Not productivity theater. These ten shortcuts cut real friction from tasks people do every day. Each one is built in under ten minutes and used every week.
1. Log Expense on Tap
Ask for an amount and a category (Food, Transport, Coffee, Other). Append the entry with timestamp to a note in Apple Notes. Optional: also log to a Numbers spreadsheet if you track in detail. Replaces opening an expense app, selecting a category, typing a number, and saving. The shortcut does it in three taps.
2. Focus Mode from Calendar
An Automation that reads your calendar at the start of each event. If the event title contains "Deep Work", "Meeting", or "Gym", it sets the corresponding Focus mode. Turns it off when the event ends. Your phone knows what you're doing. You don't change anything manually.
3. Wi-Fi QR Code
Reads the saved Wi-Fi network name and password from a stored text action. Generates a QR code. Display it. Guests scan it. No reading out passwords. Useful once a week if you work from a coffee shop or have people over frequently.
4. Email Draft from Clipboard
Takes whatever text is in your clipboard. Opens a new email draft with that text in the body and your cursor in the subject line. Faster than: opening Mail, tapping compose, tapping body, pasting.
5. Silence for One Hour
Enables Do Not Disturb for exactly one hour, then disables it. No need to remember to turn it off. Set it to allow calls from Favorites to still come through. Add to home screen. Tap when you need to focus.
6. Commute Trigger
An Automation that runs when you leave your home location. Actions: opens your most-used podcast or playlist in Spotify or Podcasts, sends a "heading in" message to a contact, and logs your commute start time. You're in your car or at the station before you remember to do any of this manually.
7. Quick Note with Context
Asks for a text input. Appends it to a daily note in Apple Notes with the current time and location. This is your quick-capture shortcut. The thought is logged in three seconds with full context, without you having to choose a notebook or title.
8. Low Battery Protocol
An Automation triggered when battery reaches 20%. Actions: enables Low Power Mode, reduces screen brightness to 30%, and sends a notification reminding you to plug in. You stop losing phone power at inconvenient moments because you forgot to check.
9. Meeting Prep
Gets your next calendar event. Reads the title and time aloud. Opens the location in Maps if there's a physical address. Opens the meeting link in your browser if there's a URL. One tap, five minutes before a meeting. You arrive with the right app open.
10. End of Day Reset
Clears your clipboard, closes open apps (using the "Close Apps" action where available), sets an alarm for tomorrow morning, turns on Do Not Disturb, and dims the screen. Run it when you're done for the day. Your phone is ready for tomorrow.
Get these as ready-made shortcuts
All ten are available to download free. Install any of them in two taps — no setup required.
Browse free shortcutsThe pattern across all of these
Every shortcut above does the same thing: it takes a multi-step manual process and reduces it to one tap. The individual time saved per use is small — thirty seconds here, a minute there. The compounded effect across a week is meaningful. More importantly, removing friction from useful habits makes those habits actually stick.