Expenses — Tracking Business Costs

Every business has costs beyond buying stock — rent, utilities, salaries, transport, and more. The Expenses feature helps you record and track all your business spending in one place.

What You'll Learn

• How to add and manage expenses
• How to organise expenses by category
• How to view expense reports

How to Add a New Expense

1. Go to Expenses → Add Expense from the left sidebar.
2. Fill in the details:
   • Business Location — Which location this expense is for
   • Expense Category — Choose a category (e.g., "Rent", "Utilities")
   • Reference Number — Auto-generated or enter your own
   • Date — When the expense was made
   • Amount — How much you spent
   • Tax — Select a tax rate if applicable
   • Expense For — Which user/staff member the expense is for (optional)
   • Contact (Payee) — Who you paid (optional)
   • Payment Method — Cash, Card, Bank Transfer, etc.
   • Payment Account — Which bank or cash account the payment came from
   • Note — Any additional details
   • Attach Document — Upload a receipt or invoice image
3. Choose whether this is a recurring expense (optional):
   • If yes, set the repeat interval (daily, weekly, monthly, yearly)
4. Click Save.

📸 [Screenshot: The Add Expense form with all fields visible]

💡 Tip: Attach photos of receipts to keep a digital record. This makes tax time much easier.

How to View and Edit Expenses

1. Go to Expenses → List Expenses.
2. You'll see all your expenses with:
   • Date, category, reference number, amount, and payment status
3. Use the filters to find specific expenses by date, category, or location.
4. Click Actions next to any expense to:
   • Edit — Modify the expense details
   • Delete — Remove the expense
   • Print — Print the expense record

📸 [Screenshot: The expense list with filters and Actions menu]

Expense Categories

Organise your expenses into categories to make tracking and reporting easier.

How to Create an Expense Category

1. Go to Expenses → Expense Categories.
2. Click Add at the top right.
3. Enter:
   • Category Name — e.g., "Office Supplies", "Transport", "Rent"
   • Category Code — A short code (e.g., "RENT")
4. Click Save.

📸 [Screenshot: The Add Expense Category form]

Suggested Categories

Here are some common expense categories to get you started:

Expense Reports

To see a summary of your spending:

1. Go to Reports → Expense Report.
2. Filter by:
   • Date Range — See expenses for a specific period
   • Category — See only one type of expense
   • Location — See expenses for a specific location
3. The report shows total spending by category, with charts and tables.

📸 [Screenshot: The Expense Report with category breakdown]

Settings & Options

Common Questions

Q: Can I set up a recurring expense like monthly rent? A: Yes! When adding an expense, check the "Is Recurring?" option and set the repeat interval.

Q: Can I divide an expense across multiple categories? A: You'll need to create separate expense entries for each category. Each expense can only have one category.

Q: Can I link an expense to a specific project or job? A: If you have the Project Management add-on enabled, you can assign expenses to projects.

Tips & Best Practices

• 📌 Create categories before you start entering expenses — it saves time later
• 📌 Record expenses on the same day they happen to avoid forgetting
• 📌 Always attach a receipt — great for tax records and auditing
• 📌 Review your Expense Report monthly to find areas where you can cut costs
• 📌 Use recurring expenses for fixed costs like rent so they're automatically recorded