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Guide · Web app

Receipt App in the Browser: Scan Receipts Without Downloading Anything (PWA for iPhone and Android)

Updated · 5 min read

A receipt app in the browser works without an app store: you open the web app, sign in and scan receipts with your phone camera, or upload photos and PDFs. On an iPhone you add it via Safari → Share → "Add to Home Screen", on Android via the Chrome menu → "Install app" – after that it starts like any other app.

What is a PWA?

PWA stands for progressive web app. It is a website that behaves like an app: it gets its own icon on your home screen, opens full screen without an address bar and can use device features such as the camera. You install it straight from the browser, not from an app store.

For a receipt scanner that has practical advantages:

There are limits too: not every browser supports every feature equally, and a web app usually works only in a limited way without an internet connection.

How do you add the web app to the iPhone home screen?

  1. Open the web app in Safari. For Bonstructer that is bonstructer.com/app.
  2. Tap Share (depending on your tab layout, first tap the button with the three dots).
  3. Scroll down the list and tap "Add to Home Screen". If the entry is missing, you will find it under "Edit Actions".
  4. Confirm with Add. The icon is now on your home screen.

In Bonstructer, the "For iPhone users" hint walks you through it step by step. A native App Store app is planned.

How do you install the web app on Android?

  1. Open the web app in Chrome.
  2. Tap the three-dot menu to the right of the address bar.
  3. Choose "Install app" or "Add to Home screen" – the exact wording depends on your Chrome version.
  4. Confirm with Install.

The native Bonstructer Android app is in closed testing on Google Play. Until it is public, the installed web app is the direct way in.

Does the same account work on the web, on Android and on the iPhone?

Yes. With Bonstructer you sign in with Google, email or passkey and see the same notebook everywhere – in the browser on your laptop, in the web app on your iPhone or later in the Android app. A receipt you scan on your phone in the supermarket is on your computer that evening too.

Can you share photos and PDFs straight to the web app?

On Android, yes: once the web app is installed, Bonstructer appears in the share menu of other apps. That lets you send a receipt photo from your gallery or a PDF eBon from your mail app straight into the notebook. If you have several notebooks, the app asks where the receipt should go.

On the iPhone, Safari currently does not offer this share feature for web apps. There you open Bonstructer and upload the photo or PDF in the app – or simply use the camera.

What should you look for in a receipt scanner with a web version?

There is no universally "best" solution. These points help you compare:

With Bonstructer: camera, QR eBon, photo, PDF and text; long receipts are stitched together from several photos; you correct misread lines in the receipt. You send a receipt by email with the photo and its lines, or save its items as a CSV table for Excel. App servers and receipt originals are in Frankfurt; text recognition and chat run through Google Cloud AI services (Vertex AI, with no data retention by Google), and LlamaParse (EU endpoint) only in exceptional cases when we switch it on manually – that processing may take place outside the EU. Basic use is free; some extra and AI features use credits (AIC), and the price is shown beforehand.

How Bonstructer compares with other receipt apps is covered in the guide Looking for a Bonsy alternative?. Tips for good photos are in How to scan receipts: tips.

Sources

FAQ

Do I need an app from the store for Bonstructer?

No. The web app runs in any current browser. On your phone you can add it to the home screen, and it then starts like an app. The Android app is in closed testing on Google Play.

Can I scan with the camera in the browser?

Yes. In the web app you photograph the receipt directly with your phone camera or scan a QR eBon. Alternatively you upload a photo or PDF or paste text.

How do I get Bonstructer onto my iPhone?

Open bonstructer.com/app in Safari, tap Share and then Add to Home Screen. The sign-in is the same as on the web and on Android. A native App Store app is planned.

Is a web app less secure than a store app?

Not necessarily. With reputable providers, data travels to the server encrypted in both cases. What matters is what the provider does with the data and where it is processed – that should be spelled out in the privacy policy.

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