How do you store receipts?

[Tink-n-MrIncredible]

With the new year coming up I have decided to get "organized". For those of you who save receipts. How do you store and/or organize them? Right now I just put them in a shoe box when I get home. When I need one I go searching through the box. They get messed up fall out so some times I really have to search for a recent purchase. By the way I save all my receipts. TIA

 

[Muushka]

I am lacking in this department, but this is what I do.

I have 2 bags hanging on the back of my laundry room door. One is for Sam's, Costco and Walmart and the other is for everything else. Periodically I need to dig, and it is then that I will clear out the ones that I know for a fact I will not need.

Seems like scanning might be something I should do.

 

[LeslieG]

I have one of those accordian files that has each month of the year on a tab and keep receipts that way according to month.

 

[dex08]

I have one of those accordian files that has each month of the year on a tab and keep receipts that way according to month.

Same here, except I also organize each month's receipts by store putting all Target receipts together with a paperclip, then all Costco, Sam's, etc. Within each of those stacks I have them sorted by date order.

 

[andycat]

We've tried to go paperless as much as possible. You should be able to find an inexpensive printer/scanner for under $100 if you don't already have one. Then just create file folders on the computer the same way you would for paper files.

We even scan things like our WDW annual passes so we can provide a copy if they are ever lost and need to be replaced.

Just make certain you back up your files occasionally - I try to do it 3-4 times a year.

 

[libraryfreak]

I've considered scanning receipts also, but does anybody know - if I need to return something can I use the copy? Does it depend on the store?

 

[prncess674]

I just sort into three categories

Long term purchases - major household appliances, furniture, TVs, etc (basically anything that has a long term warranty that would require holding onto the receipt for many years

Short term purchases - clothes, small gifts, etc. Basically after wearing/using an item for a while I can assume that I no longer need the receipt.

Consumeables - grocery, dry cleaners, restaurants, etc. I ditch these receipts monthly after I know they have cleared my account. I look for anything that may be tax deductible and set aside. All the others are just taking up space and there is no reason to keep them so they go to the shredder.

 

[magiclj]

I have one of those accordian files that has each month of the year on a tab and keep receipts that way according to month.

I have an accordian pleated file, but I file alphabetically. I just put little stickers with letters on the tabs and then file by store name. I have a separate accordian file for my Christmas shopping so they are easy to locate.

I start a new file at the beginning of each year. I will throw away all of the 2009 receipts and reuse that file for 2011. (I may save a receipt or two for bigger purchase that I made need)

I have a seperate little box for my Rite Aid and CVS receipts as I love to coupon and I would have too many receipts from thoses stores for the file.

 

[danielephant]

I too coupon like a crazy person and i use baby wipe boxes with the names of each store on them. Stores that i do not frequent as much, those reciepts go in the "other" wipe box

 

[jmpellet]

I do an envelope for each month and then they go into a shoe box. When I was cvsing like crazy I didn't even save those receipts as I paid little or nothing OOP.

 

[ConniegB]

I have used the accordian file as well, but I like the scanned idea, you know less paper to worry about! Good luck with what ever system you decide on.

 

[bumbershoot]

I have one of those accordian files that has each month of the year on a tab and keep receipts that way according to month.

Me too.

It's a plastic accordian file. First year I just went month by month, putting the receipts into the right month spots. As the first finished, each time a new month starts I go through the receipts in that month spot from *last* year, keep what I think I need to keep (big purchase with warranty, flex plan stuff) and those receipts go into the very front, and the others from that month the previous year get recycled. So every receipt is being kept at least a year, which I think is reasonable.

(I was doing this before I started to properly budget. Having those receipts from an entire year were immensely helpful, especially with grocery budgeting!)

 

[yoopermom]

I have a good friend who works at Shopko, and he highly suggests scanning *any* receipt that you plan on keeping, because the ink "wears off" the originals so quickly. I do wonder, though, about returning them with only a scanned copy?

Terri

 

[taaren]

I just sort into three categories

Long term purchases - major household appliances, furniture, TVs, etc (basically anything that has a long term warranty that would require holding onto the receipt for many years

Short term purchases - clothes, small gifts, etc. Basically after wearing/using an item for a while I can assume that I no longer need the receipt.

Consumeables - grocery, dry cleaners, restaurants, etc. I ditch these receipts monthly after I know they have cleared my account. I look for anything that may be tax deductible and set aside. All the others are just taking up space and there is no reason to keep them so they go to the shredder.

We have a similar system except less organized:
Category 1- the junk that stays in my purse/in DH's car cupholder until the end of the month when I double check it against the credit card bill, then toss (because if we haven't decided we need to return it by then, it probably doesn't need returning).
Category 2- large ticket items/things I know I can deduct on my taxes go in two file folders labeled as such in the file cabinet and get looked at in February but otherwise ignored. Hence why we love buying stuff at Costco because if you have a vague time-frame of when you bought something, they can look it up on your account and reprint your receipt (even if its the laptop you bought 22 months ago and need to use their Concierge Warranty on).

 

[minnie1928]

I just sort into three categories

Long term purchases - major household appliances, furniture, TVs, etc (basically anything that has a long term warranty that would require holding onto the receipt for many years

Short term purchases - clothes, small gifts, etc. Basically after wearing/using an item for a while I can assume that I no longer need the receipt.

Consumeables - grocery, dry cleaners, restaurants, etc. I ditch these receipts monthly after I know they have cleared my account. I look for anything that may be tax deductible and set aside. All the others are just taking up space and there is no reason to keep them so they go to the shredder.

I like this method...I think I'll do this in 2011.

 

[andycat]

I've considered scanning receipts also, but does anybody know - if I need to return something can I use the copy? Does it depend on the store?

I can't imagine any store quibbling, but you may get an inexperienced clerk that doesn't understand what they are looking at.

I suppose they could argue that by allowing someone to use a reproduction of a receipt that some one could return multiple products against a single receipt, but all the major stores record return information back to the transaction database to prevent that.

 

[kellia]

I always worry what would happen if we get audited since all those store receipts disappear. guess we should start scanning,

 

[aimlyles]

What I do is store the current months receipts (charge cards, debit cards etc...) in one of my dresser drawers. When I balance my check book each month I take those receipts and put them with the bank statement. Then the they (statement with receipts) go into the file cabinet where I file all statements (mortgage, electric bills, car payments etc..) in their own file folder.

At the end of each year I take ALL the statements for the year, put them in a plastic bag, write the year and store in a bin in the attic. I usually keep 7 years worth as I have always been told for tax purposes you should hold onto receipts and what not for that long. When I put a new bag in I take the oldest out and shred the contents.

 

[pampam]

I tried the envelope thing but for us it didn't work. Now I put all reciepts in a bag. That way I'm not the sole keeper of the reciepts. If DH needs a reciept, he knows just where to look. Each year we use a new bag.