Best Expense Tracking Apps for Tradies 2026

Every receipt you lose is money you cannot claim. Every hour you spend manually entering expenses is money you could be earning on the tools. The right expense tracking app fixes both problems.

We tested the major expense tracking apps specifically from a tradie perspective: snapping receipts on site, tracking vehicle expenses, categorising materials purchases and making BAS time painless. Here is the honest comparison.

Full Comparison: Best Expense Tracking Apps 2026

Dext -- Best Expense Tracking App for Australian Tradies

Dext (formerly called Receipt Bank) is the clear leader for receipt capture and expense management in Australia. Your accountant has almost certainly heard of it -- many accounting firms recommend it directly to their tradie clients because it makes bookkeeping dramatically faster.

How Dext Works for Tradies

The core function is simple: you take a photo of a receipt with your phone. Dext reads the supplier name, date, amount and GST component automatically. It creates an expense record and pushes it directly to Xero or MYOB. No manual typing. No shoebox full of paper.

Beyond receipt scanning, Dext also:

• Connects to your email and automatically pulls receipts from your inbox
• Fetches statements from supplier portals automatically -- Bunnings, Kennards, Reece Plumbing and others
• Categorises expenses so your chart of accounts stays consistent
• Flags duplicate receipts so you do not claim the same thing twice
• Stores everything digitally for 7 years -- the ATO requires 5 years of records

What Tradies Particularly Like About Dext

The snap-and-forget workflow is designed for people who work with their hands. You buy something at Bunnings, photograph the receipt on the spot, and it is done. The receipt is captured, stored and pushed to your accounting software before you have even loaded the ute.

For tradies buying materials across multiple suppliers daily -- timber yards, plumbing suppliers, electrical wholesalers, tool shops -- this saves hours every week. Your bookkeeper or accountant gets clean, categorised data instead of a bag of receipts at year end.

Try Dext Free for 14 Days

Hubdoc -- Best Free Option (Included with Xero)

If you are already paying for Xero, Hubdoc is included at no extra cost and handles the core receipt and document capture functions that most sole trader tradies need.

How Hubdoc Works

Like Dext, you photograph receipts with your phone and Hubdoc extracts the data. The key difference is that Hubdoc is particularly good at automatically fetching documents from supplier portals and financial institutions -- phone bills, electricity accounts, bank statements, insurance policies.

Set it up once and Hubdoc logs into your Reece, Tradelink, Kennards or other supplier account daily and downloads any new invoices automatically. For tradies with regular accounts at trade suppliers, this is a significant time saver.

Hubdoc vs Dext: Which is Better?

Dext has better AI for individual receipt extraction -- it handles low-quality photos and faded receipts more reliably. Hubdoc is better for automated document fetching from supplier portals. For most sole trader tradies with regular supplier accounts, Hubdoc is genuinely good enough and comes free with Xero.

Expensify -- Best for Trade Businesses with Staff

Expensify shines when you have employees who need to submit expense claims for approval. If you are a sole trader, it is more than you need. But if you have even one employee buying materials or supplies and submitting for reimbursement, Expensify handles this workflow better than Dext or Hubdoc.

Key Features for Trade Businesses with Employees

• Employee expense submission -- staff photograph receipts and submit claims from their phones
• Approval workflows -- you approve or reject before anything is processed
• Multi-user at $5/user/month -- very affordable for teams
• Mileage tracking -- GPS-based distance tracking for vehicle expense claims
• Xero and MYOB integration -- syncs approved expenses automatically

Using Your Bank App -- The Free Starting Point

Before spending any money on expense tracking software, check what your business bank account already offers. CommBank, ANZ, NAB and most other major banks now let you tag transactions with categories, upload receipt photos, and connect directly to Xero or MYOB via bank feed.

For a sole trader with a dedicated business account who pays for everything by card, your bank app plus accounting software may be sufficient. The bank feed sends all transactions to Xero or MYOB automatically -- you just categorise them and match receipts.

The limitation is receipt capture quality and the lack of automated supplier portal fetching. But as a free starting point, it is often good enough for tradies just getting started.

Tradie Expense Tracking Tips That Save Real Money

Whatever app you choose, these habits make the biggest difference to how much you claim and how much time you spend on bookkeeping.

1. Snap receipts the moment you get them. Thermal register receipts fade within weeks. A receipt photographed in the car park is worth money. The same receipt six months later may be completely blank and unclaim

2. Have a dedicated business card for all work purchases. When everything work-related goes on one card, your bank feed does most of the categorisation automatically. Mixing personal and business spending on the same card creates hours of extra work.

3. Do a 15-minute weekly reconcile. Friday afternoon before you knock off -- open your app, match any unmatched receipts, check the bank feed is up to date. Fifteen minutes weekly is far easier than six hours at BAS time.

4. Set up your regular supplier accounts in your app. If you have a trade account at Reece, Tradelink, Blackwoods or Kennards, set up the automatic portal connection. Your monthly statements arrive automatically with no action required from you.

5. Photograph receipts for everything over $10. The ATO requires substantiation for all claims. A habit of photographing every receipt, even small ones, protects you in an audit and ensures you claim everything you are entitled to.

6. Use mileage tracking for vehicle trips. Apps like Dext and Expensify have GPS mileage tracking. For your 12-week ATO logbook period, a mileage tracking app running in the background gives you precise records rather than estimates.

Which Expense Tracking App Should You Choose?

Already on Xero? Start with Hubdoc. It is free, built into your existing subscription and handles the core needs of most sole trader tradies. Upgrade to Dext if you outgrow it.

Want the best and do not mind paying $30/month? Choose Dext. Your accountant will thank you. The receipt extraction is industry-leading and the time it saves is worth far more than the subscription cost for any tradie buying materials regularly.

Have employees submitting expenses? Choose Expensify. The approval workflow and multi-user features are purpose-built for teams.

Just starting out and want to keep costs low? Use your bank app. Set up a dedicated business account, pay for everything by card, use the bank feed in your accounting software and only add a receipt capture app when the volume justifies it.