← Back to Settings
Atida CentralAtida

MyExpense tutorials and videos

Set up your expense files, add receipts, and prepare a monthly claim. Videos use sample data and include English captions and written steps. Some video labels may differ from the current app; the written steps use the current names.

New to the app? Start with tutorial 1. If you already have an expense workbook with claims in it, use tutorial 2. See how the files and folders fit together.

Tutorial 1

Set up Google Drive and a new workbook

For a first setup: connect your account, choose the year and company, and let the app create the Excel file and receipt workspace.

Download videoRead the tutorialBack to overview

Written tutorial

  1. Connect the right Google account

    Open MyExpense, select Continue with Google, and sign in with the account where your expense files should live. Review the Google Drive and Gmail draft permissions and approve them yourself. In More → Settings → Google connection, confirm that Google is connected.

  2. Choose Create workbook for a first setup

    Under Settings → Workbook & receipts, select Create workbook. Use this route when you do not yet have an expense workbook. If a workbook already contains your claims, use the existing workbook tutorial instead of creating it again.

  3. Set the year company and employee

    In the same section, choose the claim year, select your actual employing company, and confirm your full name. These values personalise the Excel workbook. The company shown in this video is only an example.

  4. Create and connect the workspace

    Select Create workbook once and wait for the app to return to Expenses. It creates an expense workspace in the root of your Google Drive, creates your personal .xlsx workbook inside it, and selects that workbook and workspace folder for your account. You do not need to build the workbook or create the monthly receipt folders yourself.

  5. Check the Excel workbook

    The annual Excel file contains SUMMARY, lists, and monthly tabs such as FORM_2026.10. The monthly tabs contain your expense lines; the lists tab supplies the expense categories and account mapping. Keep the file in .xlsx format and preserve these tab names and the template layout.

  6. Understand the receipt folders

    The selected Receipts parent folder is the parent workspace folder. Saving an October receipt creates or uses a 2026-10 folder beneath it. Receipt filenames use the expense document number, for example 1.pdf or 2.jpg. A new workspace can have no month folders yet; they appear when receipts are saved.

  7. Confirm that setup is complete

    Return to Settings → Workbook & receipts and check that both the workbook and receipts parent folder are selected. Look for Workbook and receipts folders are connected. Open Expenses and confirm that the expected year and months are available. Use More → Files to browse the connected Drive workspace.

Tutorial 2

Connect an existing Excel workbook and folders

For an existing expense file: prepare it in Google Drive, pick the .xlsx, choose the receipts parent folder, and check the saved connection.

Download videoRead the tutorialBack to overview

Written tutorial

  1. Put a compatible Excel file in Google Drive

    Start with an existing MyExpense-compatible expense template, including its lists tab and monthly FORM_YYYY.MM tabs. A blank Excel file or a native Google Sheet is not a replacement. If the .xlsx is only on your computer, open Google Drive in the same Google account and choose New → File upload. Keep the uploaded file as .xlsx. Google upload instructions.

  2. Prepare a parent folder for receipts

    Use an existing receipts parent folder, or create one in Google Drive using New → New folder. You can keep the Excel file in the same parent folder. If receipts already exist, keep their YYYY-MM month folders and numbered filenames together. Google folder instructions.

  3. Choose Use existing workbook

    Sign in to MyExpense with the Google account that can access the files. Open More → Settings → Workbook & receipts → Use existing workbook.

  4. Select the Excel workbook

    Beside Workbook (.xlsx), select Choose workbook. In the app’s Drive explorer, open the folder containing your workbook; use Drive root or Back if needed. Single-click the .xlsx file and select Use selected workbook. A workbook can be selected even when its visual preview is unavailable.

  5. Select the receipts parent folder

    Beside Receipts parent folder, select Choose folder. Open the parent folder that contains, or will contain, your monthly receipt folders and select Use current folder. For example, choose the workspace containing 2026-10, rather than opening 2026-10 and choosing that month as the root.

  6. Save both selections

    Back in Settings, check both selected names and select Save locations to confirm them. The picker also saves selections when you confirm an item. If only one location is selected, finish the other selection before adding an expense.

  7. Check the connection

    Look for Workbook and receipts folders are connected. Open Expenses and confirm the expected months, existing rows, and expense types. Under More → Files, confirm that the receipt month folders are at the correct level. New monthly folders are created when you save receipts; an empty receipts parent folder is valid for a fresh file.

How the files and folders fit together

This is an example for Demo User in 2026. Your name, initials, year, and receipt extensions can differ.

Inside the Excel file

Workbook tab What it contains
SUMMARY Employee, company, and annual summary information.
lists Expense types and account mapping used by the app.
FORM_2026.01 through FORM_2026.12 Expense lines for January through December. The year follows the selected workbook year.

Select the parent folder. Choosing 2026-10 as Receipts parent folder would put later month folders inside October. Choose the folder above the monthly folders. With an existing workbook, the receipts parent can be a separate folder; select its actual location.

Tutorial 3

Add expenses and prepare your monthly claim

Follow the video and written steps for receipt review, monthly checks, approval email settings, and manual reimbursement tracking.

Download videoRead the tutorialBack to overview

Written tutorial

  1. Choose and scan a receipt

    Once Drive setup is complete, open Add → Add receipt. Select a PDF or receipt photo and run Scan receipt if prompted. Use a real, unclaimed receipt for a saved claim.

  2. Review the extracted expense

    Check the month, document date, expense type, business purpose, country, amount excluding VAT, and VAT against the actual receipt. Correct any inaccurate values. For foreign-currency receipts, also review the original amount and the conversion to EUR. The saved total must reconcile with the receipt.

  3. Save and verify the expense

    Select Save Expense. The app assigns the document number and saves the expense and receipt. In Expenses, select the same month and confirm the entry and total. In More → Files, find the corresponding numbered receipt in the month folder.

  4. Set your approval email defaults

    Open Settings → Approval Email. Enter your actual approver and Finance recipients. Review the allocation override: disable it when it does not apply, or enter the agreed allocation. Select Save email settings.

  5. Run the month readiness check

    In Expenses → Prepare approval email, select Check month. Resolve missing receipts, incorrect amounts, pending invoice reviews, or duplicate warnings before continuing. The workbook lines and receipt package must agree.

  6. Review and send the Gmail draft

    Select Create Gmail draft, then open Gmail. Review the recipients, text, Excel workbook, and invoice ZIP before sending the draft yourself. The app does not send it automatically.

  7. Record the confirmed progress

    Creating a draft does not submit the claim. Use Reimbursement tracking to record submission, approval, and reimbursement after each has actually happened. These are manual records, not confirmations from Gmail or a bank.

If setup does not look right

I can sign in but no workbook is selected

Google sign-in connects the account; it does not select an Excel file or receipts location by itself. Complete Create workbook, or choose both locations in Use existing workbook mode.

I cannot find my Excel file in the picker

Check that the .xlsx is in the same Google account you connected to MyExpense and that this account can access it. Use Drive root and open its containing folder. The app requires an .xlsx file; a native Google Sheet or a file only on your laptop will not appear as a compatible workbook.

The app reports a missing lists tab or the wrong months

The workbook must follow the expense template. Keep the lists tab, the existing layout, and the FORM_YYYY.MM month tab names. Confirm the selected year and file. If you have no existing claims, use Create workbook to obtain a compatible workbook; if the file contains claims, keep it and ask for help before recreating it.

My new folder has no receipt month folders

This is normal before the first receipt is saved. Save an expense with its receipt and the app creates that month’s YYYY-MM folder. You do not need to create twelve empty folders yourself.

Receipts are inside the wrong month or the root looks nested

Review Receipts parent folder under Settings. It should point to the parent above all YYYY-MM folders. Keep existing receipts and their numbers intact while correcting the selected location.

Google refuses access or the connection has expired

Check which Google account is connected and sign in again if the connection has expired. Review the permission request yourself. If Google still blocks the app, ask Shaya to check the access configuration.

For initial setup, upload receipts directly in the app. The shared invoice-forwarding mailbox needs separate configuration for each user's claims.