The best home improvement trackers, by what you need
Every improvement to your home lowers the tax when you sell, as long as you kept the receipt, maybe decades from now. Six ways to keep them, and who each one suits.
We make Reimburse, which is one of the six. What we say about the others comes from their own sites, checked on October 29, 2026 and linked under each.
Pick by what you need
If you want it free, each invoice read and sorted into what counts, with the price where a sale would start to owe tax
Reimburse
Photograph an invoice, drop the PDF or forward the email, and it is read and sorted by Publication 523 into improvements, repairs and closing costs, then kept for the year you sell. Free, beside trackers for your business, HSA and gifts. It runs in the browser and installs to your home screen; it isn’t in the app stores.
If you want the basis worked out for you and a what-if on selling, free, on an iPhone
HomeBasis
An iPhone app made for one job: your home’s adjusted basis, with each project marked an improvement or a repair and a what-if sale under the exclusion. Free, with no subscription.
If you want your improvements, your belongings and your upkeep in one record, for $29 a year or less
DwellRecord
A home record that keeps a running adjusted basis beside an inventory for insurance and maintenance reminders. Free for one property, then $29 or $49 a year.
If you want remodels planned and paid for in the same place as your maintenance, value and inventory
HomeZada
The broadest of these: remodel budgets, maintenance, home value and an inventory, with AI that reads your receipts and invoices. Free for inventory and documents; remodel projects need Premium at $99 a year.
If you want a simple iPhone list sorted the way Publication 523 sorts it, to hand your accountant
Improvory
An iPhone log that files each project under Publication 523’s categories and prints a summary for your accountant. It keeps the list; it doesn’t work out the basis.
If you want a spreadsheet you own outright, and you don’t mind typing
Real Estate Ledger cost tracker
A ready-made log with columns for materials, labor, permits and whether each project counts toward basis. Free in Excel, CSV or PDF, but every row is typed.
All six at a glance
| App | What it is | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Reimburse | A free home improvement tracker that reads each invoice and sorts what counts toward your basis | Free |
| HomeBasis | A free iPhone app built around your home’s tax basis | Free |
| DwellRecord | Improvements, inventory and maintenance in one home record | Free; $29 or $49 a year |
| HomeZada | A whole-home manager with remodel projects and finances | Free; $99 or $189 a year |
| Improvory | An iPhone log of improvements by IRS category | Free for 8; $19.99 a year |
| Real Estate Ledger cost tracker | A free spreadsheet template | Free |
Prices from each product’s own site on October 29, 2026. They change, so check before you pay. Something out of date? Tell us.
Reimburse
A free home improvement tracker that reads each invoice and sorts what counts toward your basis.
reimburse.com
- Price
- Free, with no limit on invoices or years. No card, no trial.
- Receipts in
- A photo, PDF or screenshot, or an email forwarded to your home’s own address. AI reads who did the work, what was done, how much and when.
- Improvements and repairs
- Each invoice is sorted under Publication 523: an improvement adds to your basis, a repair is kept but not added unless it was part of a remodel, and what you paid at closing counts. An energy credit you took comes off.
- Cost basis
- What is on record, every year at once. With your price, today’s value and income, it shows the price where a sale would start to owe tax.
- Export
- A zip with a PDF in the order of Publication 523’s worksheet, a spreadsheet and every invoice.
- Where it runs
- In the browser on iPhone, Android and computers; installs to the home screen. Not in the app stores.
The home improvement tracker, and what else it keeps track of.
HomeBasis
A free iPhone app built around your home’s tax basis.
gethomebasis.com
- Price
- Free to download and use. Its support page says there are no subscriptions, hidden fees or in-app purchases for the core features.
- Receipts in
- Photograph or upload invoices and contractor receipts and attach them to a project. Its site says it can classify receipts automatically.
- Improvements and repairs
- Guided questions help you mark each project a capital improvement or a repair.
- Cost basis
- Starts from the purchase price and qualifying closing costs, adds each improvement, and records selling expenses. A “What If I Sold?” calculator applies the $250,000 or $500,000 exclusion.
- Export
- PDF reports and CSV files for your tax professional.
- Where it runs
- An iPhone app from the App Store, also listed for Apple silicon Macs and Apple Vision.
Checked on October 29, 2026 against HomeBasis, HomeBasis support and HomeBasis on the App Store. Their site is the last word.
DwellRecord
Improvements, inventory and maintenance in one home record.
dwellrecord.com
- Price
- Free for one property, 50 inventory items, basic tax tracking and PDF export. Standard is $29 a year and Household $49 a year for up to 3 properties and shared family access; sign up before January 1, 2027 and the first year is $11.99 or $24.99. Paid plans have a 14-day full refund.
- Receipts in
- Store contractor invoices, permits and before and after photos with each improvement. Receipt and photo upload come with Standard, and it scans receipts with the phone’s camera. An Excel import brings in records you already keep.
- Cost basis
- Each improvement is logged with its date, cost, contractor and receipt, and a running total works out your adjusted tax basis.
- Export
- A PDF for your accountant at tax time or your insurance agent after a claim.
- Also
- A room-by-room inventory with AI photo scanning (5 free scans, then 5¢ each), warranty alerts, and maintenance reminders by email two weeks before a task is due.
- Where it runs
- Installs to the home screen on iPhone and Android.
Checked on October 29, 2026 against DwellRecord, DwellRecord pricing and DwellRecord features. Their site is the last word.
HomeZada
A whole-home manager with remodel projects and finances.
homezada.com
- Price
- Essentials is free, with your home inventory and documents. Premium is $99 a year or $15.95 a month and adds remodel projects, maintenance, finances and reports. Deluxe is $189 a year for up to 3 properties. Its pricing page says there are no refunds.
- Receipts in
- Upload PDFs, scans or photos of paper documents. AI reads receipts, invoices, estimates and contracts, and you check what it found before it is saved.
- Improvements
- Remodel projects hold designs, budgets, estimates, costs, photos and receipts, and its site says you can track completed project costs for tax basis.
- Also
- A maintenance schedule with reminders, home value and equity, a home inventory for insurance, and an AI assistant with a set number of chats on each plan.
- Where it runs
- On the web, with iPhone, iPad and Android apps.
Checked on October 29, 2026 against HomeZada pricing, HomeZada home improvement, HomeZada documents and HomeZada for homeowners. Their site is the last word.
Improvory
An iPhone log of improvements by IRS category.
apps.apple.com
- Price
- Free for one home and 8 improvements. Pro is $19.99 a year with a 7-day free trial, or $49.99 once for life.
- Improvements and repairs
- Each project is logged with its date, cost, contractor, permit and notes, sorted by IRS Publication 523 category. Pro has a plain-English guide to improvements versus repairs; the free tier previews it.
- Cost basis
- A log, not a calculator: its listing says it does not work out your taxes, your capital gain or your cost basis.
- Export
- A Capital Improvements Summary PDF on Pro.
- Also
- Face ID app lock, free for everyone.
- Where it runs
- iPhone only, iOS 18.6 or later.
Checked on October 29, 2026 against Improvory on the App Store. Their site is the last word.
Real Estate Ledger cost tracker
A free spreadsheet template.
realestateledger.io
- Price
- Free to download.
- Receipts in
- Type each row by hand. Columns say whether the receipt and permit are on file.
- Improvements and repairs
- A “Cost Basis Eligible?” column on each project, beside materials, labor, permit fees and the contractor.
- Cost basis
- A yearly summary with a column for the cumulative basis adjustment.
- Export
- Comes as Excel, CSV or PDF.
- Also
- From Real Estate Ledger, whose own app stores a property’s documents and reads them with AI, free for up to 10 properties.
Checked on October 29, 2026 against Home Improvement Cost Tracker Template and Real Estate Ledger. Their site is the last word.
What to know first
Which home improvement trackers are free?
Reimburse, HomeBasis and Real Estate Ledger’s spreadsheet are free with no limit; the spreadsheet is typed by hand. DwellRecord is free for one property, HomeZada’s free plan holds documents but not remodel projects, and Improvory is free for 8 improvements.
What counts as a home improvement for taxes?
Work that adds to your home’s value, makes it last longer or adapts it to a new use: an addition, a new roof, central air, rewiring, paving the driveway. Repairs that keep it in good shape, such as painting or fixing a leak, don’t count, unless they were part of a larger remodel. How Reimburse sorts them.
Can I deduct home improvements the year I pay for them?
No. For the home you live in, improvements go into your basis instead. They lower the taxable gain when you sell, which is why the receipts are worth keeping for as long as you own the home.
How long should I keep the receipts?
For as long as you own the home, and then until three years after the due date of your return for the year you sell. Keep the invoice, and the canceled check or statement that shows you paid it.
Do I need them if my gain is under the exclusion?
Maybe not. Up to $250,000 of gain on your main home, or $500,000 filing jointly, is tax-free if you owned and lived in it two of the last five years. People keep the receipts anyway because nobody knows the price in twenty years, a spouse may sell alone, or the home may become a rental.
Why is Reimburse on this list?
We make it. Everything said about the other five comes from their own sites or App Store listings on October 29, 2026, linked under each, and each one is picked for the need it serves best.
Checked on October 29, 2026 against Publication 523, Selling Your Home, Publication 551, Basis of Assets, Publication 530, Tax Information for Homeowners, Topic 701, Sale of your home and Topic 703, Basis of assets. An estimate for your records, not tax advice.
Keep the next invoice.
Free, with no limit on invoices. Photograph it or forward the email, and it is sorted and kept for the year you sell.