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@Thomas, We are using a custom built order management system in Airtable. A great thing about Xero (and Airtable) is the open API. We can manage a wholesale order in Airtable and track it through our entire production process. Then, through some automation when the order is fulfilled, we produce a draft invoice in Xero, which is then approved and sent normally through Xero.

Which order management system are you using Jason, if you're comfortable sharing?
Given that we are a long way off getting this functionality inside Xero, this sounds like an option that we'd be interested to explore.

I used to need this feature, but I no longer do. I was using Xero as our primary source for customer orders. Now I flipped things around and it's working much better. I am using a separate order management system. It creates an invoice directly in Xero and only includes the information that the customer needs to see. This, I think, is the best of both worlds. The order management system contains all the relevant data to support our SOPs and the invoices in Xero are focused the final products/services that are sold to the customers. This is working better for us rather than overloading the invoices to try to do it all.

Ben Harper has captured this issue and reasons to fix it perfectly, I second every part of his comment.

My Thoughts

Reason for Feature Development
1. Professional Presentation for Clients

Many businesses want to present clean, summary-style invoices to clients without exposing detailed internal breakdowns (e.g., markup, subcontractor fees, individual material costs).
Currently, to avoid showing certain line items, businesses must manually merge or delete them, which complicates record keeping and audit trails.
2. Maintain Accurate Internal Reporting

Businesses often use detailed line items for internal analysis, job costing, and tracking. Hiding items from the client-facing invoice while retaining them in the backend would preserve data integrity without compromising client presentation.
3. Competitive Sensitivity

In trades, consulting, and contracting industries, line items may reveal sensitive supplier costs, margins, or proprietary service breakdowns. Hiding them prevents price shopping and protects intellectual property.
4. Industry Standards

Competitor software (e.g., QuickBooks, FreshBooks, and Zoho Books) offer “summary invoices,” “collapsible line items,” or “internal notes only.” To stay competitive, Xero should match this flexibility.
5. Enhanced Customisation and Control

Businesses increasingly demand invoice customisation. Adding this feature would improve user satisfaction, especially among trades, agencies, and firms who need tailored client communication.

I currently have a free trial, I like the look of xero over competition at present, but This is looking ot be a deal breaker.
We often have 30 or more items on the invoice plus lines for labour costs, we want to be able to describe the service carried out (which can be done in the description field) but not show line items of individual spares or materials, we just need a total for the client.
Pointless paying for email invoicing with payment links if we have to use a seperate invoicing software so the invoices can be sent as we need.

I'm with everyone on this thread, would love to see this feature added – it’s been requested for years and is something other systems already offer. We often need to track all the individual components for our own records, but don’t always want to show the full breakdown to the client. Being able to combine or hide line items would make things so much tidier and more professional from a customer point of view, while still keeping things clear on the backend. Please consider prioritising this.

Come on Xero, for every person that comments here, there are more that want this feature that don't comment here! This is important to our businesses!!

HI Xero! Can you give us an update on this? I need this functionality.

Hide duplicate line items on the PDF invoice that goes to a customer. This is useful when using tracking categories behind the scenes but you only want the customer to see a total, not all the details.

Adding to the chorus - please can we get this in development.

Can anyone help me with the invoice template that might be the answer to hiding charged line data from my staff. I am having real trouble with xero sales invoicing since moving from QBS!

Sadly Nathan Xero continue to ignore multiple requests on this preferring "to focus on other priorities"

They have made it clear that they have no intention of doing anything about this in the near term

Not listening to what the customers need

Any update on this? Would be super handy.

This is SO important - i might need to revert back to Quickbooks as that software does it and i didnt realise sales invoicing would be so hard to do on xero. For a practice that invoices clients contractors costs - but those contractors see my clients books thus process my invoice......there must be something that can be done.

Please can we have the option to group items on a sales invoice and those items not be visible on the printed / sent invoice. but full detail on our accounts.
If this critical when having contractors working for you and clients accounts and you are billing the client for their time or services.
Look at QuickBooks Group Invoice lines - works perfectly.
You can't breakdown the invoice into items chargeable at your business rate because the contractor will see them (you can on QuickBooks).

How about creating the ability to create a product or service which is multiple items, eg, I can call this (and bill this) as "Breakfast", but the product is composed of eggs, bacon, potatoes and labor.(each of which I track seperately) The customer only sees Breakfast and the price...

Xero Support, how many votes do you need ?
Meantime, let us export the template to excel ...at least. Let´s improve this please, URGENT.

Looks like this has been continuously requested for over a decade :O
We will potentially look to move to another platform - by the looks of it all other big platforms offer this ability. I'm not sure why this couldn't be a part of the new invoice system that is being rolled out??

Xero really couldn't care about this - this is regularly highlighted but for well over ten years continues to be ignored

VERY disappointing "customer service"