Comparison

DeductiBee vs a spreadsheet

A spreadsheet is where most people went after ItsDeductible closed, and for cash gifts it is genuinely fine. The trouble starts with non-cash donations, because the hard part was never the arithmetic. It is knowing what a bag of used clothes is worth, being able to show where that number came from, and having the receipt and the photos attached to the right row two years later.

Cost

Pricing at a glance

DeductiBee

$19.99/year

Free tier is permanent: 20 new item entries a year, unlimited donation events, and unlimited import and viewing of your own history. Pro is $19.99 a year, $2.99 a month, or $59.99 once. Exporting your raw data is free on every tier.

a spreadsheet

Free

Nothing to pay, and nothing stopping you. The cost is the research time per item and the risk that a number you cannot source is a number you have to give back.

Side by side

Feature comparison

Written to be checkable. Where a plain "no" would misrepresent a spreadsheet, the cell says what it actually does instead.

Feature	DeductiBee	a spreadsheet
Status todayDeductiBee is not on the App Store yet. Everything in the DeductiBee column describes v1.0 as scoped, not a shipping product.	In development for iPhone	Available right now, on the device you are reading this on
Cost	Free for 20 new item entries a year, then $19.99 a year	Free
Item values	A range per item and condition tier, with the source shown next to it	You research and defend every number yourself, item by item
Condition	Like new, Good, and Fair priced separately for every item	A column you invent, and then have to apply the same way all year
Running total	Current on the home screen, all year	A formula, until someone edits a row
Photo evidence	Photos attach to the item and to the drop-off receipt	Files in a folder, tied to rows by a naming convention you have to keep
Form 8283 worksheet	Exported in the layout the form asks for, with the extra fields prompted on items over $500	You map your columns onto the form by hand
The $500 and $5,000 thresholdsForm 8283 is generally required once non-cash contributions pass $500, and a qualified appraisal generally applies above $5,000.	Flagged as your totals approach them	You have to know the rule and watch for it yourself
Arithmetic	Totals are computed, never typed	One overwritten formula changes a total silently
Contemporaneous records	Each entry carries the date you made it	A file whose rows can all be typed the night before you file, and that looks it
Backups	On device, with optional private iCloud sync	Wherever the file lives, which for most people is already a synced cloud drive and works fine
Portability	CSV export is free on every tier, including the free one	It is already a spreadsheet. Nothing is more portable than that.
Learning curve	An app to learn once	You already know how to use it

The honest part

What a spreadsheet does better, and it is not nothing

A spreadsheet is free, it opens anywhere, it will still open in twenty years, and no company can discontinue it. That last point is the whole reason people reached for one after October 2025, and it is a correct instinct rather than a stubborn one.

DeductiBee tries to answer it rather than argue with it: your records live on your device, exporting your raw data as CSV is free on every tier including the free one, and there is no account to lose access to. If you decide in three years that you would rather keep a spreadsheet again, you can leave with everything, which is the only version of this argument worth making.

Which one

Which is right for you

DeductiBee is the better fit if

You donate bags of household goods and clothing, not just cash.
You want a defensible number per item without researching each one.
You want photos and receipts attached to the entries they belong to.
You would like the Form 8283 worksheet to come out the other end already laid out.
You have lost a spreadsheet, or a formula in one, at least once.

A spreadsheet is the better fit if

You give cash and checks, where there is no valuation problem to solve.
You make one or two donations a year and keep the receipts in an envelope.
You actually enjoy owning the model, and you keep it current.
You want a format no vendor controls, which is a good instinct. It is also why DeductiBee's raw CSV export is free on every tier.

Bottom line: For cash donations a spreadsheet is fine. For non-cash donations the spreadsheet is only the easy half, and the half it leaves you (finding a defensible value for every item, keeping the evidence with the row, and shaping it into what Form 8283 asks for) is exactly the work DeductiBee does.

Primary sources for the tax claims on this page

Publication 526, Charitable ContributionsIRS, IRS publication
Publication 561, Determining the Value of Donated PropertyIRS, IRS publication
Publication 1771, Charitable Contributions: Substantiation and Disclosure RequirementsIRS, IRS publication
Instructions for Form 8283IRS, IRS form

FAQ

Questions people actually ask

Is a spreadsheet good enough for tracking charitable donations?

For cash and check gifts, generally yes: the amount is the amount, and your bank record plus the charity's acknowledgment does most of the work. Non-cash donations are the harder case, because you have to determine fair market value for every item, keep records that show how you got there, and file Form 8283 once the total passes a threshold.

What records does the IRS actually expect me to keep?

It depends on the size and type of the gift. Generally, any contribution of $250 or more needs a contemporaneous written acknowledgment from the organization, and non-cash contributions need records showing what you gave, when, to whom, and how you determined its value. The specifics are in IRS Publication 526 and Publication 1771, and they are worth reading once rather than guessing at.

How do I find fair market values for a spreadsheet?

Fair market value is generally the price a willing buyer would pay a willing seller, with neither under pressure and both knowing the relevant facts. IRS Publication 561 sets out how to think about it for donated property, and published thrift-store valuation guides are the usual practical starting point for used household goods. The catch is that this is per item, every time, which is the part an app can carry for you.

When does a spreadsheet stop being enough?

Generally once your non-cash contributions for the year pass $500, because Form 8283 gets involved and it asks for things a casual spreadsheet does not usually track: how you acquired each item, when, and what it cost you. Above $5,000 for an item or a group of similar items, a qualified appraisal and Section B generally apply. The Instructions for Form 8283 spell out the conditions.

Can I move my existing spreadsheet into DeductiBee?

Yes. DeductiBee imports a generic CSV with a column-mapping step, so you point it at which column holds the item, the date, the value, and the charity. Import is free on every tier, permanently, because charging someone to bring in their own history would be indefensible.

Can I get my data back out if I stop using DeductiBee?

Yes, and this is deliberate. Raw CSV export is free on every tier, including the free tier and after a subscription lapses. The paywall covers new-item capacity, the formatted exports, and sync. It never covers your own data.

Keep reading

DeductiBee vs ItsDeductibleWhat the discontinued tool did, and what happened to it.All donation tracker comparisonsEvery app people moved to after the shutdown, compared.Donation value calculatorTry the valuation data in a browser before you install anything.Donation value guidePer-category ranges with the source shown on each one.Receipts and recordsWhat to keep, and the $250 written acknowledgment rule.

Switching

Bring your history. Keep your deductions.

Import what you already have, value what you gave with a source attached, and export the paperwork when you file.

Free to start, with 20 new item entries a year. Pro is $19.99 a year. Importing and exporting your own raw data is free on every tier.