You can use the Expend mobile app to track your mileage automatically. It tracks your complete route, including detours and stops, making it more accurate than just entering start/end points.
Privacy
All GPS data stays on your device until you choose to create a mileage claim. We do not automatically send all GPS data to servers. You have full control over which trips to use for mileage claims. You can also specify the hours during which mileage is tracked – see below for more information.
Turning on Automatic Mileage Tracking
On iOS
Tap Trips, tap Enable Automatic Tracking, and then tap the Automatic Mileage Tracking switch to turn it on.
Tap Grant Location Permission and select Allow While Using App.
Tap Grant Permission again and select Change to Always Allow.
On Android
Tap Trips, tap Enable Automatic Tracking, and then tap the Automatic Mileage Tracking switch to turn it on.
Tap Grant Location Permission and select While using the app.
Tap Open Settings and select Allow all the time.
If prompted, set the additional permissions that may be required. For more information, see “Additional permissions on Android” below.
You’re now ready to start using Automatic Mileage Tracking.
More about location settings
More about location settings
If you need to update your location settings later
On iOS, open the Settings app, go to Apps, tap Expend, tap Location, and select Always.
On Android, tap and hold the Expend app icon, then select App info. Tap Permissions, and then tap Location.
iOS location access
On iOS, you may occasionally get a message similar to the following:
Expend has used your location 3 times in the background over the past 3 days. Do you want to continue to allow background location use?
When you get this, please select Always Allow.
Additional permissions on Android
Additional permissions on Android
Android devices may require the following extra permissions and configuration:
1. Scheduled Alarm Permission
The app will request this permission if needed. (Android 12 and later)
2. Battery Optimisation
Android may put apps to sleep to save battery or prevent them from waking the device to start the scheduled tracking. This needs to be disabled for Expend to guarantee the scheduling starts on time. The app will redirect the user to the battery optimisations settings.
Android 13 and lower: Choose All and search for Expend. Turn the toggle from ON to OFF. If there is no toggle on the list or it says “Allow Background usage”, follow the steps below.
Android 14 and higher: Choose All and search and open Expend. Tap Allow Background usage. Choose Unrestricted.
3. Power Manager
Some devices have additional power-saving features that need to be configured to ensure Expend keeps running and tracking your trips on the background.
How to disable battery optimisation
To ensure Expend can track your trips reliably, you'll need to disable battery optimisation for the app. The app will guide you through this process when needed. Here's how to do it on most Android devices:
Open your phone's Settings.
Navigate to Battery or Battery & Performance.
Look for “Battery Optimisation” or “Optimise battery usage”.
Select “All apps” or “Apps not optimised”.
Search for Expend in the list.
Select “Don’t optimise” or “Unrestricted”.
If you don't see these exact options, look for similar settings in your device’s battery or app management section.
Automatic Mileage Tracking settings
To change your settings, tap More and then tap Automatic Mileage Tracking. Here you can turn automatic tracking off or on, and you can also configure the times during which mileage is automatically tracked.
Track mileage only during working hours
To specify when mileage is tracked, tap Configure working hours.
On the Work Hours Configuration screen, turn the Only track during work hours setting ON to specify the times during which mileage will be tracked automatically.
To allow automatic mileage tracking at all times, turn the switch OFF.
For each day, tap the start and end times to change them. To disable tracking completely for a day, turn the switch for that day off.
Changes take effect immediately for the next scheduled tracking period.
Using Automatic Mileage Tracking
Simply keep the Expend app running in the background and it will track your journeys, securely and privately. You don’t need to open the app to start a trip, as long as it’s running in the background – do not force the app to close.
After making a journey, it will be listed on the Trips tab, from where you can create a mileage claim (see below).
To ensure tracking reliability:
Open the Expend app at least once a week.
Ensure that your phone is charged (above 20% battery recommended) and not using Low Power Mode or battery optimisations.
Creating a mileage claim from a trip
Tap Trips and select a trip.
On the Raise a mileage claim pop-up, tap Create.
Select the Vehicle and Mileage Policy, and check the other details.
Tap Save.
Managing mileage claims
You can edit and submit your GPS-tracked mileage claims in the same way as mileage claims created manually – please see the Mileage Claims article.
Pause tracking (Android only)
When automatic milage tracking is turned on, an Expend notification is shown in your Android status bar. On this notification, you can tap Pause Mileage Tracking to pause tracking. Note that this is only temporary – tracking will automatically resume:
At your next scheduled work hours
When you next open the app
After your device restarts
You can restart tracking anytime by opening the app.
FAQs & Troubleshooting
Frequently Asked Questions
Frequently Asked Questions
Will the app track my personal/non-business trips?
Yes, but you can delete them as follows:
Tap Trips and find the trip you want to remove.
Do one of the following:
Swipe from right to left on the trip and tap the red trash icon.
Tap the trip and then tap Delete.
What if my trip details are wrong?
You can edit the mileage claim, but note that it will no longer me marked as GPS Tracked. You can also create a mileage claim manually as before – please see the Mileage Claims article.
What if only part of my trip needs to be expensed?
When you stop somewhere for five to 30 minutes and then continue your journey from the same location, the next part will be added as a leg of your trip. You can remove legs from the start or the end of a trip if needed.
Will this drain my phone’s battery?
Automatic Mileage Tracking is optimised for minimal battery usage. We don't use additional sensors (accelerometer, fitness tracking) that drain the battery. Performance is comparable to, or better than, competitors.
Does the location icon always show in the status bar?
No, Expend is designed to work efficiently without constantly showing the location icon.
Troubleshooting
Troubleshooting
My trip wasn’t tracked
Common reasons this could happen include the following:
The Expend app hasn't been opened recently (open at least weekly).
Location permission is not set to Always.
The mobile phone was powered off or in battery saving mode.
The Expend app has been forced to close and/or wasn’t running in the background.
Part of my trip was tracked incorrectly
Common reasons this could happen include the following:
Poor GPS reception. High mountains or high buildings can interfere with GPS accuracy.
Hotspot usage. Using a Wi-Fi hotspot it may lead to wrong results. Both Apple and Google associate Wi-Fi network proximity with a location. If the hotspot moves, it may cause a wrong location detection.