Do you have a system for tracking your receipts? If not, don’t worry – you’re not alone. People ask me all the time, “What’s the best receipt tracker tool that make it easy to track expenses?”
A lot of people just stuff their receipts into their wallets or pockets and hope they can find them when they need them.
This can be a huge pain, especially if you’re trying to track expenses for work or business purposes (or your taxes) of you’re working on saving more money and keep a tight budget.
In my first year in business, I had NO organization process and consequently stuffed ALL of my receipts into ONE single folder.
Yikes.
Let’s just say that at tax time, I was slightly overwhelmed.
To prevent you from going through the same stress, in this article, we’ll discuss the best way to track your receipts and provide several options for doing so.
I’ll give you my favorite options for both digitally organizing receipts through phone apps (my personal favorite) as well as physically organizing them if that’s more your style.
I got all the best receipt scanning and expense tracking options covered for you.
Let’s get started.
What’s the best receipt tracker tool on the market?
- Expensify App (Best for Individuals)
- Keeper Tax (Best for Freelancers)
- Quickbooks (Best for Businesses)
- Physical envelope system (Best For Those Without Smartphones)
- Google Docs (Best Option for Custom Organizing)
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Expensify App (IOS/Android)
The Expensify App is one of my favorite ways to track receipts, especially for business purposes.
It’s a receipt scanning app that allows you to easily snap pictures of your receipts and categorize them accordingly.
Just snap a photo, and the smart receipt scanner will automatically fill in the details for you (such as the merchant, the amount spent, etc.)
You can also link your credit card to the app and it will automatically import your expenses (though I’d recommend you first spend some time manually inputting everything so you have a better handle on your expenses before you make it automatic).
The best part about the app is that it makes running expense reports a breeze.
You can simply export all of your categorized receipts and expenses into a PDF or Excel file and submit it to your boss or client.
The Expensify App is available for IOS & Android and makes receipt tracking a pleasure.
Key Features
- Smart scan (receipt scanner) automatically fills in details
- Link your credit card for automatic importing
- Expense reports can be easily exported
- Free for up to 25 smart scans per month
- Organize receipts by category
Pros
- Easy-to-use mobile app
- Convenient
- Syncs through the cloud
- Perfect for personal use
Cons
- Sometimes the smart scan misses items, so you need to verify it when you scan receipts (when using the “smart receipts” scanning)
Pricing
Bottom Line
Expensify is my favorite app for tracking receipts and has served me well. It’s by far the best receipt tracker app for individuals.
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Keeper Tax (IOS/Android)
Keeper Tax is next on my list.
If you are wanting an app that is like a personal bookkeeper that will help you daily get ready for tax time, this is it.
Keeper Tax is for small business owners & freelancers who are tired of keeping track of paper receipts and who want help come tax-time.
It is an amazing way to make taxes easy as everything is automatic, AND they assign you a bookkeeper who will go through your receipts and make suggestions on write-offs that you may not be aware of.
Keeper Tax allows you to directly integrate your bank account and credit cards so that everything is auto-imported, meaning you don’t have to scan anything.
It’s the most hands-off way to keep track of expenses and digital receipts.
And if you happen to pay for something in cash, just text a picture of the paper receipt to your assigned bookkeeper and they’ll handle it from there.
They actually pair you with a professional bookkeeper so that all of your needs and questions are taken care of as you go — amazing.
It even offers tax filing services if you’d like to use them for that (although I’d recommend a dedicated service for filing such as TurboTax).
Lastly, it hosts an A.I. assistant that can help keep you on track in your receipt tracking venture.
When the A.I. has a question about an expense it found in your account, it simply sends you a text and you tell it how you want it categorized.
The A.I. will text you questions based on your purchases to help it determine whether it’s a business or personal expense, and it learns as it goes so that over time you have to answer less and less questions.
It’s that simple.
Key Features
- User-friendly interface
- Bookkeeping by text
- A.I. assistant that helps keep you organized
- Receipt tracking via the receipt scanner bank account integration
- Can directly import bank account and credit card information
- Auto-scans your previous 18 months’ account statements to find missing deductions
- Intuitive mobile app
Pros
- Very user-friendly design
- Offers tax filing services
- Bookkeeper assigned to help you
- A.I. makes tracking easy
Cons
- Not ideal if you use a lot of cash
- Moderately expensive if just used for personal use
Pricing
- 7-Day Free Trial
- $24/month after that
Bottom Line
Keeper Tax is an excellent receipt tracking app that offers a lot of features for tracking expenses in a very hands-off way. If you are a small business owner, independent contractor, or freelancer, this is the perfect receipt tracking & expense tracking app.
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Quickbooks
Quickbooks is the gold standard when it comes to receipt tracking, expense reports, invoicing, inventory tracking, and bookkeeping for everything from small businesses to large enterprises.
While there is a steeper learning curve than the previous two apps on this list, that’s because it’s designed for businesses who need extensive features and capabilities, and not individuals just looking to track their grocery receipts.
But even with the learning curve, it’s pretty easy to pick up.
And Quickbooks more than makes up for it in terms of features and functionality.
With Quickbooks, you can track every single aspect of your business’ finances in one place.
You can snap photos of receipts and it will categorize them for you and match them up with expenses.
You can track inventory, send custom invoices, accept credit cards within the invoices, pay bills, run payroll, run custom profit and loss reports, track mileage, do your taxes, and so much more.
Seriously, this software does it all.
Key Features
- The most trusted name in business accounting software
- Track every aspect of your business’ financials in one place
- Receipt scanner IOS & Android mobile app
- Web-version with a full suite of features
- Create expense reports & track them
- Invoicing & payments
Pros
- Receipt scanner (IOS & Android app)
- Expense tracker
- A comprehensive suite of business accounting tools
- Every accountant you will work with knows Quickbooks
- Tons of tutorials on Youtube for learning how to use it
Cons
- Steeper learning curve than the other apps (but still pretty easy to pick up)
Pricing
Bottom Line
Quickbooks is the best receipt tracking app for small business owners.
It offers a comprehensive suite of features and is trusted by small businesses worldwide.
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Physical Envelope System
If receipt scanning on a mobile app isn’t your thing, and you prefer to do things the old-school way, you can always opt for the physical envelope system.
You would get a bunch of envelopes and label them with different categories (travel, food, office supplies, etc.).
Every time you make a purchase, you would put the receipt in the appropriate envelope.
At the end of the month (or whenever you want to reconcile your expenses), you would go through the receipts and input them into a spreadsheet or budgeting software.
When I did it this way, I would have a large accordion-style folder that I kept all of my envelopes in, which made it MUCH easier to organize and store everything securely.
You can even color code your envelopes to help make the entire process easier as you seek to stay organized
Pros
- No need for technology
- Can be done on a shoestring budget
- A proven way to track and organize your receipts
Cons
- More work than using an app
- You have to physically keep track of the paper receipts/envelopes
- Easy to lose receipts before you have a chance to physically put them in the folder
- Must put receipts in the envelope within a few days of the purchase or else you risk the receipt fading and being unreadable
Pricing
- Free! (just need envelopes)
Bottom Line
The physical envelope system is best for those who want to avoid using any technology whatsoever.
There’s no cost benefit to doing it this way as you can just as easily use Expensify’s free app, but if you want to avoid technology, this is your only option..
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Google Sheets
If you don’t like the paper envelope system but still want more control over your receipts, then tracking everything in Google Sheets is a great option.
You can create a simple spreadsheet with columns for the date, vendor, amount, and category.
For those of you who are skillful in Excel, this option will give you near unlimited control of your receipt tracking.
Features
- Google drive cloud services are top-tier in reliability
- Fully customizable sorting options after you upload pictures of your paper receipts and input the information
Pros
- Can be customized to your liking
- You have complete control over how you organize everything
- Can be done for free
Cons
- Takes more time to input each receipt
- You have to be diligent about inputting receipts in a timely manner
Pricing
- Free!
Bottom Line
Google Drive is best for those who want complete control over their receipt tracking system and prefer to do everything manually.
F.A.Q.’s
How can I keep track of receipts for free?
If you’re looking for a free way to keep track of your receipts, there are a few options available to you.
As we laid out in this article, you can use a phone app like Expensify, you can use the physical envelope system, or you can track everything in Google Drive.
What is the best receipt tracking app?
That depends on your needs.
If you just need it for personal use, Expensify is the best receipt tracking app.
If you’re wanting a receipt tracking app that provides an all-in-one solution for your small business (expense tracking, receipt scanning, accounting software, and more), then Quickbooks is by far your best bet.
Is there an app to organize my receipts?
There are a few different apps you can use to organize your receipts, but our favorite is Expensify.
Expensify allows you to take pictures of your receipts and then automatically inputs all of the data for you.
You can also easily categorize and track your expenses, which is perfect for those who are self-employed or do freelance work.
Conclusion
There you have it, our top 5 favorite ways to keep track of receipts!
Our recommendation is using receipt scanner apps, but the paper option works too if you’re diligent about staying organized.
Whether you are starting a needing to track receipts for personal use, running a bookkeeping service as a side hustle, or the company’s accountant, these apps will make your life SO much easier.
We hope this was helpful and that you found the best method for tracking receipts that works best for you.
As always, if you have any questions or suggestions, feel free to reach out to us!
Happy Tracking! 🙂
Husband of 10+ years, father of 4, and savvy in all things (ok, let’s be modest, most things) personal finance. My aim is to help free a generation from the chains of dumb money habits destroying lives. I’ve made my fair share of mistakes along the way, but through a slightly obsessive pursuit of financial freedom, I’ve learned a thing or two. Now I’m here to share it.