Advanced Search - New Expensify

Overview

Advanced Search in New Expensify provides a powerful way to locate and filter financial data across your entire workspace. With an advanced query language, autocomplete suggestions, and 40+ filter types, you can quickly find specific expenses, reports, invoices, chats, and trips using keywords or precise filter combinations.

Why Use Advanced Search?

Locate specific transactions - Find expenses, invoices, or other financial data using keywords or filters
Filter by status - View items based on their current state (Open, Submitted, Approved, Paid, etc.)
Save frequent searches - Store commonly used search parameters for quick access
Export and analyze - Filter data for reporting and analysis
Customize results - Adjust columns and grouping to view data your way

Accessing Search

Open Search Router

Click the search icon in the top navigation bar or press Cmd/Ctrl + K to open the search interface.

Start Typing

Begin typing your search query. The autocomplete modal appears with suggestions as you type.

Execute Search

Press Enter or click the magnifying glass icon to execute your search.

The search interface is available on all platforms (web, iOS, Android, desktop) and works consistently across devices.

Basic Search

Keyword Search

The simplest way to search is by typing keywords. Keywords search across multiple fields including merchant names, descriptions, and other text fields. Examples:

Starbucks

Finds all transactions containing “Starbucks”

coffee meeting

Finds transactions containing both “coffee” AND “meeting”

"team lunch"

Finds exact phrase “team lunch” (use quotes for exact matches)

Quick Filters

Each data type (Expenses, Reports, Invoices, Chats, Trips) offers predefined quick filters:

All - Shows all items (default)
Drafts - Items not yet submitted
Outstanding - Items awaiting action
Approved - Items that have received approval
Done - Completed items
Paid - Items that have been reimbursed or paid

Available quick filters vary depending on the selected data type.

Advanced Filters

Advanced filters let you construct precise search queries using a powerful query language. Filters can be combined using spaces (AND logic) to narrow results.

Filter Syntax

All filters follow this basic pattern:

filterName:value

or for ranges:

filterName>value
filterName<value
filterName>=value
filterName<=value

You can negate most filters using the - prefix:

-merchant:Starbucks

Status Filters

Filter transactions by their workflow status:

Filter	Values	Example
`status`	`open`, `submitted`, `approved`, `paid`, `reimbursed`, `pending`, `rejected`	`status:approved`

Examples:

status:submitted

Show all submitted expenses

status:approved,paid

Show expenses that are either approved or paid (comma = OR)

Date Filters

Search by transaction or workflow dates:

Filter	Description	Example
`date`	Transaction date	`date:2024-01-15`
`submitted`	Date submitted	`submitted>2024-01-01`
`approved`	Date approved	`approved:2024-01-15`
`paid`	Date paid	`paid<2024-02-01`
`exported`	Date exported	`exported>=2024-01-01`
`posted`	Date posted	`posted:2024-01-15`
`withdrawn`	Date withdrawn	`withdrawn>2024-01-01`

Date Formats:

Specific date: date:2024-01-15
After date: date>2024-01-01
Before date: date<2024-02-01
Date range: date>2024-01-01 date<2024-01-31
Relative dates: date:today, date:yesterday, date:thisWeek, date:lastWeek, date:thisMonth, date:lastMonth

Examples:

date>2024-01-01 date<2024-01-31

Expenses from January 2024

submitted:thisWeek

Expenses submitted this week

approved>2024-01-01 paid<2024-02-01

Approved in January, paid before February

Amount Filters

Filter by transaction amounts:

Filter	Description	Example
`amount`	Individual expense amount	`amount>100`
`total`	Report total	`total>=1000`
`purchaseAmount`	Original purchase amount (before conversion)	`purchaseAmount<50`

Operators:

: or = - Equal to
> - Greater than
< - Less than
>= - Greater than or equal to
<= - Less than or equal to

Examples:

amount>100

Expenses over $100

amount>=50 amount<=200

Expenses between

50 and

200

total>1000

Reports with total over $1000

Merchant & Description Filters

Search by merchant name or expense description:

Filter	Description	Example
`merchant`	Merchant name	`merchant:Starbucks`
`description`	Expense description	`description:"client meeting"`

Examples:

merchant:Starbucks

All Starbucks transactions

merchant:Amazon,Walmart

Transactions from Amazon or Walmart

description:"client dinner"

Expenses with “client dinner” in description

-merchant:Starbucks

All transactions EXCEPT Starbucks

Category & Tag Filters

Filter by workspace categories and tags:

Filter	Description	Example
`category`	Expense category	`category:Travel`
`tag`	Expense tags	`tag:Project-A`

Examples:

category:Travel

All travel expenses

category:Travel,Meals

Travel or meals expenses

tag:Project-A

Expenses tagged with Project-A

category:Travel tag:Client

Travel expenses tagged as Client-related

Currency Filters

Filter by transaction currency:

Filter	Description	Example
`currency`	Transaction currency	`currency:USD`
`purchaseCurrency`	Original purchase currency	`purchaseCurrency:EUR`
`groupCurrency`	Group/report currency	`groupCurrency:GBP`

Examples:

currency:USD

All USD transactions

purchaseCurrency:EUR currency:USD

Euro purchases converted to USD

Card Filters

Search by payment card:

Filter	Description	Example
`cardID` or `card`	Card used for payment	`card:1234`
`feed`	Card feed/bank	`feed:expensify`

Examples:

card:1234

Transactions on card ending in 1234

feed:expensify

Transactions from Expensify Cards

Report Filters

Filter by report properties:

Filter	Description	Example
`reportID` or `report-id`	Specific report ID	`reportID:12345`
`title`	Report title	`title:"Q1 Expenses"`
`in`	Search within specific chat/report	`in:"Project Alpha"`

Examples:

reportID:12345

Expenses from report 12345

title:"Q1 Expenses"

Reports titled “Q1 Expenses”

in:"Engineering Team"

Search within the Engineering Team chat

People Filters

Filter by people involved in transactions:

Filter	Description	Example
`from`	Expense submitter	`from:john@company.com`
`to`	Expense recipient/approver	`to:manager@company.com`
`assignee`	Task assignee	`assignee:sarah@company.com`
`attendee`	Expense attendees	`attendee:client@external.com`
`payer`	Who paid	`payer:company`
`exporter`	Who exported	`exporter:accounting@company.com`
`createdBy` or `created-by`	Who created	`createdBy:admin@company.com`

Examples:

from:john@company.com

Expenses submitted by John

to:manager@company.com

Expenses sent to manager

from:john@company.com status:approved

John’s approved expenses

Expense Type Filters

Filter by the type of expense:

Filter	Description	Example
`expenseType` or `expense-type`	Type of expense	`expenseType:card`

Values:

card - Card transactions
cash - Cash expenses
distance - Distance/mileage expenses
perDiem - Per diem expenses

Examples:

expenseType:card

All card expenses

expenseType:distance date:thisMonth

Distance expenses from this month

expenseType:card,cash

Card or cash expenses

Withdrawal Filters

Filter by withdrawal information:

Filter	Description	Example
`withdrawalType` or `withdrawal-type`	Type of withdrawal	`withdrawalType:ach`
`withdrawalID` or `withdrawal-id`	Withdrawal batch ID	`withdrawalID:WD12345`

Examples:

withdrawalType:ach

ACH withdrawals

withdrawalID:WD12345

Specific withdrawal batch

Boolean Filters

Toggle-style filters:

Filter	Description	Example
`billable`	Billable to client	`billable:true`
`reimbursable`	Reimbursable to employee	`reimbursable:true`

Examples:

billable:true

Billable expenses only

reimbursable:false

Non-reimbursable expenses

billable:true category:Consulting

Billable consulting expenses

Metadata Filters

Additional filters for special cases:

Filter	Description	Example
`has`	Check for presence of fields	`has:receipt`
`is`	Check boolean states	`is:held`
`action`	Filter by available actions	`action:approve`
`taxRate` or `tax-rate`	Tax rate applied	`taxRate:0.08`
`exportedTo` or `exported-to`	Export destination	`exportedTo:quickbooks`

Examples:

has:receipt

Expenses with receipts attached

is:held

Held/flagged expenses

action:approve

Expenses requiring approval

Workspace Filter

Filter by specific workspace:

workspace:MyCompany

or using policyID:

policyID:ABC123

Combining Filters

Combine multiple filters with spaces (AND logic) to create precise queries: Example 1: Complex expense search

category:Travel date>2024-01-01 amount>100 status:approved

Travel expenses over $100 from 2024 onwards that are approved Example 2: Reimbursable expenses

from:john@company.com reimbursable:true status:paid date:thisMonth

John’s reimbursable expenses paid this month Example 3: Audit query

amount>500 -has:receipt status:approved

Approved expenses over $500 without receipts (potential audit items) Example 4: Billable client work

billable:true category:Consulting from:sarah@company.com date:lastMonth

Sarah’s billable consulting expenses from last month

Saved Searches

Save frequently used searches for quick access.

Creating a Saved Search

Execute Your Search

Run the search query you want to save.

Click Save

Click the “Save Search” button in the search results header.

Name Your Search

Enter a descriptive name for your saved search (e.g., “Q1 Travel Expenses” or “Pending Approvals”).

Access Saved Search

Your saved search appears in the left-hand navigation (LHN) under “Saved Searches” for quick access.

Managing Saved Searches

Rename: Click the three-dot menu next to a saved search and select “Rename”
Delete: Click the three-dot menu and select “Delete”
Reorder: Drag and drop saved searches in the LHN to reorder them

Create saved searches for common tasks like “Weekly Expense Review”, “Pending Approvals”, or “Exported This Month” to streamline your workflow.

Search Results

Understanding Results

Search results display in a table format with these key elements:

Selection checkboxes - Select multiple items for bulk actions
Column headers - Click to sort results (toggles ascending/descending)
Row details - Click any row to view full transaction details
Footer totals - Shows count and sum of selected or all results

Customizing Columns

Adjust which columns appear in your results:

Open Column Settings

Click the columns icon in the search header.

Select Columns

Check/uncheck columns to show or hide them in results.

Save Layout

Your column preferences are saved automatically.

Available Columns:

Date
Merchant
Amount
Category
Tag
Description
Receipt
Tax
Card
From
To
Report ID
And more…

You can also specify columns in your search query:

category:Travel columns:date,merchant,amount,from

Grouping Results

Group results by common fields:

groupBy:category

Available groupings:

from - Group by submitter
card - Group by payment card
category - Group by category
tag - Group by tag
merchant - Group by merchant
month - Group by month
week - Group by week
quarter - Group by quarter
year - Group by year
withdrawal-id - Group by withdrawal batch

Example:

date:thisYear groupBy:month category:Travel

Travel expenses from this year, grouped by month

Chart Views

Visualize grouped data with chart views:

groupBy:category view:bar

Available views:

table - Default table view
bar - Bar chart
line - Line chart (best with time-based grouping)

Example:

date:lastYear groupBy:month view:line

Line chart showing expenses by month for last year

Sorting Results

Control sort order in your query:

sortBy:amount sortOrder:desc

Common sort fields:

date - Transaction date (default)
amount - Transaction amount
merchant - Merchant name
category - Category name
groupFrom, groupCategory, etc. - For grouped results

Sort orders:

asc - Ascending (A-Z, low to high, oldest to newest)
desc - Descending (Z-A, high to low, newest to oldest)

Limiting Results

Limit the number of results returned:

category:Travel limit:50

Returns only the first 50 matching results.

Search Syntax Reference

Basic Query Structure

[type:dataType] [status:value] [filter1:value1] [filter2:value2] ... [sortBy:field] [sortOrder:order] [groupBy:field] [view:type]

Data Types

Specify what kind of data to search:

type:expense
type:expenseReport
type:invoice
type:chat
type:trip
type:task

Example:

type:invoice status:outstanding date:thisMonth

Outstanding invoices from this month

Complete Filter Reference

Category	Filters
Dates	`date`, `submitted`, `approved`, `paid`, `exported`, `posted`, `withdrawn`
Amounts	`amount`, `total`, `purchaseAmount`
Text	`merchant`, `description`, `keyword`, `title`
Categories	`category`, `tag`
Currency	`currency`, `purchaseCurrency`, `groupCurrency`
Cards	`cardID`/`card`, `feed`
Reports	`reportID`, `title`, `in`
People	`from`, `to`, `assignee`, `attendee`, `payer`, `exporter`, `createdBy`
Type	`expenseType`, `withdrawalType`
Boolean	`billable`, `reimbursable`
Metadata	`has`, `is`, `action`, `taxRate`, `exportedTo`, `withdrawalID`
Workspace	`policyID`/`workspace`
Structure	`type`, `status`, `sortBy`, `sortOrder`, `groupBy`, `view`, `columns`, `limit`

Some filters cannot be negated with - prefix: type, keyword, groupCurrency, groupBy, columns, limit, view

Use Cases & Examples

Expense Management

Find large expenses without receipts:

amount>500 -has:receipt

Review pending approvals:

status:submitted to:me

Monthly expense summary:

date:thisMonth groupBy:category view:bar

Reimbursement Tracking

Unpaid reimbursables:

reimbursable:true status:approved -status:paid

This month’s reimbursements:

status:paid date:thisMonth from:me

Billable Client Work

Billable hours this quarter:

billable:true date:thisQuarter groupBy:category

Client project expenses:

tag:Client-ABC billable:true status:approved

Auditing & Compliance

High-value transactions:

amount>1000 date:lastYear sortBy:amount sortOrder:desc

Flagged expenses:

is:held

Exported to accounting:

exportedTo:quickbooks date:lastMonth

Team Management

Team member expenses:

from:john@company.com date:thisMonth

Department spending:

category:Travel from:sales@company.com date:thisQuarter groupBy:month

Card Reconciliation

Reconcile card transactions:

card:1234 date:lastMonth

Unmatched card expenses:

expenseType:card status:draft

Tips & Best Practices

Use autocomplete: As you type, the search interface suggests filters and values. Accept suggestions with Tab or Enter to speed up query building.

Start broad, then narrow: Begin with a simple search, then add filters to refine results rather than starting with a complex query.

Save common searches: Create saved searches for queries you run frequently, like weekly expense reviews or month-end reconciliation.

Use relative dates: Filters like date:thisWeek or date:lastMonth automatically adjust, making saved searches evergreen.

Combine with grouping: Use groupBy with chart views for visual analysis of spending patterns.

Search operates on snapshots of data, not live data. For real-time updates to to-do items and tasks, use the dedicated Tasks view.

Keyboard Shortcuts

Shortcut	Action
`Cmd/Ctrl + K`	Open search router
`Esc`	Close search router
`Enter`	Execute search
`Tab`	Accept autocomplete suggestion
`↑` `↓`	Navigate suggestions

Troubleshooting

Search returns no results

Check filter spelling and syntax
Ensure date formats are correct (YYYY-MM-DD)
Verify you have access to the workspace/data
Try removing filters one by one to isolate the issue

Slow search performance

Use more specific filters to reduce result set
Add date ranges to limit search scope
Consider using limit: to cap results

Can’t find expected transactions

Check workspace filter - you may be searching the wrong workspace
Verify transaction status matches your filter
Ensure you have permissions to view the data

For additional help with search, contact your workspace administrator or visit the New Expensify Help Center.

​Overview

​Why Use Advanced Search?

​Accessing Search

​Basic Search

​Keyword Search

​Quick Filters

​Advanced Filters

​Filter Syntax

​Status Filters

​Date Filters

​Amount Filters

​Merchant & Description Filters

​Category & Tag Filters

​Currency Filters

​Card Filters

​Report Filters

​People Filters

​Expense Type Filters

​Withdrawal Filters

​Boolean Filters

​Metadata Filters

​Workspace Filter

​Combining Filters

​Saved Searches

​Creating a Saved Search

​Managing Saved Searches

​Search Results

​Understanding Results

​Customizing Columns

​Grouping Results

​Chart Views

​Sorting Results

​Limiting Results

​Search Syntax Reference

​Basic Query Structure

​Data Types

​Complete Filter Reference

​Use Cases & Examples

​Expense Management

​Reimbursement Tracking

​Billable Client Work

​Auditing & Compliance

​Team Management

​Card Reconciliation

​Tips & Best Practices

​Keyboard Shortcuts

​Troubleshooting

​Search returns no results

​Slow search performance

​Can’t find expected transactions

Overview

Why Use Advanced Search?

Accessing Search

Basic Search

Keyword Search

Quick Filters

Advanced Filters

Filter Syntax

Status Filters

Date Filters

Amount Filters

Merchant & Description Filters

Category & Tag Filters

Currency Filters

Card Filters

Report Filters

People Filters

Expense Type Filters

Withdrawal Filters

Boolean Filters

Metadata Filters

Workspace Filter

Combining Filters

Saved Searches

Creating a Saved Search

Managing Saved Searches

Search Results

Understanding Results

Customizing Columns

Grouping Results

Chart Views

Sorting Results

Limiting Results

Search Syntax Reference

Basic Query Structure

Data Types

Complete Filter Reference

Use Cases & Examples

Expense Management

Reimbursement Tracking

Billable Client Work

Auditing & Compliance

Team Management

Card Reconciliation

Tips & Best Practices

Keyboard Shortcuts

Troubleshooting

Search returns no results

Slow search performance

Can’t find expected transactions