Some Handy Keyboard Shortcuts For Xero

Xero’s user interface (UI) makes it pretty easy to get where you need to be. In fact, it’s still the most user-friendly accounting software there is, even though the competition has had over a decade to catch up! But just because navigating Xero is a breeze, that doesn’t mean there isn’t room for improvement. Did you know there are a whole host of shortcuts and time-savers inside Xero? Knowing these could help you cut your time on Xero even further.

This quick cheat sheet will help you embrace the power of digitalisation!

Navigating Xero with your keyboard

1. You could click the search icon in the top right, OR you could simply press the forward slash (/) key on your keyboard while on any screen in Xero (except Fixed Assets, Reports, Projects, Expenses and Payroll). A ‘quick find’ box appears at the bottom of your screen
2. Type the letter corresponding to the screen you want to access.

Shortcut key	‘All’ screens and dashboard	‘Create new’ screens
/	Open search
a	All bank accounts	–
b	All bills	Add new bill
c	All contacts	Add new contact
d	Dashboard	–
e	All employees	Create new employee
f	File library	–
i	All invoices	Add new invoice
p	All purchase orders	Add new purchase order
q	All quotes	Add new quote
r	All reports	–
s	Organisation settings	–

Invoicing shortcuts

(Some shortcuts are only available when an invoice is in a particular status, such as draft or approved.)

Action	Draft	Approved/ awaiting payment	Approved	Paid	Windows shortcut	Mac shortcut
Preview	✔	✔	✔	✔	Alt-Shift-V	Opt-Shift-V
Save & close	✔	–	–	–	Alt-Shift-C	Opt-Shift-C
Print	✔	✔	–	✔	Alt-Shift-P	Opt-Shift-P
Approve & email	✔	–	–	–	Ctrl-Alt-E	Cmd-Opt-E
Approve & send eInvoice	✔	–	–	–	Ctrl-Alt-E	Cmd-Opt-E
Approve	✔	–	–	–	Ctrl-Alt-A	Cmd-Opt-A
Approve & add another	✔	–	–	–	Ctrl-Alt-O	Cmd-Opt-O
Approve & print PDF	✔	–	–	–	Ctrl-Alt-R	Cmd-Opt-R
Add payment	–	✔	–	–	Ctrl-Alt-Y	Cmd-Opt-Y
Update	–	–	✔	–	Ctrl-Alt-A	Cmd-Opt-A
Update & email	–	–	✔	–	Ctrl-Alt-E	Cmd-Opt-E
Update & send eInvoice	–	–	✔	–	Ctrl-Alt-E	Cmd-Opt-E
Update & print PDF	–	–	✔	–	Ctrl-Alt-R	Cmd-Opt-R
Edit	–	✔	–	✔	Alt-Shift-D	Opt-Shift-D
Email	✔	✔	–	✔	Alt-Shift-M	Opt-Shift-M
Send eInvoice	✔	✔	–	✔	Alt-Shift-M	Opt-Shift-M

Shortcuts in cash coding

If you complete a field and it’s one of multiple items checked, moving away from that field will populate the other rows selected with the same information. Use these navigation tips and shortcut keys to make cash coding even faster:

General cursor navigation using the keyboard or mouse

Enter	Moves down one row
Shift + Enter	Moves up one cell
Tab	Moves forward to the next cell
Shift + Tab	Moves back to the previous cell
Click + drag bottom of grid with mouse (for non-IE users)	Increases the number of rows displayed in cash coding grid

Quick actions using the keyboard (from all editable fields except Description)

+	Copies account, tax rate and tracking from the row above into the current row
/	Opens a quick Spend or Receive Money window so you can split a transaction over multiple lines.
Shift + Down Arrow	Checks the box for the current row and moves down one row
Alt + Down Arrow	Changes a payee name that is all capitals to title case. For example, JOHN DOE changes to John Doe.

Today’s date and future date entry shortcuts

Tab t	Today’s date
tom	Tomorrow’s date
next [day]	Day in the next week
next w	Next week (7 days from today)
next m	Next month (today’s date, next month)
next y	Next year (today’s date, next year)
next [month]	Any month after today’s date (today’s date, for that month)
[number]	Date in current month
[number]/[month]	Date in a month
[number]-[month]	“
[month]/[number]	“
[month]-[number]	“
[month]/[year]	First day of any month
[month]-[year]	in any year
*[number]	A date next month
+[number]	Days after today’s date/
+[number]d	Days after the invoice or bill date
+[number]w	Weeks after today’s date/ Weeks after the invoice or bill date
+[number]m	Months after today’s date/ Months after the invoice or bill date
+[number]y	Years after today’s date/ Years after the invoice or bill date

Past date entry shortcuts

yes	Yesterday’s date
last w	Last week (7 days ago)
last m	Last month (same date, previous month)
last y	Last year (same date, last year)
past y	“
last [day]	Day in the last or past week
past [day]	“
last [month]	Day in the last or past month
past [month]	“
[number]	Date in current month
[number]/[month]	Date in a month
[number]-[month]	“
[month]/[number]	“
[month]-[number]	“
[month]/[year]	First day of any month in any year
[month]-[year]	“
-[number]	Days before today’s date
-[number]d	“
-[number]w	Weeks before today’s date
-[number]m	Months before today’s date
-[number]y	Years before today’s date

Use Xero as a calculator

Did you know that certain fields will let you calculate as you go, so you don’t need to know the answer in advance! This can be handy in all kinds of situation. The calculator is available in the Quantity, Unit Price and Disc % fields in transactions, and the Debit and Credit fields in manual journals. (In new invoicing, discount percentages are calculated automatically, so the calculator isn’t available.)

Type in your function and hit Enter or Tab for instant arithmetic.

Function	Key	Example
Add	+	865.10+160.50
Subtract	–	190-25.64
Multiply	*	60.50*25
Divide	/	345/.15
Group	( )	(13.99*.25)+10

If you’re considering making the move to a cloud-based system, get in contact with Beyond today. We are familiar with all the leading accounting packages and our bookkeepers are all Xero certified.

Rory