Snap Receipts with QuickBooks Mobile

In the fast-paced world of business, keeping track of expenses and receipts is crucial for accurate bookkeeping and financial planning. Fortunately, modern technology has made this process significantly easier. Intuit's QuickBooks Online, a leading accounting software, offers a seamless way to manage your financial documentation directly from your mobile device. This article will guide you through the simple steps of snapping and uploading your receipts using the QuickBooks Online mobile app, transforming how you handle expense management.

Why Snap Receipts with QuickBooks?

The ability to capture and upload receipts on the go offers several key advantages for businesses of all sizes:

• Time Savings: No more accumulating piles of paper receipts. Snap a photo, and QuickBooks does the heavy lifting of extracting information.
• Improved Organisation: Digital receipts are less likely to get lost or damaged, ensuring your financial records are always accessible and organised.
• Real-time Data: Upload expenses as they happen, providing a more up-to-date view of your business's financial health.
• Reduced Errors: Automation minimises manual data entry, significantly reducing the chances of human error.
• Streamlined Reconciliation: Easily match uploaded receipts with bank transactions, simplifying the reconciliation process.

Before You Start: Key Considerations

Before diving into snapping your receipts, it's important to be aware of a few guidelines to ensure a smooth experience:

• Supported File Types: QuickBooks Online supports image formats such as PDF, JPEG, JPG, GIF, and PNG. If you're using a newer iPhone or iPad, your images might be in HEIC format. You'll need to convert these to a compatible format before uploading.
• Home Currency Only: The receipt snapping feature currently supports only your company's home currency. Transactions in different currencies will need to be handled separately.
• Single Receipt Per Image: Ensure that each photo or file you upload contains only a single receipt or bill. Multiple documents in one image can lead to processing errors.
• Sensitive Information: It is strongly advised not to upload receipts or bills that contain highly sensitive or personal information, such as full credit card numbers.

Step 1: Snapping and Uploading Your Receipts

QuickBooks Online allows you to upload receipts and bills either one at a time through a web browser or directly via the mobile app. Here's how to do it from your mobile device:

Using the QuickBooks Online Mobile App

To follow these steps, ensure you have the QuickBooks Online app installed on your iOS or Android device. If you don't have it yet, you can download it from your device's app store.

For both iOS and Android devices:

1. Open the QuickBooks Online mobile app.
2. Tap the Menu ≡ icon, usually located in the top-left corner of the screen.
3. Select Receipt snap.
4. Tap Receipt camera.
5. Position your device over the receipt or bill and take a clear photo. Ensure good lighting and that all details are legible.
6. Once you're satisfied with the photo, select Use this photo.
7. Tap Done to finalise the upload.

Note on Android Devices: Some Android devices emit a beeping sound when taking photos. If this is the case, you can typically disable this sound by adjusting your device's camera settings to turn off the camera sound. This ensures a quieter, more discreet receipt snapping experience.

Alternative: Uploading from Your Computer or Email

While the mobile app is excellent for on-the-go uploads, you can also add receipts from your computer or email:

• From Computer/Google Drive: Log in to QuickBooks Online on your web browser. Navigate to the relevant section and select 'Upload from computer' or 'Upload from Google Drive'.
• Via Email: QuickBooks Online provides a unique email address for each company file. You can forward receipts and bills directly to this email address, and QuickBooks will automatically process them. Check your QuickBooks settings for your specific email address.

Step 2: Reviewing, Adding, or Matching Receipts

Once your receipts are uploaded, they aren't automatically added to your books. You need to review them to ensure accuracy and then either create a new transaction or match them with an existing one. This process can be done on both the web browser and the mobile app.

Reviewing on a Web Browser

After uploading, your receipts will appear in the 'For review' tab within QuickBooks Online. Here's how to manage them:

• Reviewing: QuickBooks will indicate if it finds potential matches in your existing transactions. Check the 'Action' column for guidance on the next steps.
• No Record Found: If QuickBooks can't find a match, you can create a new transaction. Select 'Review' to make any necessary edits or add missing information, then choose 'Save and next'. You can then select 'Create bill' or 'Create expense'.
• One Record Found: If a match is identified, you can select 'Match' to link the receipt to the transaction immediately. Alternatively, choose 'Review' from the dropdown next to 'Match' to examine the transaction details before confirming the match.
• Two or More Records Found: When multiple potential matches are found, select 'Review'. After making any necessary edits, compare the suggested matches and select the correct one before choosing 'Match'.

Reviewing on the Mobile App (iOS and Android)

The mobile app also provides a straightforward way to manage your uploaded receipts:

1. Navigate to Menu ≡.
2. Select Receipt snap.
3. You'll find your unprocessed receipts and bills in the 'For Review' tab.
4. Review each item. The label under the receipt amount will guide you on the required action.
5. One or More Records Found: If QuickBooks identifies matching transactions, tap the receipt to view them. Select the transaction you wish to associate the receipt with.
6. No Record Found: If there's no label under the amount, QuickBooks hasn't found a match. Tap the receipt and choose to 'Create an expense' or 'Create a bill'. You can also swipe the receipt to quickly perform these actions.
7. Missing Information: If QuickBooks couldn't extract all necessary details, it will prompt you to add them. Tap the receipt, enter the missing information, and select 'Save receipt' or 'Save bill' before creating the transaction.

Tip: You can view all successfully added receipts and bills in the 'Reviewed' tab. If you need to make changes, you can swipe right on a receipt in the 'Reviewed' tab to move it back to the 'For Review' tab.

Table: Mobile vs. Web Upload & Review

Here's a quick comparison of managing receipts via the mobile app versus the web browser:

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

Q1: Can I upload multiple receipts at once using the mobile app?

The primary function of the mobile app's 'Receipt snap' is to capture and upload individual receipts. For batch uploads, using the web browser and uploading multiple files from your computer or cloud storage is more efficient.

Q2: What happens if the lighting is poor when I snap a receipt?

Ensure you are in a well-lit area when snapping photos. If the lighting is poor, the OCR (Optical Character Recognition) technology might struggle to extract the information accurately, potentially leading to errors or the need for manual correction. Good lighting is essential for accurate data capture.

Q3: My receipt is in a foreign currency. How do I handle it?

As mentioned, the receipt snapping feature currently only supports your home currency. For receipts in foreign currencies, you will need to manually enter the transaction in QuickBooks Online and ensure you select the correct currency and exchange rate.

Q4: Can my employees use this feature?

Yes, your employees can use the QuickBooks Online mobile app to snap and upload receipts for expense claims. For more advanced expense management features, such as reviewing employee expense claims and managing reimbursements, consider upgrading to QuickBooks Online Advanced, which offers enhanced capabilities for team expense tracking.

Q5: How do I undo a receipt that I've already matched or added?

You can go to the 'Reviewed' tab on the mobile app and swipe right on the receipt or bill. This action will move it back to the 'For Review' tab, allowing you to correct any errors or re-match it if necessary.

Conclusion

Utilising the receipt snapping feature in QuickBooks Online is a game-changer for efficient business management. By following these simple steps, you can digitise your receipts, save valuable time, and maintain a highly organised financial system, all from the convenience of your mobile device. Embrace this technology to streamline your financial processes and focus more on growing your business.