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Billable expenses - how to add an auto % markup?
When using the Billable expenses feature for creating an invoice, how can I add an automatic % markup?

For example, I apply a set % markup on all subcontrator fees when invoicing customers.

(I have been MYOB user and they have this feature for reimbursable expenses.)

You have a great system of assigning item numbers to a customer - a feature that was one of the core reasons we chose Xero as we thought it would improve our profit margins by ensuring every part we ordered was assigned to a customer.

Yet when you ASSIGN TO A CUSTOMER - VIA BILLABLE EXPENSES -and add that item to an INVOICE - YOU DEFAULT TO COST PRICE ON AN INVOICE!

WHAT BUSINESS BUYS AN ITEM AND SELLS IT FOR THE SAME PRICE! Makes no logical sense. Why require a sale price on an item if your system isn't using it. If you have thousands of items of inventory as we do, you set the Cost price loading to reach the SALE price when you create the item number. The majority of the items should therefore default on the Invoice to the SALE PRICE - the exception should be that you need to go back and find the cost price, as it would be infrequent when you have high volumes of inventory to adjust the price, and you can reduce the sale price by putting in a discount code on the invoice that the client can see and which the client appreciates.

It makes no sense to use cost price as the default on invoices.

Lets say you have 5 items, Item Number XXYY you want to assign to Customer B. You set the cost price as $10 Sale price $25 when you set up ITEM XXYY. When the bill comes in you 'assign to customer 5 items of XXYY to Customer B'.

You go to an invoice for Customer B - and add billable expenses and terrific, you can see that 5 items XXYY have to be added to the invoice. You add them as separate items.

What actually appears on the Invoice is 5 items with description only NO ITEM NUMBER XXYY APPEARS IT IS MISSING - and IT SHOWS THE COST PRICE at $10.

XERO PUT IN A HUMAN ERROR RISK! As a business I now have to ensure that someone knows that the price is the cost price, and AN EXTRA PROCESS NEEDS TO OCCUR to get the sale price up.

To get the ITEM XXYY sale price to come up, we have to go back through the system to find the original invoice and locate the item number. Go back to the INvoice we were working on, then key in the ITEM XXYY - Sale Price comes up

BUT THE NUMBER OF ITEMS - IN THIS CASE 5 = defaults back to 1 item.

NOW THERE ARE TWO HUMAN ERRORS AND TWO EXTRA ADMIN PROCESSES! - Instead of all being automated through the system, to load the SALE price with the correct number of items as the default.

You then go to run the 'Billable Expenses Report' to double check, thinking well it will show that there are still 4 items to be added since now you've keyed in the ITem number it defaulted back to only 1 number.

WRONG - it now shows via billable expenses that all 5 items of XXYY are allocated to that invoice, even though on the actual number on of XXYY on the invoice is 1.

SAFETY NET REPORT HAS A FLAW - So your billable expense report only tracks whether an ITEM XXYY is listed on the invoice, it does not track how many items are on the invoice. The report should show - if ITEM XXYY has 5 assigned to the customer and 1 item is on the invoice then it should show ITEM XXYY 4 are unassigned.

Xero created this great feature but somehow just illogically didn't understand how businesses run and what they are trying to do.

Even if you say others run a COST PRICE LOADING - inventory sale process so they want to see the cost price and load it. THEN WHY IS THERE NOT A PERCENTAGE LOADING TO THE COST PRICE ON THE INVOICE! If you add a margin percentage on the invoice to the cost price - the risk here is that you need to be aware if you added in the cost price incl or excl GST.

The most frustrating process is that there is NO BUSINESS LOGIC in why this potentially great feature that could protect the profit margin of the business - now requires additional administration expense, and additional risk to profit margin because every item has to be checked to get the sale price on the invoice.

Added to this I have raised this multiple times with your team, This is the first time I am aware that I have to raise it on this forum.

This really needs to be added. It is extremely time consuming to check if a mark up has been applied for numerous line items on invoices.

I have noticed when assigning a billable expense to a contact, the cost price is what is used on the invoice, regardless if the expense is in the product/services list with a set sell price.

However, when assigning a billable expense to a project, the sell price is applied if the billable expense is in the product/services list. Though if it is a line item that is not a product/service, there is no markup added.

This causes a lot of confusion and drastically increases the possibility of incorrectly charging customers when invoicing. This needs to be fixed.

Need to include both markup and margin when this feature is added as they are different.

Markup:
cost x markup = total cost

Margin:
cost / (1 - margin) = total cost

It is amazing that this is not a feature yet. Every product in our system has the sell price listed. Why bother with this when the billable expense pulls through at our buy price? We are never going to charge it out at cost.
Even when you then overwrite the price and account, it then doesnt properly clear the billable expense from the client.

This is so critical to our work - we source items from a multitude of suppliers and install everything on one site for one client, so we are constantly needing to triple check we havent missed charging for anything. PLEASE Xero consider adding this functionality.

I have been wanting this feature ever since I starting using Xero 8 years ago.

The workaround i use is to override the quantity to add the markup and then copy the calculated amount back into the unit price before resetting the quantity.

The feature is vital to our business, the time saving benefit it would give our business when oncharging to clients is essential.
There is a add% dropdown in projects - why can't that be added to billable line items.

We have a construction company and this feature is needed to prevent double handling.. We are considering moving over to Quickbooks purely because of this.
Surely this feature isn't that hard to implement. It would be similar the GST column though an adjustable percentage!

We really need this option because the mark up IS our business at port agents.

We purchase goods and shop items for vessels prior to their arrival and deliver to the port. We charge an agreed upon 22% mark up. I need to show this to the vessel so they can categorize this in their accounting app called Voly as an “agent fee”

This is really frustrating to not have an “add %” to an item

This would be a great addition - sooner rather than later. :)

Surprised Xero still has not added this very basic feature. Critical for our business where all billable expenses require margin/mark up to be added, currently very time consuming when invoicing updating every line manually.

This is a hugely needed feature, especially in construction based industries where you buy specific parts for specific jobs all the time. Why do billable expenses not have the option to add at your set sale price?

This is basic.
What business anywhere wants to show their clients their markup.
Unheard of.

I wish I knew that Xero didn't offer the most basic service of marking up freelancer, subcontractor and other services without the client seeing it. I would have never wasted the hours to learn it.

I've never heard of a software program that does not do this.

re Mark up on expenses. Why can you not have the discount on a sales invoice so you can add a negative. This way you can add the markup's according. I have different mark up for different customers.

This would make a lot of things so much easier for me. +1

Critical for us

@Xero team - Can you advise if this is going to be added as a feature in the close future? I'm considering another accounting software option, but would prefer not to if I know Xero is adding this much needed feature. Other systems have it, don't know why this isn't already a part of Xero.

Surely with the increase in subscription fees you can get on with fixing these issues

This is an essential functionality for my clients to ensure that they are fully billing clients for freelancer services that they have taken on to deliver client projects. Also vital for other expenses that are passed on. This is an essential function for so many business models for their profitability.

It's so odd that Xero lets itself down with such an obvious requirement/function. I use Xero for 4 companies. so my vote should be quadrupled