What is the best way to store receipts?
Most people store receipts in a shoebox or a drawer and deal with the fallout at tax time. There is a better way — and it costs almost nothing to set up.
Why paper storage fails
Thermal paper, used in most printed receipts, begins to fade within 12 months. Heat, light, and even handling accelerate the process. After two to three years — the period most tax authorities require you to keep records — a paper receipt may be completely blank. Wallet friction, humidity, and accidental washing do the rest.
The case for digital storage
A photo taken on your phone of a paper receipt is legally accepted by the Australian Tax Office (ATO) and most other tax agencies worldwide, provided it is a clear, legible reproduction. Digital copies do not fade, do not take up physical space, and can be searched and sorted in seconds.
Practical approaches ranked
- Dedicated receipt app — apps like rct-keep let you snap a photo, forward an email receipt, or upload a PDF. They automatically extract the merchant, date, and amount and keep everything organised. This is the most reliable approach.
- Cloud folder (Google Drive / Dropbox) — free and accessible, but you do all the renaming and sorting manually. Works well for low volumes.
- Email folder — create a label or folder for receipts and forward everything there. No good for paper receipts unless you photograph and attach them.
- Scanning to PDF — a flatbed scanner gives the best image quality. Time-consuming if you have many receipts.
What to capture
A valid receipt should show: the supplier name and ABN (in Australia), date, item description, quantity, and total amount including GST. Make sure your photo or scan captures all of these clearly.
How long do you need to keep them?
In Australia, the ATO requires records to be kept for five years from the date you lodge your tax return. In the US, the IRS recommends three to seven years depending on the type of claim. Digital storage makes this trivially easy — just keep the app or folder active.
These are the rct-keep features and guides that make this workflow practical day to day.
Stop juggling folders, camera roll, and faded paper
Capture paper receipts, receipt emails, and PDFs in one place so organising them later is mostly cleanup, not archaeology.