Most category lists are written for accountants. This one is written for the person holding the receipt. Below: what each category actually covers, what to watch out for, and worked examples for common trades.
This is general information to help you keep tidy records, not tax advice. Whether a specific cost is allowable depends on your circumstances — check GOV.UK guidance on self-employed expenses or ask your accountant.
Anything you buy that gets used up on a job and doesn't come home with you.
Examples: Copper pipe, cable, timber, plasterboard, paint, sand and cement, fixings.
Watch out: If some of the same order was for your own house, only the job share is a business cost.
Kit you keep and use again — from a £12 spanner to a £600 SDS drill.
Examples: Power tools, hand tools, ladders, test meters, tool boxes, site radio.
Watch out: Bigger items may be treated differently (capital allowances). Flag the cost to your accountant.
Safety gear and branded workwear — not ordinary clothes you could wear anywhere.
Examples: Steel toe-caps, hi-vis, hard hat, gloves, knee pads, branded polo shirts.
Watch out: Plain jeans and trainers usually don't count, even if you only wear them on site.
Running the van or car for work — either actual costs or the simplified mileage rate.
Examples: Diesel, van insurance, MOT, servicing, tyres, road tax, parking on a job.
Watch out: Pick one method and stick with it for that vehicle. Parking fines are never claimable.
Getting to and staying near a job that isn't your normal place of work.
Examples: Train fare to a job, overnight B&B on a distant contract, congestion charge, tolls.
Watch out: Ordinary commuting to one regular site is generally not a business cost.
The work share of your phone and broadband.
Examples: Mobile contract, second work SIM, home broadband used for quotes and invoicing.
Watch out: If it's one phone for everything, claim a fair business percentage and note how you worked it out.
Digital tools you pay for to run the business.
Examples: Accounting or expense apps, cloud storage, quoting software, website hosting.
Watch out: Family streaming and personal apps on the same card aren't business costs.
Keeping the skills and cards you already need up to date.
Examples: CSCS card renewal, gas safe re-assessment, 18th edition update, first aid refresher.
Watch out: Training for a brand-new trade is treated differently from keeping current skills valid.
Cover you hold because you trade.
Examples: Public liability, tools cover, professional indemnity, employer's liability.
Watch out: Home and personal life insurance sit outside the business.
People you pay to do work for you.
Examples: A labourer for two days, a mate who wires a job, a specialist you bring in.
Watch out: In construction, CIS rules may apply. Keep the invoice and their details.
The paperwork side of the business.
Examples: Accountant's fee, bank charges on a business account, stationery, printing, postage.
Watch out: If you work from home, there's a separate use-of-home allowance worth asking about.
Getting the next job in.
Examples: Van signwriting, leaflets, website, local directory listing, boosted social posts.
Watch out: Entertaining customers is not an allowable cost, however business-like the lunch.
Same receipt, different trade, different sensible category. Here's how a typical week lands for eight trades.
Photograph a receipt and ClaimMate reads it, suggests the category for your trade, asks when something genuinely isn't clear, and builds a pack your accountant can use. Free to start.