Know Where Every Dollar Goes
Tilavon's expense tracking turns scattered receipts and mental notes into organized, reportable data that helps you make smarter business decisions.
Logging Expenses
Record any business expense in seconds from the portal or your phone.
Expense Categories
Organize spending into meaningful groups for reporting and tax prep.
Recurring Expenses
Automate logging for predictable monthly or weekly charges.
Receipt Photo Upload
Attach receipt images to expense records for audit and tax purposes.
Logging Expenses
Keeping track of every expense is the foundation of understanding your salon's profitability. Tilavon makes it quick and painless.
Open the Expense Tracker
Go to Finance then Expenses in the owner portal. Click Add Expense to open the entry form. You can also log expenses from the mobile view on your phone.
Fill In the Details
Enter the amount, date, and select a category. Add an optional note to describe what the expense was for. The more detail you include, the easier it is to review later.
Add a Vendor
Select or create a vendor name such as Sally Beauty, Amazon, or your landlord's name. Vendor tracking lets you see total spending per supplier over any time range.
Save the Expense
Click Save to record the expense. It immediately appears in your expense list and is included in all reports and the profit and loss calculation.
Tip
Log expenses the same day you make the purchase. Waiting until the end of the month leads to forgotten charges and inaccurate reports.
Expense Categories
Categories help you understand where your money goes. Tilavon comes with standard categories, and you can add your own.
Rent
Your salon's monthly lease or rent payment. Typically the largest fixed expense for a brick-and-mortar business.
Supplies
Nail products, cleaning supplies, disposable items, and other consumables your salon uses day to day.
Utilities
Electric, water, gas, internet, and phone bills. Track each utility as a separate expense or group them together.
Insurance
Liability insurance, property insurance, and workers compensation premiums.
Marketing
Advertising costs, social media promotions, print materials, and Google Ads spending.
Equipment
Nail stations, pedicure chairs, UV lamps, and other durable goods. Track large purchases separately for depreciation purposes.
Custom Categories
Go to Settings then Expense Categories to add, rename, or hide categories. Custom categories appear alongside the defaults in the expense form and all reports.
Recurring Expenses
Recurring expenses like rent, software subscriptions, and insurance premiums happen on a regular schedule. Let Tilavon log them automatically.
Create a Recurring Expense
When adding an expense, toggle on the Recurring switch. Enter the frequency (weekly, biweekly, or monthly) and the start date. Tilavon creates a new expense entry automatically on each cycle.
Frequency Options
Choose weekly for charges like laundry service, biweekly for payroll-related costs, or monthly for rent and subscriptions. Each recurring expense runs independently on its own schedule.
Edit or Cancel
Change the amount or cancel a recurring expense at any time from the Recurring Expenses tab. Past entries are not affected; only future occurrences change.
Tip
Set up recurring expenses during onboarding so your profit and loss report is accurate from day one. Most salons have 5 to 10 recurring charges.
Receipt Photo Upload
Paper receipts fade and get lost. Tilavon lets you capture and store them digitally alongside the expense they belong to.
Upload a Receipt
When creating or editing an expense, click the Attach Receipt button. Take a photo with your phone camera or choose an image file from your device. The image is stored securely in the cloud.
Supported Formats
Tilavon accepts JPEG, PNG, and PDF receipt files up to 10 MB. For best results, make sure the receipt is clearly readable in the photo before uploading.
Secure Storage
Receipt images are stored encrypted alongside the expense record. You can view, download, or delete a receipt at any time from the expense detail page. Images are retained as long as the expense record exists.
Expense Reports & Summaries
Turn raw expense data into actionable insights with built-in reports that show where your money is going.
By Category
See total spending in each category over any date range. This report makes it easy to spot which cost centers are growing and where you might cut back. A pie chart visualizes the breakdown at a glance.
By Time Period
Compare expenses month over month or week over week. The trend view shows whether your total costs are rising, falling, or steady. Use this to plan budgets and forecast cash flow.
Export to CSV or PDF
Download expense reports in CSV format for your accountant or as a PDF for your records. The CSV includes all fields: date, amount, category, vendor, and notes.
Profit & Loss Overview
Combining your expense data with your sales revenue gives you a complete picture of your salon's financial health.
P&L Dashboard
The Profit and Loss page shows total revenue, total expenses, and net profit for any period. Revenue comes from service sales, product sales, and booth rent collected. Expenses come from the entries you log in the expense tracker.
Monthly Trends
A line chart shows net profit month over month so you can see seasonal patterns and the impact of pricing changes or new hires. Hover over any month to see the revenue and expense breakdown.
Tip
Review your profit and loss report at least once a month. Catching rising costs early gives you time to adjust before they eat into your margins.
QuickBooks & Xero Sync
If you use QuickBooks Online or Xero, Tilavon can sync your expense data so you never have to enter the same transaction twice.
QuickBooks Online
Connect your QuickBooks account in Settings then Integrations. Once linked, new expenses logged in Tilavon are automatically created as expense transactions in QuickBooks with the matching category and vendor.
Xero
The Xero integration works the same way. Authorize the connection, map your Tilavon expense categories to Xero accounts, and new expenses flow through automatically.
Sync Frequency
Expenses sync in near real time. After saving an expense in Tilavon, it typically appears in your accounting software within a few minutes. You can also trigger a manual sync from the Integrations page.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do I categorize expenses?
Tilavon comes with default categories such as Rent, Supplies, Utilities, Insurance, Marketing, and Equipment. You can add custom categories or rename existing ones from Settings. Every expense is assigned a category so reports break down spending by type.
Can I set up recurring expenses?
Yes. For predictable costs like rent, software subscriptions, or insurance premiums, create a recurring expense with the amount, frequency, and start date. Tilavon automatically logs the charge each period so you never forget to record it.
Does Tilavon sync expenses with QuickBooks?
Tilavon integrates with QuickBooks Online and Xero. When enabled, expenses logged in Tilavon are pushed to your accounting software as expense transactions, keeping your books in sync without double entry.
How do I track supply costs?
Log supply purchases as expenses under the Supplies category. You can break them down by vendor and attach the receipt photo. For salons that charge booth renters for supplies, these costs also feed into the supply fee calculations.
Can I attach receipts to expenses?
Yes. When logging an expense you can upload a photo of the receipt directly from your phone camera or choose an image file. The receipt image is stored with the expense record for audit and tax purposes.