How do I log an expense or get reimbursed?
Last verified October 18, 2026
Log spending under Finance > Expenses with Log expense. If you paid out of your own pocket, choose Personal (out of pocket) as the payment method; a budget manager then records you as paid back, or on a fiscally sponsored team you click Request to have a check mailed to you.
You need: View finances, to open the Expenses page
Log an expense
Expenses are for money spent outside an order: registration, travel, a run to the hardware store.
- Go to Finance > Expenses.
- Click Log expense. On a phone, the camera button (Snap a receipt) takes a photo of the receipt first, then opens the same form with it attached.
- Fill in Description, Amount and Date.
- Pick a Category and a Payment method:
- Personal (out of pocket): you paid and want the money back.
- Team card: paid with a team card (standalone teams only).
- Cash or Other.
- For personal or cash spending, choose who paid under Paid by.
- Attach the receipt and click Log expense.
Your team's finance rules can change this form. A receipt may be required on every expense or above an amount. Large expenses may need a manager to sign off, and until they do, the row shows Awaiting approval and doesn't count against any budget. Some teams only let budget managers log expenses; if so, the page says so and you file an order request instead.
Get paid back on a standalone team
Robolyst doesn't move the money. It keeps track of who is owed.
- On Expenses, a budget manager clicks Mark reimbursed on your row once they've paid you.
- On Finance > Reimbursements, you can also record money you fronted with File payback. The Still owed list shows totals per member, and a budget manager clicks Mark paid and picks how it was paid: cash, Venmo, check or other.
Get paid back on a fiscally sponsored team
The fiscal sponsor mails you a check from the team's account.
- Log the expense as Personal (out of pocket) with a receipt attached.
- In the Reimbursement column, click Request.
- Enter the mailing address for the check and submit.
You can also start from Finance > Reimbursements with Request a reimbursement. Either way, a budget manager on your team has to approve it before it reaches the fiscal sponsor. If there's another budget manager, they approve your claim, not you.
A claim can't be filed until the expense is approved and has a receipt. Only Personal (out of pocket) spending can be claimed; cash expenses can't. The smallest reimbursement is $1.
Limits your team may set
In finance settings, a budget manager can turn reimbursements off, require claims within a number of days of the purchase, or cap a single reimbursement. Over the cap or past the deadline, the claim is refused with a message saying which rule it broke.