Tracking your business expenses inside Dubsado keeps your bookkeeping in one place. Record expenses on the Transactions page and Dubsado adds them to the Chart of Accounts so you can see where your money is going.
Expenses overview
Expenses live alongside payments in your unified transaction list. Each time you record an expense, you assign it to a category so it shows up under the right line on the Chart of Accounts, where you can see per-category totals and watch your net profit take shape.
Dubsado does not pull expenses in automatically. There are no bank or expense integrations, so every expense is one you record yourself. For the bigger picture of how this fits with the rest of Dubsado's bookkeeping tools, see the bookkeeping overview.
Creating expense categories
You can create an expense category two ways: from the Chart of Accounts page when you're setting up your categories ahead of time, or inline while you're recording an expense.
From the Chart of Accounts page
To create an expense category from the Chart of Accounts page:
Open the Home page.
Click Finance Reports.
Click Chart of Accounts.
Click New category.
Select Expense category.
Enter a Name for the category.
Select a Type (Cost of Goods, Operating Expenses, or Non-Operating).
Click Save.
You can also reach the Chart of Accounts through global search by searching for Income & Expenses (or any word from that phrase). Searching for Chart of Accounts does not return results in global search.
While recording an expense
If you're in the middle of recording an expense and realize you need a new category, you don't have to leave the transaction form. Click New expense category in the category selector to create one inline. Full instructions are in the next section.
Expense category types
When you create an expense category, you'll choose one of three types. Each type is a high-level classification that groups your spending the way an accountant would:
Cost of Goods — The cost of raw materials, paid labor, and overhead required to produce any tangible products you sell. For example, a wedding stationer would track paper supplies here.
Operating Expenses — Ordinary and necessary business expenses, like office supplies, software subscriptions, payment processing fees, and rent.
Non-Operating — Expenses outside normal business operations, like the interest on a business loan.
If you're not sure which type to use, your accountant or tax preparer can confirm what makes sense for your business.
Recording an expense
Expenses are recorded on the Transactions page using the same form you use for payments. The Transaction type dropdown is what tells Dubsado whether you're recording a payment, an expense, or a tax expense.
To record an expense:
Click Invoicing in the sidebar, then click Transactions.
Click + New Transaction.
In the takeover panel, set Transaction type to Expense.
Fill in the Date.
Select a Method (cash, check, credit card, etc.) and enter the Amount.
To tie the expense to a project (optional), select a project from the Project dropdown. See the next section for when to use this.
Select an Expense category from the dropdown. To create a new category here, click New expense category, enter a name and type, then click Create.
Add a Description (optional).
Click Save.
The same form also handles Tax expense as a separate transaction type for recording sales taxes you've paid out. The category list switches to your tax categories when you choose it.
General vs project-specific expenses
How you fill in the Project field decides whether the expense is tied to a single project or counted as a general business cost.
General business expenses — Leave the Project field blank. The expense still counts toward your Chart of Accounts totals.
Project-specific expenses — Select the related project. The expense is recorded against that project for your bookkeeping, and Dubsado uses it to calculate the project's net profit.
When you open + New Transaction from inside a project, Dubsado pre-selects that project for you and locks the Project field, so you don't have to look it up. To reach it from a project, open the project and click the Invoicing tab, then Transactions, then + New Transaction.
Project-specific expenses don't show up on your contact's invoice. They're for your bookkeeping only. For more on creating invoices, see the article on creating an invoice.
Editing and deleting expense categories
You can rename an expense category, change its type, or delete it entirely from the Chart of Accounts page.
To edit an expense category:
Open the Home page.
Click Finance Reports, then click Chart of Accounts.
Click the category you want to edit. The edit modal opens.
Update the Name or Type.
Click Save.
To delete an expense category, open the same edit modal and click the trash icon. Confirm the deletion when prompted.
Deleting a category moves all of its expenses to Uncategorized. To recategorize them afterward, you'll have to update each transaction one at a time.
Viewing expenses by project
Once you've tied expenses to a project, you can see them in context with the rest of that project's transactions.
To view a project's expenses, open the project and click the Invoicing tab, then Transactions. The full transaction list opens. Filter to the Expenses tab to see just the expenses.
The project's Net Profit appears in the project details panel as soon as the project has at least one transaction. It updates automatically as you add payments and expenses.
FAQ
Will expenses show up on a client's invoice if I tie them to a project?
No. Project-specific expenses are for your own bookkeeping and don't appear on the contact's invoice. To see a project's net profit (revenue minus expenses), open the project. The Net Profit line appears in the details panel once the project has at least one transaction.
Which expense categories should I create?
Common starters are office supplies, payment processing fees, software, and marketing. Categorizing properly is important for tax preparation, so check with your accountant or tax pro for what fits your business.
What if I don't use expense categories?
That's up to you -- Dubsado works without them. Just know that if you skip categories now and start using them later, all of your past expenses show up under Uncategorized, and recategorizing them would mean updating each transaction by hand.
What happens if I delete an expense category?
All expenses in that category move to Uncategorized. Recategorizing the affected transactions has to be done one at a time.