Compared · checked 2026-10-24

The best free expense trackers for small businesses

A good expense tracker reads receipts, logs mileage and gets the totals to your books. The free plans differ in scan limits, users and what waits behind an upgrade. Here is what each one offers, from its own pages.

We make Expenses, one of the tools on this page. Every fact about the other tools comes from their own pages, linked under each one, as they read on 2026-10-24. Prices and features change: check each site before you choose.

How we compared them

• What the free plan allows: receipt scans, users, mileage
• Receipt reading, currencies and the tax to reclaim
• Whether expenses reach your books or your accountant
• Account needed, and where receipts are stored

At a glance

1. Expenses (ours)

Best for: Sole traders who want unlimited expenses and receipt reading with no account and no upload

Records business expenses with supplier, category, currency and the tax to reclaim, reads receipts on the device, logs mileage and bills to pay, and posts everything to the ledger.

Good

• No limit on expenses or receipt reads, and nothing is uploaded
• Mileage claims, bills to pay and the tax to reclaim on each expense
• Posted to double-entry books as you record it; monthly summary and CSV for your accountant
• Works on your phone, tablet and computer in the browser, even offline

Not so good

• No approvals, team, card feeds or reimbursement payments
• Receipt reading needs a one-time model download, and checking what it read
• No sync between devices; one browser holds the data

Open Expenses

2. Zoho Expense

Best for: Small teams who want receipt scanning, GPS mileage and mobile apps on a free plan

Good

• Receipt capture with OCR, expense reports and multi-currency expenses free
• Mileage via GPS, customer and project tracking, accounting integrations
• Apps on the App Store and Google Play

Not so good

• 20 receipt scans per user a month on the free plan
• Approvals, card feeds and direct reimbursements are on paid plans
• Free plan stops at three users

Zoho Expense website · Sources: Zoho Expense pricing

3. Zoho Books (Free plan)

Best for: Tracking expenses inside full accounting, if revenue stays under $50K

Good

• Expenses, receipt autoscans and mileage tracking on the free plan
• Inside full accounting: invoices, bank reconciliation, reports
• iOS and Android apps

Not so good

• Free only under $50K revenue for the financial year
• Recurring expenses and bank feeds need Standard; multi-currency needs Professional

Zoho Books (Free plan) website · Sources: Zoho Books pricing

4. Wave

Best for: Recording bills and expenses for free alongside Wave invoicing

Good

• Unlimited bills and bookkeeping records free
• Unlimited receipt capture with OCR on Pro, by app, desktop or email
• Ties in with Wave invoicing, payments and payroll

Not so good

• Receipt capture is not in the free plan without the add-on
• Bank import is on Pro

Wave website · Sources: Wave pricing, Wave invoicing

Which one to choose

Expenses is our pick for one person: no limits and no account, receipts read on the device rather than uploaded, mileage and the tax to reclaim on each expense, and everything posted to your books. It installs from the browser on a phone, so you can photograph receipts. It has no approvals or reimbursements, so it is not for managing a team's spending.

Choose Zoho Expense for a small team: three users, receipt OCR, GPS mileage and native phone apps, within 20 scans per user a month. If you already keep your books in Zoho Books or Wave, their own expense tools save a second app.

Questions

What is the best free app to track business expenses?

For one person who wants no limits and nothing uploaded, Expenses. For a team, Zoho Expense has the fullest free plan here (three users, 20 scans each a month). Wave and Zoho Books fit if you keep your books there.

Which free expense tracker scans receipts?

Zoho Expense (20 scans a user a month free), Zoho Books (receipt autoscans on the free plan) and Expenses (on your device) read receipts for free. Wave's receipt capture is on Pro or a paid add-on.

Can I track mileage for free?

Yes: Expenses, Zoho Expense (via GPS) and Zoho Books all include mileage on their free plans.

Are my receipts uploaded?

With the online services, yes: they are stored on the company's servers. Expenses keeps receipt photos in your browser and reads them there.

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