# Expensify vs Shoeboxed for bookkeepers

> Source: https://tickmarkbooks.com/compare/expensify-vs-shoeboxed (structured, researched, re-verified)
> Updated: 5 November 2026

Expensify starts at $5 a seat a month, and its free Submit plan gives one person receipt scanning and mileage at no charge. Every paid Expensify workspace opens with a 30-day free trial. Shoeboxed starts at $9 a month. It has no free plan and no unpaid trial. Shoeboxed charges your card at signup and offers a 30-day money-back guarantee in place of a trial.

Expensify moves money. Vendor bills forwarded to a workspace address are scanned, routed for approval and paid by ACH or card. Card feeds import automatically from more than 10,000 banks. Branded invoices go out to clients, who pay by card or bank transfer without an account. Admins can switch on time tracking so members log billable hours. Transactions are coded automatically, and the vendor says it learns how you categorize. Shoeboxed connects to no bank or card account and moves no money.

Shoeboxed is built for paper. Receipts arrive by mail, app, email and Gmail sync. Data entry specialists check every receipt the software has read, and the vendor includes that check on all plans. Receipts are sorted into 15 tax categories, and you can add your own tags and rules. Expensify has no reviewers. It is software a company runs itself, though support staff can correct the AI.

Accountant access differs. On Shoeboxed, a bookkeeper or accountant is added as a sub-user within the users the plan already includes and can sit on as many client accounts as they like. Expensify gives firms in its partner program a free account and a dashboard over client workspaces. Neither product files a tax return. Neither is a ledger. Each produces expense reports, not a profit and loss or balance sheet.

| Fact | Expensify | Shoeboxed |
| --- | --- | --- |
| What it is | Receipt scanning, company cards, bill pay and reimbursements that feed QuickBooks, Xero or NetSuite. | Receipt scanning app plus a mail-in scanning service, with staff-checked data and automatic mileage tracking. |
| Pricing | free, then $5 a seat a month | from $9 a month |
| Cost for a solo freelancer | Partly (Collect plan and up) | Yes |
| Setup or onboarding fee | No | - |
| Categorizes transactions | Yes | Partly |
| Reconciles your accounts | Partly | - |
| Pays your bills | Yes | - |
| Sends invoices | Yes | - |
| Accrual books and reports | No | - |
| Your accountant can sign in | Partly (ExpensifyApproved! Accountants Program) | Yes |
| Accuracy the vendor claims | Yes | - |
| QuickBooks Desktop | Yes | No |
| NetSuite | Yes | No |
| Bank and card feeds | Yes | - |
| Stripe | No | - |
| Shopify | No | - |
| PayPal | No | - |
| Square | No | - |
| Gusto payroll | Yes | - |
| Payroll | Yes | - |
| Files your tax return | No | - |
| Calculates sales tax | Partly (Collect plan and up) | - |
| Files sales tax | No | - |
| Other currencies | Yes | Partly |
| Billable time | Yes | - |
| SOC 2 report | Yes | - |
| Your data trains AI | - | Yes |
| Several businesses | Yes | Partly |
| United States | Yes | - |
| Canada | Yes | - |
| United Kingdom | Yes | - |
| Australia | Yes | - |
| Free trial or free plan | Yes | Partly |
| API | — | — |
| Tags | — | — |
| Best for | small finance teams that want receipts, cards and reimbursements feeding one ledger | freelancers and bookkeepers with paper receipts to digitize and business miles to log |
| Full facts | https://tickmarkbooks.com/expensify.md | https://tickmarkbooks.com/shoeboxed.md |

## Verdict: Expensify or Shoeboxed?

Pick Expensify if your clients pay vendor bills and run company cards, and you want those transactions coded and sent to QuickBooks, Xero or NetSuite. It also fits a firm that tracks billable hours and sends its own invoices. One person can start on the free Submit plan. Pick Shoeboxed if the work starts with paper receipts and you want a person to check each scan. It also fits a bookkeeper who needs sub-user access across many client accounts within the users the plan includes.