Business Spend Trends

Business Spend Trends

Spend Trends by Expensify takes you behind the scenes for insights into the spending breakdown patterns that defined a year that was, dare we say… unprecedented.

Download the report

Learn more about how Expensify benefits businesses and helps them save money by downloading the report today!
Download report

Business as Usual

2020 started with no surprises. Travelers hit the road in droves, largely at the tap of a button in their favorite rideshare apps. They filled hotels, grabbed lattes to-go, and enjoyed two-day delivery, even before staying home was cool.

2020 Q1 most popular expenses by volume of receipts, showing Uber as the big winner

MOST POPULAR EXPENSES IN Q1 BY VOLUME OF RECEIPTS

Travel Takes a Nosedive

Unsurprisingly, the airline industry was the first to see the pandemic’s effects, with travel decreasing heavily starting in March:

2020 Q1 airline receipts, showing a drop of over 50% in March

AIRLINE RECEIPTS IN FIRST QUARTER

Remote Work Becomes the New Norm

Work-leisure wear was in full force by April and businesses adopted apps that could keep their employees connected from a distance— with or without pants on. This ushered in what will forever be known in history books as the Zoom Boom:

Zoom receipts by quarter in 2020, showing a near doubling from Q1 to Q2 that holds through Q3 and Q4

ZOOM RECEIPTS BY QUARTER

While some businesses preferred video chat, others opted to connect over a different kind of dial-up: the phone. By the end of Q3, Verizon came out on top as the most expensed cell provider in the US:

2020 Q3 phone carrier receipts

PHONE RECEIPTS BY CARRIER

Stuck at home for the long haul, more people ordered food deliveries from their favorite restaurants than ever before. (FYI, Chipotle was a massive hit for Expensify employees.) Two apps in particular – DoorDash and Uber Eats – snagged the largest slices of the quarantine pie.

2020 DoorDash receipts by quarter, showing a steady rise across the year

DOORDASH RECEIPTS BY QUARTER

2020 Uber Eats receipts by quarter, showing a steady rise across the year

UBER EATS RECEIPTS BY QUARTER

Looking Up

On the flip side, flights sharply declined after Q1 as stay-at-home orders continued and in-person meetings remained virtual. But by Q3 and Q4, business travel showed glimmers of hope as the airline industry started (very) slowly crawling back. Let’s zoom out here and take a look at the full year in airline receipts.

2020 Airplane receipts, showing a 78% fall from Q1 to Q2 and little rebound

AIRLINE RECEIPTS NUMBER OF RECEIPTS BY QUARTER

To close things out, let’s revisit those top 10 most popular expenses from the beginning of 2020. How did the spend trends change throughout the year? Well, e-commerce and other retailers took top placement away from rideshare apps, hotels are nowhere to be seen, and shipping services rounded out the list.

Most popular expenses in 2020 Q4, showing Amazon as the clear winner

MOST POPULAR EXPENSES IN Q4 BY VOLUME OF RECEIPTS

No matter what this next year might bring, it’s safe to say that ditching the traditional office for remote work and ordering everything at the tap of a finger is here to stay. Anyways, here’s to a brighter 2021!

For more background, check out our breakdown of 2019 spending and expense management trends here.

Joanie Wang

Joanie is the Director of Marketing and Brand at Expensify, and possibly the only Bahhston native who doesn't run on Dunkin’. She is "outside-y," enjoys food-based travel, and loves John Mayer maybe a little too much.