select Custom form styles.
  2. Find your template.
  3. Select the ▼ in the Action column.
  4. Select Make default.

Step 7: Edit custom templates

To manage your custom templates:

  1. Go to Settings ⚙ and select Custom form styles.
  2. Find your custom or standard template.
  3. Select Edit in the Action column.

Once you have created and saved your template, you can use it to create a new invoice. Here's how:

  1. Select + New, then select Invoice.
  2. Select Customise.
  3. Select your new template, fill in the details in your invoice, then select Save.

In QuickBooks Simple Start, you can create multiple invoice templates. You can customise invoices, but not other types of sales forms. All the tools you need to customise invoices are on the form itself:

  1. Create or open an invoice.
  2. Select Settings ⚙ on the Invoice form.
  3. On the Choose what you use panel, select Change what your customers see, and decide what company info you want customers to see. You can select company info from the Content section.
  4. When you're done customising, select Done.

Customise the details

You can add fields or change the colour scheme on invoices. Here are just a few things you can do:

  1. Create or open an invoice.
  2. Select Settings ⚙ on the Invoice form. On the Choose what you use panel, select Change what your customers see to decide what company info you want your customers to see.
  3. Select the Content section.
  4. Under Forms, select the Form numbers.
  5. Under Display, select or clear Terms, Shipping, or Due Date checkboxes to add or remove these fields in the form.
  6. Select the Design section to change the colours, font, and logo.
    Tip: You can enter a hex code in the Colour field if you want a truly customised colour.
  7. Select the Emails section. Personalise the message your customers see when they receive their invoice.

When you're done customising, select Done to close the customisation window. Then finish your invoice.

Unfortunately, it's not possible to import your own custom invoice templates into QuickBooks Online. However, the good news is that you can still make your invoices unique by using the existing templates in QuickBooks Online and customising them to fit your needs.

The steps to customise may differ based on whether you are using the old or new invoicing experience. Find out which experience you have.

You can customise your invoices, quotes, and sales receipts in QuickBooks Online. It is not possible to customise purchase orders, payment receipts, or bills.

You can’t add a new column in QuickBooks, however, you can edit and rename an existing column when customising a template. All you need to do is:

  1. Go to Settings ⚙ and select Custom form styles.
  2. Create a New style, or choose an existing form you wish to edit.
  3. In the Content tab, select the table section of the template.
  4. Select EDIT LABELS AND WIDTHS.
  5. Enter the new name of the column in the field.
  6. Select Done.

If you need to add a PO number to an invoice, you can manually enter it in the Content tab as either a:

  • Custom field in the header section. Note: Select anywhere within the header section, then select Manage custom fields and follow the steps to add a custom field to your invoice.
  • Message to customer on box in the footer section.
  • Add payment details and footer box in the footer section.

Unfortunately, at this time it is not possible to add a photo in each product/service line in QuickBooks.
We are always looking for ways to improve our current experience, so we strongly recommend leaving feedback on this by signing in to your QuickBooks account, selecting the Gear icon in the top right, and then Feedback.

Have any other questions for our team?

If any of your questions were left unanswered, we'd love to hear them!
Pop over to our QuickBooks Community's discussion on invoicing where you can ask your questions, have them answered by qualified QuickBooks Online experts, and hopefully help others with the same questions out in the process.
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