Complete feature reference
Everything you need to know about Strong Arm Accounting — from AI receipt scanning and smart categories to MFA security, credit billing, and the admin panel.
How the AI reads your receipts
When you upload a receipt, the image is resized to 1600px wide and sent to GPT-4o vision. The model extracts vendor name, date, total amount, and a suggested expense category. The whole process takes 3–8 seconds depending on image quality.
Tip: Flat, well-lit photos with the full receipt in frame produce the most accurate results. Crumpled or partially cropped receipts may require manual correction.
Auto-category creation
If the AI suggests a category that doesn't exist in your list yet, Strong Arm creates it automatically with a matching color and icon. New auto-created categories appear with a blue "Auto" badge in your category list so you can review and rename them.
Tip: After 5 or more receipts, the AI learns your vendor→category patterns from your history. Repeat vendors will be categorized consistently.
Scan comment (optional note per receipt)
You can enable a per-scan comment prompt in Settings → Preferences → "Add comment after each scan". When turned on, a text box appears after every successful scan — before the expense is saved — so you can attach a note such as a client name, project number, or purpose. The comment is stored in the Notes field on the expense record. You can skip the comment and save immediately, or type a note and click Save Expense.
Tip: Great for freelancers and contractors who need to tag receipts to specific clients or projects for 1099 reporting.
Smart history learning
Once you have 5+ receipts, the system queries your last 50 expenses to find vendor-to-category patterns. If you've previously categorized "Shell" as "Fuel", future Shell receipts will default to Fuel automatically.
Credit deduction
Each successful scan deducts 3 cents from your credit balance. If your balance drops below 3 cents, the upload is blocked with a 402 error. Top up your balance from the Buy Credits page before scanning.
Note: Uploads that fail due to a network error or unreadable image do not deduct credits.
Receipt thumbnails
A compressed 800px thumbnail of your receipt is stored alongside the expense record. You can view it at any time by clicking the thumbnail icon in the expense table. The preview opens in a modal — use the back arrow to return to the dashboard, or X to close the modal only.
Default categories
On your first login, 14 default categories are seeded to your account: Food & Dining, Travel, Fuel, Office Supplies, Software & Subscriptions, Utilities, Marketing, Professional Services, Equipment, Entertainment, Healthcare, Insurance, Rent, and Miscellaneous.
Creating custom categories
Go to Categories and click "New Category". Give it a name, pick a color from the palette, and choose an icon. Custom categories appear alongside defaults everywhere in the app — in the expense table filter, the reports breakdown, and the OCR suggestion list.
Tip: Use specific names like "AWS Hosting" instead of "Cloud" — the AI will match future receipts to the most specific category it recognizes.
Editing and deleting
Click the pencil icon on any category to rename it, change its color, or swap its icon. Deleting a category does not delete the expenses assigned to it — those expenses move to "Uncategorized" so no data is lost.
Filtering expenses by category
In the expense table on the Dashboard and Receipts page, use the category dropdown filter to show only expenses in a specific category. This is useful when reviewing a single cost center before exporting.
Inline editing
Click any cell in the expense table to edit it directly — vendor name, date, amount, category, and notes are all editable inline. Changes save automatically when you click away or press Enter.
CSV export
The expense table has a "Export CSV" button that downloads all currently visible expenses (respecting any active category filter). The CSV includes date, vendor, category, amount, and notes — ready to hand to your accountant.
Tip: Apply a category filter before exporting to get a focused CSV for a single cost center.
Deleting expenses
Click the trash icon on any expense row to delete it. Deletion is permanent and cannot be undone. The associated receipt thumbnail is also removed.
Note: There is no bulk delete. Delete expenses one at a time to avoid accidental data loss.
Receipt preview
Click the image thumbnail in any expense row to open the full receipt preview modal. Use the back arrow (←) in the top-left to navigate back to the dashboard, or the X button to close the modal while staying on the current page.
Summary stat cards
Four cards at the top of the Reports page show: total expenses this year, total amount spent, largest single expense, and average expense amount. These update in real time as you add or edit expenses.
Monthly vs. Quarterly bar chart
Toggle between Monthly and Quarterly views using the buttons above the chart. The bar chart shows total spending per period for the selected year. Hover over any bar to see the exact amount.
Category breakdown
A donut chart and table show what percentage of your spending falls into each category. This is the fastest way to spot where your money is going.
Top 5 expenses
A ranked list of your five largest individual expenses for the selected year, with vendor, category, and amount. Useful for identifying one-off large purchases.
Year selector & CSV export
Use the year dropdown to view historical data. The CSV export on the Reports page downloads all expenses for the selected year — different from the Dashboard export which respects the active filter.
How credits work
Your credit balance is stored in cents. Each receipt scan costs 3 cents (1 scan = $0.03). Your current balance is always visible in the CreditWidget on the Dashboard — it turns red when your balance is low.
Credit packages
Three packages are available: Starter Pack (50 scans / $1.50), Value Pack (205 scans / $5.00 — includes 5 bonus scans), and Pro Pack (525 scans / $12.50 — includes 25 bonus scans). The Value and Pro packs include bonus scans as a purchase incentive.
Tip: The Pro Pack works out to about 2.4 cents per scan — the best per-scan rate available.
Payment flow
Clicking "Buy" on any package redirects you to GoDaddy's secure checkout. After payment, you're returned to the checkout success page which automatically confirms your purchase and adds credits to your balance. The process is idempotent — refreshing the success page will not double-credit your account.
Credit balance after purchase
Credits are added immediately after the payment confirmation succeeds. If you return to the success page and credits haven't appeared, wait 10 seconds and refresh — the page polls automatically.
Note: If you close the browser before reaching the success page, your credits may not be applied. Contact support with your order ID to resolve this.
Enabling TOTP two-factor authentication
Go to Settings → Security tab → "Enable Two-Factor Authentication". Scan the QR code with an authenticator app (Google Authenticator, Authy, 1Password, etc.), then enter the 6-digit code to confirm enrollment. MFA is active immediately.
Tip: Save your backup codes when prompted. These are the only way to recover your account if you lose access to your authenticator app.
MFA login flow
After enabling MFA, every login requires your password plus a 6-digit TOTP code. After entering your password, you're redirected to /auth/verify-mfa where you enter the code from your authenticator app.
MFA nudge banner
If you haven't enabled MFA, a yellow banner appears at the top of the Dashboard reminding you to set it up. Click "Enable MFA" in the banner to go directly to the Security settings tab.
Session management
The Settings → Security tab lists all active sessions (device, browser, last seen). You can revoke any individual session — useful if you've logged in on a shared computer. Sessions have a shorter expiry than typical apps for added security.
Changing your password
Go to Settings → Security → "Change Password". Enter your current password and your new password twice. Password changes take effect immediately and do not invalidate existing sessions.
Profile tab
Update your display name and email address. Your name is used for the avatar initials shown in the sidebar and top bar. Email changes require re-verification.
Notification preferences
Toggle email notifications for low credit balance warnings, weekly spending summaries, and new auto-created categories. These are off by default.
Connected accounts
If you signed up with Google OAuth, your Google account appears here. You can disconnect it and switch to email/password login, or connect an additional provider.
Danger zone
The bottom of the Settings page contains account deletion. Deleting your account permanently removes all expenses, categories, receipts, and credit balance. This action cannot be undone.
Note: Export your data via CSV before deleting your account. There is no recovery option.
New to Strong Arm?
Start with the Quick Start Guide — it covers the essentials in 4 steps.