Switching from Expensify as a solo freelancer: what moves and what does not

When you switch apps, you usually expect to export a file from the old tool, drop it into the new one, and get back to work. With receipts, the job is a little different. In Expensify, each expense in your list has a merchant, a total amount, one category, and an attached receipt image. That image is the only place where the individual line items actually live.

Since getting those line items categorized is the whole reason to move, switching really comes down to moving your receipt images. We built Receipt Rabbit for one person using an iPhone, and that choice shapes both what transfers over and who is better off staying put.

Who should not switch?

Before you spend an afternoon exporting files, it helps to make sure you are looking at the right tool.

• You work with a team. Expensify has paid workspaces with reimbursement and accounting integrations. Receipt Rabbit is built for one person on one iPhone.
• You track mileage. Expensify includes distance tracking in its free features. Receipt Rabbit does not track mileage.
• You want a web app or do not use an iPhone. Expensify works in a web browser and across mobile devices. Receipt Rabbit is an iPhone app only.
• You scan a lot of receipts on a free plan. Expensify states that every personal account comes with unlimited free SmartScans [1]. Receipt Rabbit’s Free tier categorizes 30 receipts per calendar month.

If none of those are dealbreakers for your business, read on.

What moves and what does not?

From Expensify	Moves to Receipt Rabbit?	How
Receipt images	Yes	Download as a ZIP, unzip in Files, and import
Receipt PDFs	Yes	Same import steps; a multi-page PDF counts as one receipt
Line items	Yes, re-read	Read again from each image and categorized line by line
Your categories and tags	No	Receipt Rabbit uses its own category list
Reports	No	No equivalent feature
Mileage entries	No	No equivalent feature
Your Expensify email address	No	Receipt Rabbit gives you its own forwarding address
The CSV export	No import	Keep it as your backup record of the old system

How do I move my receipts?

1. Download your receipts from Expensify. In New Expensify, open Spend, go to Expenses or Reports, and select the expenses you want to move (or select all of them). Choose Selected, click Download receipts, and Expensify will build a ZIP file for you [2]. Expensify’s help pages note that Expensify Classic cannot bulk-download receipt images [3], so you will need to switch to New Expensify for this step.
2. Save the CSV export too. While you have those expenses selected, export them as a CSV (comma-separated values) spreadsheet file. Receipt Rabbit will not import this file, but you will want it as a record of how you categorized things in the past, and your accountant may ask for it.
3. Unzip the file in the Files app. Receipt Rabbit does not open ZIP files directly. Tap the downloaded ZIP file in the iOS Files app to unzip it into a standard folder of images and PDFs.
4. Import from the Scanner tab. Open the Scanner tab in Receipt Rabbit, tap to import from Files, and select several images at once. You can also import images from Photos or send them over using the iOS share sheet.
5. Let the app read each receipt. Receipt Rabbit reads each receipt image and assigns a category to every line item.
6. Connect an accounting tool if you use one. Lunch Money sync is included on the Plus and Pro plans, while QuickBooks Online sync and Xero sync are on the Pro plan. When you sync a receipt to QuickBooks Online, it lands as a single expense split into one line per category.

Why re-read the receipts instead of importing the CSV?

When you look at your exported files, the Expensify CSV seems like the obvious thing to import because the dates, totals, and categories are already typed up. Once you open that spreadsheet, though, you will see what is missing.

A row in an Expensify CSV tells you that you spent $86.43 at a warehouse store under a single category. The receipt photo tells a very different story: you bought a rotisserie chicken, three produce items, a bag of dog food, and a bottle of wine. Expensify does let you split an expense across categories, but its help docs point out that you have to add those split rows by hand [4]. Unless you sat down and manually split every mixed receipt you ever scanned, your CSV only holds one category for the whole $86.43 purchase.

If we imported that CSV, we would just be copying those lump-sum totals into a new app. Reading the original receipt image again is the only way to break out and categorize every item on the page, which is what you need if you want one receipt split across several categories in QuickBooks Online.

What does the backlog cost?

If you are bringing over months of old receipts, you can run into our monthly limits quickly, so it is worth doing the math before you start.

Every receipt you import and categorize counts as one categorization toward your monthly quota. The Free tier gives you 30 categorizations per calendar month, Plus gives you 100, and Pro gives you 300. Neither paid plan is unlimited.

If you drop a batch of receipts into the app that goes over your monthly limit, Receipt Rabbit still saves all the extra images on your phone, and they sit in your list uncategorized. Nothing gets lost. From there, you can either upgrade your plan (which tells the app to retry the waiting receipts automatically) or wait until your counter resets on the first of the month and pull to refresh in the Receipts tab.

Because a full year of Expensify history will not categorize in one afternoon on the Free tier, you have two practical ways to handle your backlog:

• Import the current tax year first and let older receipts wait.
• Leave old receipts in the Expensify ZIP file as a backup if you only need to keep the images on hand without re-categorizing them.

See what the free tier covers for a full comparison of the Free, Plus, and Pro plans.

A checklist before you cancel anything

1. Did the Expensify ZIP file include every receipt you need, including ones attached to submitted reports?
2. Did you save the CSV export as a backup record of your old categories?
3. Did you import a few test receipts into Receipt Rabbit to see if the line items categorize the way you expect?
4. If you sync to QuickBooks Online, did your test receipt show up as a split expense with one line per category?
5. Do you still need mileage tracking or a team workspace in another tool?

Frequently asked questions

How do I move my receipts from Expensify to another app?

In New Expensify, select your expenses, choose Selected, and click Download receipts. Unzip the downloaded file in the iOS Files app, then import the images into Receipt Rabbit from the Scanner tab.

Can Receipt Rabbit import an Expensify CSV?

No, Receipt Rabbit does not import CSV files. It takes your receipt images and PDFs, then reads each receipt again so it can categorize every line item.

Is Receipt Rabbit a good Expensify alternative for freelancers?

Yes, if you are a solo freelancer on an iPhone who wants every line item categorized and synced to QuickBooks Online, Xero, or Lunch Money. If you need team workspaces, mileage tracking, or a web app, you should stick with Expensify.

What does Expensify do better than Receipt Rabbit?

Expensify gives you unlimited free SmartScans on personal accounts, free email receipt forwarding, distance tracking, a web app, and paid team workspaces.

How long does importing an old Expensify backlog take?

That depends on the monthly categorization limit for your plan: 30 receipts per calendar month on Free, 100 on Plus, and 300 on Pro. Any extra receipts you import are saved without categories until you upgrade or pull to refresh in the Receipts tab after the first of the month.

Do I need an account to switch to Receipt Rabbit?

No, there is no account or login to set up. Your receipts live on your iPhone and in your own iCloud account.

Sources

1. Expensify Help, Free Features in Expensify: unlimited free SmartScans on personal accounts, free forwarding and distance tracking; categories, tags and accounting integrations need a paid workspace.
2. Expensify Help, Export Expenses and Reports: CSV, PDF and receipt ZIP downloads.
3. Expensify Help, Export Expenses from the Expenses Page (Classic): Classic cannot bulk-download receipt images.
4. Expensify Help, Split Expenses: splits are rows you add, each with its own category.

Last checked 2026-11-12.

Related: One receipt, several categories in QuickBooks Online.

Receipt Rabbit is on the App Store. Download it here.