Solo contractors write quotes constantly. If your hourly rate is $95 and your trip fee is $75, you should never have to type those numbers twice. Default Line Item Rates in CashWrench Settings let you store them once — and every new quote pre-fills them automatically.
Here's a complete walkthrough of each field, what it controls, and how to set it correctly for how you work.
Where to find Default Line Item Rates
Open the CashWrench app and tap the Settings icon. Scroll to the Default Line Item Rates section — it sits at the top of Settings because it's the most commonly configured preference for new users.
The section has four fields: Labour Rate, Trip Fee, Service Call, and Default Sales Tax. Each one maps directly to a specific button or section when you build a quote.
Default Line Item Rates in Settings — four fields that pre-fill every new quote automatically
1 — Labour Rate — your standard hourly rate
This is your hourly rate for labour. Enter the dollar amount you charge per hour — not your cost, your charge rate. When you tap + Labor (1hr) on a new quote, the Unit Price field pre-fills with this number.
The quantity defaults to 1 hour. If a job takes 2.5 hours, you adjust the quantity on that quote — the rate itself stays at whatever you set here.
Set this to your all-in hourly rate including overhead — no manual entry required on any quote.
2 — Trip Fee — flat fee per site visit
Trip Fee is a flat dollar amount you charge for showing up — fuel, travel time, vehicle wear. It's not per hour, it's per visit. Enter the flat amount you typically charge.
When you tap + Trip Fee on a new quote, a line item is added with Qty 1 and Unit Price pre-filled from this setting. The quantity stays at 1 in almost every case — you showed up once.
Trip Fee set to $75.00. Every quote gets a Trip Fee line item at $75 with one tap. If you're doing a multi-visit job, you can adjust the quantity on that specific quote.
Covers fuel, travel time, and vehicle costs — charged once per visit.
3 — Service Call — flat fee for the call-out itself
Service Call is similar to Trip Fee but represents the minimum charge for a call-out — the base fee you charge for attending a job regardless of how much work gets done. Some contractors use both; others use one or the other. Enter $0 or leave blank if you don't charge a separate service call fee.
When you tap + Service Call on a new quote, the Unit Price pre-fills from this setting.
Service Call set to $50.00. An electrician charges a $50 call-out fee plus labour by the hour. Both appear on the quote as separate line items — the customer sees exactly what they're paying for.
4 — Default Sales Tax — pre-fill your tax rate on every quote
Enter your sales tax percentage here. Leave blank if you don't charge sales tax — the field is clearly labelled optional and blank means no tax pre-fills on new quotes.
When you create a new quote, the Tax section below the line items will automatically show this rate. The tax is applied to the subtotal of all line items, and the quote summary shows Subtotal, Tax, and Total as separate rows so the customer always sees the full breakdown.
You can override the tax rate on any individual quote — this setting is just the default starting point.
Overrideable per quote — the default is just a starting point. Delete the tax section entirely on tax-exempt jobs.
How it all flows into a new quote
Once your defaults are saved, every new quote in CashWrench behaves differently. Here's what the experience looks like end to end:
| Action on the quote | What pre-fills from Settings | What you still control |
|---|---|---|
| Tap + Labor (1hr) | Unit Price = your Labour Rate | Qty (hours worked on this job) |
| Tap + Trip Fee | Unit Price = your Trip Fee | Qty (rarely changed) |
| Tap + Service Call | Unit Price = your Service Call rate | Qty (rarely changed) |
| Tax section appears | Tax Rate = your Default Sales Tax % | Override the rate or delete for tax-exempt jobs |
A new quote with defaults applied — Labor, Trip Fee, and Tax pre-filled with no manual entry
Parts pricing changes with every job and every supplier. You enter the actual cost of parts per quote rather than guessing at a default. Everything else is standardised; parts stay flexible.
Set your rates once. CashWrench fills them in — you just adjust for the specific job.
Frequently asked questions
What are Default Line Item Rates in CashWrench?
Can I change the rate on a specific quote after setting defaults?
What happens if I leave Default Sales Tax blank?
Does the Default Sales Tax apply to all line items?
Why doesn't Parts have a default rate?
What is CashWrench?
Set your rates once. Two months free.
Configure your defaults in under two minutes — then quote faster on every job that follows.