Free Business Expense Spreadsheet

What a business expense spreadsheet is for

A business expense spreadsheet is your running record of every dollar the business spends. Unlike a one-time expense report, it is ongoing: you add a row each time you spend, and over the year it becomes the backbone of your budgeting and your tax prep. Set up well, it answers two questions instantly, where is the money going, and what can I deduct.

You do not need paid software to start. The template below works in any spreadsheet app.

The free business expense spreadsheet template

Paste these headers into row 1, then add one row per transaction.

What each column does

• Date: when the expense happened.
• Merchant: who you paid.
• Category: the spending type, the column that powers your subtotals.
• Description: the business purpose.
• Payment method: which card or account.
• Amount: the total for the line. Sum this column.
• Tax: the sales tax portion, tracked separately when you need it.
• Receipt: file name or link to the proof for that row.

Setting up automatic totals

The spreadsheet earns its keep when the totals update themselves. Two easy approaches:

• SUMIF per category: in a small summary block, use a SUMIF formula to add the Amount column wherever the Category matches. One line per category, and each subtotal recalculates as you add rows.
• Pivot table: point a pivot table at your data and group by Category to get subtotals with almost no formula work.

Either way, you get a live view of spending by type, which is exactly what you want for both budgeting and taxes.

Tip: Freeze the header row and turn your range into a table (or named range). New rows then inherit formatting and your totals keep working, so the sheet does not break as it grows.

Keeping it accurate

A spreadsheet is only as good as the discipline behind it. Two habits keep it honest:

1. Log as you go. Add the row when you spend, not at year end from memory. Reconstructed logs miss things and invite errors.
2. Reconcile monthly. Compare the sheet against your card statement each month to catch anything you forgot to enter.

And keep a receipt for every row: the spreadsheet is a summary, not proof. See what counts as proof of purchase and how to categorize business expenses for the categories that make totals clean.

Spreadsheet, report, and mileage log

This is your ongoing spreadsheet. When you need a bounded submission for a trip or reimbursement, generate an expense report from it. If you drive for work, keep a separate mileage log, since miles are tracked differently from dollar expenses.

The faster way: let Mylo replace the spreadsheet

Here is the honest part. A spreadsheet works, but keeping it current is a manual grind: every purchase is a row you have to type, a receipt you have to find, a category you have to pick. Mylo does all of that automatically. It captures your receipts from your Gmail, Outlook, and iCloud inboxes, from connected store, loyalty, and travel accounts, and from your camera roll, reads the merchant, date, total, tax, and line items, and categorizes each one. It matches every purchase to the card charge through Plaid (no new card, bank-grade security), so nothing slips through the cracks.

Instead of maintaining rows and SUMIF formulas, you get a live, itemized, searchable ledger that is always up to date, and approved expenses sync straight to QuickBooks. It is the spreadsheet, built and reconciled for you. Free for individuals on iOS, Android, and web; teams are $9/user/mo with a 30-day free trial.

Sources: standard bookkeeping practices and IRS recordkeeping guidance. This is general information, not tax advice; check current IRS guidance.