Shoeboxed
Receipt scanning by app or mail-in envelope, with mileage tracking
Shoeboxed report card
Fair · out of 4.0 · graded Oct 18, 2026
Best for posting off paper receipts instead of scanning them
Got a drawer full of paper receipts? Shoeboxed lets you post them off in a prepaid envelope and get them back as checked, searchable records, and your phone logs the mileage too. But it keeps no books, and there's nothing free to try: the card is charged the day you sign up.
Who Shoeboxed is for
- Great if you'd rather post a pile of paper receipts than scan them one by one
- Handy when you drive for work and want mileage and receipts in one place at tax time
- Good for bookkeepers collecting paper receipts from small business clients
Who Shoeboxed is not for
- Skip it if you want to try it before paying, as the card is charged at sign-up
- Not for you if you need your books kept too, as it only captures receipts and mileage
- Tight if you snap a lot on Starter, with 50 digital scans a month and extras charged per scan
Why Shoeboxed gets a 2.0
Five grades, each with its reason. The GPA is their average: an A is 4 points, an F is none.
- BValue for moneyGraded against its own alternatives, since it captures receipts rather than keeping books. Starter is $8.08 a month billed yearly ($9 monthly) for up to 3 users, a third of Dext's $25.21. But that's 50 digital scans and no QuickBooks or Xero sync, which needs Pro at $24.75.
- FFree plan and trialNothing free. There's no free plan or trial, and the card is charged at sign-up. The 30-day money-back guarantee isn't a trial, and it ends once a Magic Envelope has been shipped.
- DFeaturesNext to its alternatives it does one slice of the job, and does it fully: receipts by app, email, upload or mailed envelope, checked by staff and sorted into tax categories, plus GPS mileage. But it keeps no books, so you'll still want accounting software.
- BEase of use4.52 from 1,821 App Store ratings. Snap a receipt, or stuff the paper ones in an envelope and post it, and staff check what was read. There's not much to learn.
- BPlatforms and integrationsWeb, iPhone and Android, with QuickBooks Online, Xero, Gmail, Wave, Evernote and Dropbox, though the QuickBooks, Xero and Gmail links need Pro. There's no desktop app, which keeps it off an A.
What these grades rest on. Graded from this listing, whose facts were read from Shoeboxed's own pages on 18 October 2026, and its App Store rating. Not based on using the product, and shorter than our full reviews. How we review and grade.
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<a href="https://toolgpa.com/tools/shoeboxed#review"><img src="https://toolgpa.com/badge/shoeboxed.svg" alt="Shoeboxed: 2.0 GPA on ToolGPA" width="196" height="56"></a>Where Shoeboxed stands among accounting and invoicing tools
Shoeboxed's GPA of 2.0 is higher than 1 of the 20 other accounting and invoicing tools we grade, and level with 1.
It stands best on value for money (B, above 15 of 20) and worst on free plan and trial (F, above 0).
Its paid plans start at $8.08 a month, against a middle price of $21 for the category: 2 of the 19 others that charge start lower.
On features, ease of use and platforms it scores 2.3 out of 4. 2 tools score higher and cost less.
Each grade against the category
Every bar is all 21 accounting and invoicing tools we grade, cut by the letter each got. Shoeboxed’s own letter is outlined.
- BValue for moneyAbove 15 of 20, level with 2
- FFree plan and trialAbove 0 of 20
- DFeaturesAbove 0 of 20, level with 2
- BEase of useAbove 13 of 20, level with 1
- BPlatforms and integrationsAbove 2 of 20, level with 14
Price against what you get
Each dot is one of 21 accounting and invoicing tools. Further left costs less, and higher up scores better on features, ease of use and platforms. Point at a dot to see which tool it is.
Features, ease of use and platforms, averaged
What paid plans start at, a month (each step along is roughly double) →
- The best score at each price
- Has a free plan
- No free plan
Keep Shoeboxed, or make your own?
Keep it
To replace Shoeboxed you would be making live feeds from your bank, which take an agreement with each bank or a service that has them. That is not a weekend's work, with an AI app builder or without one.
That makes this kind of software worth paying for, not this one in particular: 18 of the 20 other accounting and invoicing tools grade higher. It costs $96.96 a year.
What you could make
- Expense tracking and reports: an app builder makes these well.
What you could not
- Live feeds from your bank, which take an agreement with each bank or a service that has them.
- A real app for iOS and Android. Something home-made would be a web page.
- It plugs into other products, QuickBooks Online, Xero and Gmail among them.
What this rests on. Shoeboxed’s listing: what it does, where it runs, what it plugs into and what it costs. It is a judgement about the kind of software this is. We have not built a replacement for it, and making your own means looking after it too. How we decide, and every tool’s verdict.
What is Shoeboxed?
Shoeboxed turns receipts into searchable expense records for freelancers and small businesses. Receipts arrive by phone photo, email forwarding, Gmail sync, upload or a postage-paid Magic Envelope of paper that its Durham, North Carolina office scans, and staff check the extracted data. The mobile app also logs business mileage by GPS.
Shoeboxed is a paid product, starting at $8.08 per month, billed annually at $97 ($9 billed monthly). See every plan
Good for
- Self-employed people who keep paper receipts and would rather mail them than scan them
- Freelancers and drivers who want mileage and receipts in one record for tax time
- Bookkeepers collecting paper receipts from small business clients
Worth knowing
- There is no free plan or free trial: the card is charged at sign-up, with a 30-day money-back guarantee that ends once a Magic Envelope has been shipped.
- Scans past a plan's allowance cost extra, from $0.07 to $0.19 per digital scan and $0.77 to $2 per paper scan, and extra envelopes are $9 each.
- QuickBooks Online, Xero and Gmail sync need Pro or higher, and Starter keeps digital scans for 3 years rather than for as long as the account is active.
- It captures receipts and mileage but does not keep books; cancelling means calling the billing team rather than doing it in the account.
Key features
- Magic Envelope mail-in scanning
- Mail paper receipts and documents in a postage-paid envelope; staff in Durham scan and categorize them, then shred them or send them back, as you choose.
- Several ways to send receipts
- Snap receipts in the iOS and Android app, forward them to an account email address, drag them in from a computer, or import e-receipts with Gmail sync on Pro and up.
- Human-checked data extraction
- OCR pulls the vendor, total, date, sales tax and payment type, and Shoeboxed staff check the result before it lands in the account.
- Tax categories and expense reports
- Receipts are sorted into 15 standard tax categories or your own, and reports with the receipt images attached can be exported, shared or printed.
- Automatic mileage tracking
- The mobile app logs business trips by GPS in the background and sends a daily summary to confirm. It is included on every plan.
- Accounting software sync
- Pro and higher connect to QuickBooks Online and Xero; every plan exports CSV, and receipts can also go to Wave, Evernote and Dropbox.
Shoeboxed pricing
- Starts at
- $8.08 per month, billed annually at $97 ($9 billed monthly)
- Free plan
- None
- Free trial
- None listed
| Plan | Price | What you get |
|---|---|---|
| Starter | $8.08per month for up to 3 users, billed annually ($9 billed monthly) | 50 digital scans a month, 20 paper scans a year, 1 Magic Envelope a year and 3 years of scan storage. Billed as $97 a year. |
| Pro | $24.75per month for up to 5 users, billed annually ($29 billed monthly) | 250 digital and 50 paper scans a month, an envelope each quarter, Gmail receipt sync, QuickBooks Online and Xero, and phone support. |
| Plus | $66.42per month for up to 10 users, billed annually ($79 billed monthly) | 1,000 digital and 150 paper scans a month, a Magic Envelope every month and priority support. Billed as $797 a year. |
| Paper Plus | $166.42per month for up to 10 users, billed annually ($179 billed monthly) | For heavy paper volume: 5,000 digital and 300 paper scans a month and 2 Magic Envelopes a month. Billed as $1,997 a year. |
Read from shoeboxed.com on Oct 18, 2026. Prices change, so confirm with Shoeboxed before you buy.
Ways to pay less
- Annual discountSave 11% to 19% with yearly billing
Starter is $97 a year against $9 a month, Pro $297 against $29 and Plus $797 against $79; the pricing page gives the saving as 11%, 17% and 19%.
Stated on shoeboxed.com
How people rate the Shoeboxed app
4.5
out of 5 for the iPhone and iPad app
- 5 stars77%
- 4 stars12%
- 3 stars4%
- 2 stars2%
- 1 star6%
1,821 ratings on the App Store in the United States, read Oct 18, 2026. It rates the app, not everything the product does. See the listing
Works with
Shoeboxed alternatives
- Shoeboxed vs Dext
Free trial · from $25.21/mo
- Shoeboxed vs QuickBooks Online
Free plan · from $38/mo
- Shoeboxed vs Wave
Free plan · from $19/mo
- Shoeboxed vs Xero
Free trial · from $27/mo
- Shoeboxed vs FreshBooks
Free trial · from $23/mo
Common questions
Is Shoeboxed free?
No. Shoeboxed is a paid product, starting at $8.08 per month, billed annually at $97 ($9 billed monthly).
How much does Shoeboxed cost?
Shoeboxed lists 4 plans. Starter: $8.08 per month for up to 3 users, billed annually ($9 billed monthly). Pro: $24.75 per month for up to 5 users, billed annually ($29 billed monthly). Plus: $66.42 per month for up to 10 users, billed annually ($79 billed monthly). Paper Plus: $166.42 per month for up to 10 users, billed annually ($179 billed monthly). Prices were read from shoeboxed.com on Oct 18, 2026.
What platforms does Shoeboxed work on?
Shoeboxed is available on Web, iOS and Android.
Does Shoeboxed offer any discounts?
Shoeboxed publicly lists the following: Save 11% to 19% with yearly billing.
How is Shoeboxed rated?
Shoeboxed's iPhone and iPad app averages 4.5 out of 5 from 1,821 ratings on the App Store in the United States, as read on Oct 18, 2026. That is the store's rating of the app, not a score from us.
Does Shoeboxed have a Windows app?
No Windows app was listed when its pages were read on Oct 18, 2026. Shoeboxed is listed for Web, iOS and Android.
Does Shoeboxed have a macOS app?
No macOS app was listed when its pages were read on Oct 18, 2026. Shoeboxed is listed for Web, iOS and Android.
Is Shoeboxed open source?
Shoeboxed is not described as open source on its own site, as read on Oct 18, 2026.
What does Shoeboxed integrate with?
Shoeboxed's listing names QuickBooks Online, Xero, Gmail, Wave, Evernote and Dropbox. A listing names up to eight integrations, so it may connect to more.
Who makes Shoeboxed?
Shoeboxed is made by Shoeboxed, Inc. It dates from 2007.
What are the alternatives to Shoeboxed?
The closest alternatives to Shoeboxed in our directory are Dext, QuickBooks Online, Wave, Xero and FreshBooks. Each one has a side-by-side comparison with Shoeboxed.
How does Shoeboxed compare with other accounting and invoicing tools?
Shoeboxed's GPA of 2.0 is higher than 1 of the 20 other accounting and invoicing tools we grade, and level with 1. It stands best on value for money (B, above 15 of 20) and worst on free plan and trial (F, above 0).
Is Shoeboxed good value for money?
ToolGPA grades Shoeboxed B for value for money. Its paid plans start at $8.08 a month, against a middle price of $21 for the category: 2 of the 19 others that charge start lower. On features, ease of use and platforms it scores 2.3 out of 4. 2 tools score higher and cost less.
Could I make my own version of Shoeboxed?
To replace Shoeboxed you would be making live feeds from your bank, which take an agreement with each bank or a service that has them. That is not a weekend's work, with an AI app builder or without one. That makes this kind of software worth paying for, not this one in particular: 18 of the 20 other accounting and invoicing tools grade higher. It costs $96.96 a year. What you could not make: Live feeds from your bank, which take an agreement with each bank or a service that has them. A real app for iOS and Android. Something home-made would be a web page. It plugs into other products, QuickBooks Online, Xero and Gmail among them. This is a judgement from its listing. We have not built one.
Sources for this page
The prices, plans, platforms and features above were read from these pages on Oct 18, 2026. What people say is linked where it appears.