How to Email Receipts to Wave
Find your Wave receipt forwarding address, follow the one-receipt-per-email rule, and automate recurring inbox routing.
By ilios Galil · Founder, Expensent
Published March 6, 2026 · Updated August 3, 2026
Skip manual forwarding when you can. Expensent connects to Gmail, Outlook, or Google Workspace via OAuth, finds current and historical invoice emails, routes them to your Wave address, and automates recurring sender and subject patterns.
TL;DR
Yes, if your Wave account has a Pro Plan or Receipts subscription. Create a receipt forwarding address from Receipts in Wave, then forward one receipt at a time to that address. Wave creates an expense transaction with the receipt attached.
Wave does not use a single universal public email address. You create your own receipt forwarding address from the Receipts page in Wave. Wave documents setup in both the web browser and mobile app, and says the saved forwarding email cannot be changed.
Wave documents PDF as a supported web receipt-upload format, but its public email-forwarding article does not publish a channel-specific format or size list. For email, use the forwarding address shown in Wave and send one receipt at a time. If the forwarded PDF does not create a transaction, use Wave's documented web upload path and current web limits.
In This Guide
Wave's Receipt Email Address
Unlike tools that use a single shared public email address, Wave requires you to create a receipt forwarding address in your own Wave account. Wave documents setup in both a web browser and the mobile app, and says the forwarding email cannot be changed after it is saved.
Important: You do not send receipts to a guessed or generic Wave address. First create your forwarding email in Wave, then copy the saved address from the Receipts page before sending production receipts.
How Wave's Forwarding Address Works
Receipt forwarding requires a Wave Receipts Plan or Pro Plan. When you forward one receipt at a time to your saved Wave forwarding address, Wave:
- Receives the email containing the receipt
- Creates a new expense transaction in your account
- Attaches the receipt image/PDF to that transaction
Step-by-Step: How to Email a Receipt to Wave
Once your Wave account has eligible receipt access, here's how to set up and use receipt forwarding:
Open Receipts in Wave
Log in to Wave in a web browser and open Receipts, or open the Wave mobile app and go to Accounting > Receipts. Confirm your account has a Receipts Plan or Pro Plan before proceeding.
Create your forwarding address
In a web browser, choose Create email forwarding address or Forward via email. In the mobile app, tap the three-dot menu (⋮) and select "Create forwarding address." Wave says the forwarding email cannot be changed after it is saved, so confirm it before saving.
Verify your setup
Send a test email to your new forwarding address with one receipt attached. Wave says receipts can be sent from any email address. After processing, check Receipts to confirm it appeared as a new expense transaction.
Forward receipt emails
From now on, forward receipt emails to your saved Wave forwarding address one receipt at a time. Wave creates an expense transaction when the receipt is processed, and you can review or edit the transaction afterward.
Tip: Save your Wave forwarding address as a contact in your email client (e.g., "Wave Receipts") so you can quickly forward receipts without looking up the address each time.
File Formats and Requirements
Wave documents file limits for receipt uploads and a separate rule for email forwarding: forwarded emails should contain one receipt at a time.
Documented Web Upload Formats
- •JPG / JPEG — Image files
- •PNG — Image files
- •GIF — Image files
- •PDF — Document files
Web upload limit: 5 MB per file, up to 10 files at a time
Use Caution
- •Multiple receipts — Forward one receipt per email
- •Files over 5 MB — Outside the documented web upload limit; email limits are not stated on the forwarding page
- •HTML-only receipts — Not documented as a receipt upload format
- •Other formats — Convert unsupported files before upload
Check Wave's current Help Center before relying on edge formats or batch behavior
The HTML Body Receipt Gap
Wave's receipt documentation focuses on uploaded receipt files and forwarded digital receipts; it does not document HTML-only email bodies as a supported receipt upload format. That matters because many vendors send receipts as HTML content rather than attachments:
- •SaaS subscriptions — Monthly billing emails from software vendors
- •Online retailers — Order confirmations and receipts
- •Ride services — Uber, Lyft trip receipts
- •Digital services — App Store, Google Play, streaming services
If the receipt information is only in the email body, you may need to save it as a PDF or review it before forwarding it into Wave.
Automate Recurring Receipt Emails
Expensent finds current and historical receipt emails, sends documents to your Wave forwarding address, and handles recurring sender-and-subject patterns with rules you create.
Connect your email
Link your work email using secure OAuth—we never see your password. Gmail, Outlook, and IMAP supported.
Set your Wave forwarding address
Enter your unique Wave forwarding address (the one you created in Wave) as your forwarding destination in Expensent.
Forward trusted recurring receipts
When a new invoice arrives that you've set to auto-forward, Expensent can route it to Wave. Wave can then create the receipt transaction for review.
Where Expensent Helps Before Wave Receipt Processing
- Recurring pattern routing — Create rules for recurring invoice patterns
- Current and historical search : Find receipt and invoice emails already in the inbox, then route them to the correct business profile.
- Visible exceptions : Keep unusual or incomplete messages visible without slowing down routine receipt patterns.
- Wave-compatible routing — Send supported receipt emails to the forwarding address Wave creates for your account
- Reusable rules — Confirm a pattern once, then reuse it for future receipts
- Paper receipt capture — Capture a paper receipt, then send the supported file where it belongs
- AI price extraction — Automatically extracts amount, currency, and recipient from PDF, JPG, and PNG attachments
- Fine-grained control — CC configured recipients, add notes, filter by attachment type, and create forwarding or rejection rules from reviewed email and subject patterns
Want to see how the integration works in detail? See the Wave Integration Page →
Frequently asked questions
Can you email receipts to Wave?
Yes, if your Wave account has a Pro Plan or Receipts subscription. Create a receipt forwarding address from Receipts in Wave, then forward one receipt at a time to that address. Wave creates an expense transaction with the receipt attached.
What is Wave's receipt email address?
Wave does not use a single universal public email address. You create your own receipt forwarding address from the Receipts page in Wave. Wave documents setup in both the web browser and mobile app, and says the saved forwarding email cannot be changed.
Does Wave accept PDF receipts by email?
Wave documents PDF as a supported web receipt-upload format, but its public email-forwarding article does not publish a channel-specific format or size list. For email, use the forwarding address shown in Wave and send one receipt at a time. If the forwarded PDF does not create a transaction, use Wave's documented web upload path and current web limits.
Why are my emailed receipts not showing up in Wave?
Check these common causes: (1) The business does not have an eligible Pro Plan or Receipts subscription. (2) The forwarding address was copied incorrectly or belongs to another business. (3) The email contains more than one receipt. (4) The document did not create the expected receipt transaction. If the email path remains unclear, upload the file through Wave's documented web receipt flow and review the transaction there.
Do I need the Wave mobile app to set up receipt forwarding?
No. Wave documents receipt forwarding setup in both a web browser and the mobile app. In a web browser, open Receipts and choose Create email forwarding address or Forward via email. In the mobile app, go to Accounting > Receipts, tap the three-dot menu, and select Create forwarding address.
Can I forward receipts from any email address to Wave?
Yes. Wave's current forwarding article says you can send receipts to your forwarding email from any email address. The important requirements are that the receipt goes to your saved Wave forwarding address and that you email only one receipt at a time.
Does Wave automatically create expense transactions from emailed receipts?
Yes. Wave says receipt email forwarding automatically creates a transaction with the receipt attached. You can review and edit receipt transactions in Wave; Wave's help article says receipts can only be marked as reviewed in a web browser.
What file formats does Wave accept for emailed receipts?
Wave's public forwarding article says to email one receipt at a time but does not publish a separate email format or size table. Its web receipt-upload documentation lists JPG/JPEG, PNG, GIF, and PDF with web-specific limits. Treat those as web-upload rules, not proof of identical email limits.
Is Wave receipt forwarding free?
Receipt email forwarding requires a Wave Pro Plan or Receipts subscription. Wave's free Starter plan covers core bookkeeping and invoicing features, but Wave documents receipt scan and email forwarding as paid receipt features.
Can I automate sending receipts to Wave?
Yes. Expensent finds current and historical receipt emails, sends documents to your Wave forwarding address, and automates recurring sender-and-subject patterns with rules you create.
Send recurring receipt emails to Wave
Find current and historical receipt emails, then route recurring patterns to your Wave forwarding address.
Get Started