Comparison
| Tool | Why it fits (from official info) | Pricing | Official pricing | Checked |
|---|---|---|---|---|
 Zoho Expense | Cheapest per user. Free $0 for up to 3 users includes AI receipt OCR, GPS mileage, multi-currency and accounting integrations, but only 20 auto-scans per user a month (you can still add more receipts by hand). Standard is $3 per user/month billed annually ($4 monthly) with 200 auto-scans per user a month, so one freelancer pays $36 a year. 14-day free trial, no credit card. | Freemium | US pricing (2026-11-13, excludes tax): Free $0 for up to 3 users, 20 receipt auto-scans per user a month, 5 GB receipt storage; Standard $3 per user/month billed annually ($4 monthly), 200 auto-scans per user a month; Premium $5 per user/month billed annually ($6 monthly), 1,000 auto-scans per user a month, plus travel booking. 14-day free trial, no credit card. | |
 Shoeboxed | Best if you still get lots of paper. Starter $97/year ($8.08/month) or $9 monthly: 50 digital scans a month, 20 paper scans a year, 1 prepaid Magic Envelope a year to mail receipts in, unlimited mileage tracking, 3 users. Accounting sync (QuickBooks Online/Xero) and Gmail receipt sync start on Pro at $297/year. No free plan; 30-day money-back guarantee, but your card is charged at signup. | Paid | Official pricing (2026-11-13): Starter $97/year ($8.08/month) or $9 monthly: 50 digital scans a month, 20 paper scans a year, 1 Magic Envelope a year, 3 users, digital scans stored 3 years; Pro $297/year ($24.75/month) or $29 monthly: 250 digital scans and 50 paper scans a month, 1 envelope per quarter, Gmail receipt sync, QuickBooks Online/Xero integration; Plus $797/year ($66.42/month): 1,000 digital scans a month. Overage extra (Starter $0.19 per digital scan). No free plan; every plan has a 30-day 100% money-back guarantee (card charged at signup). | |
 WellyBox | Best if most receipts arrive by email. Basic $19/month in one annual payment ($228/year): 50 documents a month, 2 email accounts searched automatically (including the last 12 months), receipt scanning by WhatsApp, Excel export, Google Drive sync, accountant access and accounting integration. Business is $49/month yearly or $59 monthly. | Paid | Official pricing (2026-11-13): Basic $19/month, annual payment only: 2 users, 2 email accounts and 2 WhatsApp accounts, 50 documents a month, email receipts from the last 12 months, accounting software integration; Business $49/month billed annually or $59 monthly (monthly: 10 users and 500 documents a month; yearly: unlimited users and documents, last 48 months of email); Enterprise $99/month billed annually or $124 monthly, with a clients dashboard for unlimited clients. | |
 Dext | Built for bookkeeping. Business $302.50 billed annually ($25.21/month) includes 250 documents a month and 5 users, with data pushed to your accounting software. AI Assist (routine bookkeeping calls you approve) is an extra $10.5/month; line-item extraction from $20.50/month or $0.50/document. Free trial without card details. More than a solo freelancer usually needs. | Paid | US pricing (2026-11-13, excludes tax): Business $302.50 billed annually ($25.21/month) with 250 documents a month, 10 sheets of bank statement extraction and 5 documents with line-item extraction; the help centre says the base plan includes 5 users, and each extra user adds 50 documents. Add-ons: AI Assist $10.5/month (price until 31 Jan 2027); line-item and supplier statement extraction from $20.50/month or pay-as-you-go from $0.50/document; bank statement extraction from $13.00/month or $0.32/document; Vault free up to 100MB. Free trial without card details. |
How to do it with AI
- Count last month's receipts and where they came from: paper (fuel, meals, supplies) vs email (software, flights, online orders). That split decides the tool more than the price does.
- If you have 20 receipts or fewer a month, start on Zoho Expense Free: it auto-scans 20 per user a month at $0. Above that, Zoho Expense Standard ($36/year for one user) gives 200 scans.
- If most receipts are in your inbox, trial WellyBox or check whether your accountant's software already reads forwarded emails; WellyBox Basic searches 2 connected email accounts automatically.
- If you have a shoebox of paper, Shoeboxed Starter includes one mail-in envelope a year; note that it scans only 20 paper receipts a year on Starter ($2.00 per extra paper scan), so a big backlog suits Pro (50 paper scans a month).
- Check that the tool exports to what your accountant uses: Shoeboxed integrates with QuickBooks Online/Xero from Pro, Dext and WellyBox include accounting integration, Zoho Expense lists accounting integrations on every plan.
- Compare yearly totals at your volume: Zoho Expense Standard $36; Shoeboxed Starter $97; WellyBox Basic $228; Dext Business $302.50 (prices from the official pages, excluding tax).
- Re-check scan limits before paying: allowances reset monthly, and Dext stops extracting data (it still stores uploads) once you hit the limit until the next billing date.
Expense-category rules you can paste into any AI tool or keep for your accountant (our suggested wording, not a test output)
I am a freelance graphic designer. Sort each receipt into one of these categories: Software & subscriptions, Equipment, Office supplies, Travel, Meals with clients, Training, Phone & internet, Other. Rules: Adobe, Figma, Canva and font purchases = Software & subscriptions; laptops, monitors and drawing tablets = Equipment; train, taxi and flights = Travel; restaurant receipts only count as Meals with clients if I add a client name in the note, otherwise mark them Other. Keep vendor, date, total, tax amount and currency exactly as printed. If any field is unreadable, write UNREADABLE instead of guessing. Do not give tax advice.
Hands-on log
- 2026-11-13 · Not tested
Not tested hands-on yet. Zoho Expense, Shoeboxed, WellyBox and Dext all require creating an account before you can scan a receipt (Shoeboxed charges your card at signup), so we did not run them. Facts on this page come from the official pricing pages and Dext's help centre; the yearly totals are our arithmetic from those published rates.
China-made vs Western: Chanjet Haokuaiji next to Zoho Expense, Shoeboxed, WellyBox and Dext
Chanjet Haokuaiji is listed in our mainland China section. In mainland China most business purchases come with a digital e-invoice (fapiao) issued through the tax system, so instead of photographing receipts, small firms use cloud accounting software that pulls the invoices from the tax bureau directly. Haokuaiji does that, then drafts the accounting vouchers with AI. The Western tools above read photos, PDFs and emailed receipts.
| Need | Chanjet Haokuaiji | Zoho Expense / Shoeboxed / WellyBox / Dext |
|---|---|---|
| How receipts get in | One-click pull of e-invoices from the tax bureau and of bank statements; invoices checked for authenticity and duplicates | Phone photo, upload, email forwarding or inbox scanning, WhatsApp (WellyBox), mail-in envelope (Shoeboxed) |
| What the AI does | Builds the invoice ledger, drafts accounting vouchers for the accountant to review, explains journal entries, AI report analysis | Reads vendor, date and amount from receipts; Dext's AI Assist and Zoho's Zia add bookkeeping and audit help |
| Free way to start | Free trial | Zoho Expense Free (20 scans a month); Dext trial without card; Shoeboxed 30-day money-back |
| Entry price | From ¥1.36 a day, billed yearly | Zoho Expense $3 per user/month yearly; Shoeboxed $97/year; WellyBox $19/month yearly; Dext $302.50/year |
| Best for | Small companies in mainland China that keep full accounts and file taxes | Freelancers and small businesses elsewhere that need receipts ready for tax time or their accountant |
FAQ
What is the cheapest AI receipt scanner for a freelancer?
Zoho Expense. Its Free plan is $0 for up to 3 users with 20 AI receipt auto-scans per user a month; Standard is $3 per user/month billed annually ($4 monthly) with 200 auto-scans a month, which covers about 50 receipts a month for $36 a year.
Is there a free AI receipt scanner app?
Zoho Expense Free costs $0 and includes AI-powered receipt OCR, limited to 20 auto-scans per user a month; after that you can still add expenses manually. Shoeboxed and WellyBox have no free plan, and Dext offers a free trial without card details.
Can I mail paper receipts to be scanned for me?
Yes, with Shoeboxed. Starter ($97/year) includes 1 Magic Envelope a year and 20 paper scans a year ($2.00 per extra paper scan); Pro ($297/year) includes an envelope each quarter and 50 paper scans a month. Envelopes cost $9 each beyond the allowance.
Which tool finds receipts in my email automatically?
WellyBox connects to your email accounts and pulls receipts automatically, including from the last 12 months on Basic ($19/month, annual only, 2 email accounts) and 48 months on Business billed yearly. Shoeboxed offers Gmail receipt sync from its Pro plan.
What happens when I go over my monthly scan limit?
It depends on the tool. Zoho Expense lets you keep creating expenses manually after the Autoscan limit; Shoeboxed charges per extra scan ($0.19 per digital scan on Starter); Dext keeps accepting uploads but pauses data extraction until the next billing date or an upgrade.
Is there a mainland China alternative?
For small firms in mainland China, Chanjet Haokuaiji (hkj.chanjet.com) pulls e-invoices from the tax bureau, checks them and drafts accounting vouchers with AI. It is billed yearly from ¥1.36 a day and offers a free trial. See our mainland China section.
Head-to-head comparisons
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