The quick answer
Open the item group, click Edit, and on the Purchasing / Inventory tab's Components subtab check Display Components on Transactions. Save. With the standard print template, sales orders you enter after that print each component with its quantity, rate and amount, followed by the group total. With the box cleared, the same template prints the group as one line with one amount. The member lines still appear on the order screen either way, and the total doesn't change. In this example, SO1041 prints Home Office Starter Set as a single $836.00 line, and SO1042, entered after the box was checked, prints the desk, chair, monitor arm and two lamps.
The screenshots show sample data. The company, user and customer names are fictional. Use your own item group and customer when following the steps.
Before you start
Larkspur Office Outfitters sells a Home Office Starter Set. It's an item group with a DK-140 Standing Desk, a CH-220 Task Chair, an MA-30 Monitor Arm and two LM-12 Desk Lamps, 836.00 in total. The customer, Brightwater Design Studio, wants the printed order to show what's in the set.
Make sure the item is an item group. A kit/package has a checkbox with the same name, but kits are priced differently, so they print differently. This example uses the Administrator role. Any role that can edit items and enter and print sales orders will do.
The results below come from the standard sales order print template. A customized Advanced PDF/HTML template can print group lines its own way, or ignore the box. If checking the box doesn't change your printout, check the saved order's Custom Form and the print template assigned to it. For template edits, see how to customize a sales order PDF.
01. Check the picking ticket preference
Go to Setup > Accounting > Accounting Preferences and click the Order Management subtab. Under Picking/Packing, Always Print Kit Items on Picking Tickets is checked in this account.
This preference is easy to confuse with the one you need. It decides whether a kit/package's components print on picking tickets. It doesn't control item group components on a printed sales order. That's the item's own Display Components on Transactions box. You don't need to change anything here.
02. Look at the item group
Go to Lists > Accounting > Items and click Home Office Starter Set. On the Purchasing / Inventory tab, the Components subtab lists DK-140 Standing Desk (1), CH-220 Task Chair (1), MA-30 Monitor Arm (1) and LM-12 Desk Lamp (2). Display Components on Transactions is cleared. The tab placement can differ with the item form your account uses.
Reference Start/End Lines on Picking Tickets, to its left, is checked in this example. It's tied to the group's start and end lines, and this walkthrough doesn't change it. Leave yours as it is so your result is comparable.
03. Print an order with the box cleared
Go to Transactions > Sales > Enter Sales Orders and choose Brightwater Design Studio. On the Items subtab, choose Home Office Starter Set in Item and click Add. The group expands on screen into its members: DK-140 Standing Desk 429.00, CH-220 Task Chair 249.00, MA-30 Monitor Arm 89.00, LM-12 Desk Lamp 2 x 34.50 = 69.00, and an End of Group line of 836.00.
Display Components on Transactions doesn't change this. The member lines are added to the order whether the box is checked or not. The box changes what prints.
Click Save. The order is saved as SO1041 with a total of 836.00. Click the Print icon next to Fulfill.
The PDF opens in your browser, usually in a new tab. Its item table has one line: Quantity 1, Home Office Starter Set, Amount $836.00. The desk, chair, monitor arm and lamps aren't listed. Subtotal and Total are $836.00.
04. Turn on Display Components on Transactions
Close the PDF tab. Go to Lists > Accounting > Items, click Home Office Starter Set and click Edit. On Purchasing / Inventory > Components, check Display Components on Transactions.
Click Save. The item group now shows Display Components on Transactions checked.
05. Print a new order
The setting is picked up when the group is added to a transaction, so test it on a new order. Go to Transactions > Sales > Enter Sales Orders, choose Brightwater Design Studio, add Home Office Starter Set and click Save. On screen the lines are the same as SO1041's. The order is saved as SO1042. Click the Print icon.
The PDF now lists the group line without a price, then each component with its quantity, rate and amount: 1 DK-140 Standing Desk $429.00, 1 CH-220 Task Chair $249.00, 1 MA-30 Monitor Arm $89.00 and 2 LM-12 Desk Lamp at $34.50 for $69.00. A last row carries the group total, $836.00.
Subtotal and Total are still $836.00. The two orders have the same lines, quantities and total. Only the printout is different.
This walkthrough doesn't reprint SO1041 after the change. The box is read when the group is added to an order, so an existing order normally keeps printing the way it did. To change one, edit it, remove the item group together with its member lines, add the group again, check the components and save. Then print it to confirm in your account.
Common questions
Why does my sales order PDF show only the item group line?
Display Components on Transactions is cleared on the item group. With the standard template, the PDF then prints the group as one line with its total, even though the order screen lists every member. In this example SO1041 printed one line, Home Office Starter Set at $836.00. Check the box on the item group and enter the order again.
Where is the Display Components on Transactions checkbox?
On the item group record, on the Purchasing / Inventory tab, Components subtab, next to Reference Start/End Lines on Picking Tickets. Click Edit to change it. The tab can sit elsewhere if your account uses a different item form.
Does Display Components on Transactions change the order total or inventory?
No. It changes how the group prints, not its price. SO1041 and SO1042 both total $836.00. The members are still the lines that get committed and fulfilled, either way.
Why didn't my existing sales order printout change after I checked the box?
The setting is picked up when the group is added to an order, not when you print. Orders entered before the change normally keep printing the way they did. Edit the order, remove the item group with its member lines, add it again and save, then print it to check.
What does Always Print Kit Items on Picking Tickets do?
It decides whether a kit/package's components print on picking tickets. It doesn't control item group components on a printed sales order. That's the item group's own Display Components on Transactions box.
Why does an item group always expand into lines on the sales order screen?
That's how item groups work. Adding one puts its member lines on the order so each member is priced, committed and fulfilled. Display Components on Transactions doesn't stop that. It only changes what prints.
How do I hide item group components on a printed sales order?
Clear Display Components on Transactions on the item group and save. Orders you enter after that print the group as one line. For an existing order, remove the group and add it again. If the components still print, the order's form probably uses a custom Advanced PDF/HTML template that prints them anyway.
Does it apply to invoices and other transactions?
It's meant for printed sales and purchase forms in general, not just sales orders. This walkthrough only prints sales orders, and each transaction's print template decides the final layout, so print a test copy of the form you care about.