It’s no secret that there are huge benefits to going mobile, especially when it comes to tracking your company’s expenses. Being able to view your company’s and employees’ expenses in real-time gives you a much better understanding of where your money’s going and where costs can be trimmed back. But with so many options for mobile expense report software out there, how do you pick the one that’s best for your company?

You start by asking yourself these questions:

What benefits does an app offer, and which of those do I need?

It doesn’t make sense to invest time and money in a program you won’t fully utilize. Do your homework, starting with an internal audit to see what types of activity you want to track. Do your employees need to track mileage and time worked? Do you want to give them the option of booking flights and hotels right from their app? Is an automated approval reporting feature important to you? What kind of templates and customization will you need?

These are important considerations to think about when picking out your mobile expense report software. You need something that will be a good fit for your company and for your employees, so really dig deep to find out what you need before you commit to one program.

Does it work with what I already have?

You’ll also want to be sure your new expense report software meshes with your back-office technology. Having mobile software that won’t integrate with your in-house computer system will lead to more work and stress as you try to figure out what’s going wrong. Or worse: what, if any, data is lost in the shuffle as you try to get the two systems to work together. Nothing is more frustrating than having to do your work twice.

Make sure you’re working with a program that spans multiple platforms so you can keep all your company’s and employees’ devices in sync. Don’t risk losing any data because two programs can’t talk to each other.

What are my compliance options?

Streamlining doesn’t mean cutting corners, so your mobile expense report software still needs to be compliant. Make sure the program you choose has the proper approval designation abilities. The ability to self-audit would also be a big help, and you’ll want to see how many years of data storage are available to you. With some exceptions, the IRS usually recommends keeping data for at least seven years.

Going mobile is a fantastic way to help track and gain better control of your company’s expenses, and the right expense report software will help with this endeavor. Make sure to do your research and pick the program that will work best for you, your company, your existing technology, and your employees.