Document Scanner for Truckers: Top 4 Tools for the Road

In the fast-paced trucking world, time is money and efficiency is key. The ability to quickly scan and send documents is invaluable for truck drivers, who often need to provide proof of delivery, invoices, receipts, and other truck driver documents promptly.

Enter the modern solution for truckers: mobile document scanning apps, portable scanners, and document scanning services designed specifically for the transportation industry. These technologies enable drivers to capture, send, and store essential documents directly from their trucks or anywhere on the road.

In today's article, we cover what to look for when choosing a document scanner for truck owner-operators and the top options available on the market!

How to choose a document scanner for long hauls

Selecting a suitable document scanner for truckers involves considering several key features that ensure functionality and efficiency on the road.

These scanners are an integral tool for drivers to manage paperwork such as invoices, expenses, and bills of lading.

Here's what to look for to make an informed choice.

• Durability and portability: If you're choosing a portable scanner, look for one that can endure vibrations or accidental drops that may occur in a moving truck. Another concern for physical scanners is their portability. It should easily fit within the confines of a truck cabin without taking up excessive space.

• Power source: Another thing to remember for portable scanners is that they must be able to draw power from a USB port or have reliable battery life for scanning without reliance on a constant external power supply.

• Ease of use: For both mobile apps and portable scanners, look for a scanner with simple, one-touch operation to save time. The interface should be straightforward, allowing drivers to scan documents quickly.

• Connectivity: Wireless capabilities such as Wi-Fi or Bluetooth are beneficial. This allows the scanner to connect directly to a smartphone or laptop, enabling drivers to send documents immediately after scanning.

• Resolution: A minimum resolution of 300 dpi is recommended for producing high-quality images, ensuring that all document details are readable.

• Customer service: Live customer support is helpful whether you choose an app, a physical scanner, or a scanning service.

• Document organization and retrieval: A bonus is if the option you choose also comes with a well-structured document management system must have robust categorization, tagging, and indexing capabilities to ensure swift and accurate retrieval of documents. Quick search and filter options are vital to minimize downtime and enhance overall productivity.

Keep the above elements in mind as you look for a solution to digitize your documents. Next, let's take a look at the most popular scanning solutions for truck owner operators.

Top 4 document scanning options for trucking businesses

Truckers rely on efficient document scanning solutions to manage paperwork on the go. The market offers a variety of scanners suited to different needs, from portable handheld devices to mobile apps and dedicated in-cab options.

1. Shoeboxed—document scanning service best for expense tracking

You’ve been on the road for 2 weeks. You have dozens of loose receipts from gas stations and fast food joints in your cabin that you have to get back to the office at the end of your route. You can’t help but lose a few to the wind when you climb in your truck after a 10-hour haul. What’s a guy (or gal) supposed to do?

With Shoeboxed, you can capture receipts from your phone or mail in receipts to be scanned and uploaded to your account.

Shoeboxed is the #1 app for receipt management and expense reporting and lets you capture photos of, categorize, and create expense reports for receipts on the go.

Shoeboxed also offers a mail-in receipt-scanning service, the Magic Envelope, which allows you to send your receipts to a scanning facility and have them uploaded to your account for expense organizing and reports. All without you lifting a finger!

Quite notably, truck drivers in the States are prominent among Shoeboxed’s happy customers; and they recommend keeping a Magic Envelope on the seat next to them on their long hauls. Whenever they stop for gas or for a bite to eat, they stuff the receipt in the Magic Envelope. 

Then at the end of the month, they send the postage pre-paid Magic Envelope off to Shoeboxed’s scanning facility and they get notified when the receipts are processed and viewable in their account. 

Pros

• “Set and forget” expense reporting—use the Magic Envelope to store your receipts, ship at the end of your route, and get them scanned and uploaded to your account. 

• Accurate mileage tracking that can be included in expense reports.

• Add multiple users to a single account for FREE.

• Store digital copies of related documents for loads, including invoices, warranties, contracts, etc.

• Importing e-receipts to your Shoeboxed account is as easy as syncing your Gmail with Shoeboxed, using Shoeboxed's special Gmail Receipt Sync feature.

• Integrate with other software, such as QuickBooks, for tax reporting and accounting purposes.

• Used and trusted by truckers.

Cons

• Plans that include the Magic Envelope cannot be purchased through the mobile app.

Price

• Plans that include the Magic Envelope start at $18/month, up to $54/month. 

• All monthly plans come with a 30-day free trial.

• All annual plans are charged upon sign-up and come with a full money-back guarantee if the plan is terminated at any point within the first 30 days.

Shoeboxed is the only receipt scanner app that will handle both your paper receipts and your digital receipts—saving customers up to 9.2 hours per week from manual data entry!

2. Drive Axle—mobile app best for sending freight documents

Drive Axle is a mobile scanning app designed for truck drivers and the transportation industry.

The app helps truck drivers to scan, send easily, and store freight documents using a smartphone or tablet.

Free to download with some features requiring paid access.

Pros

• Truck drivers can use their mobile devices to scan documents such as bills of lading, proof of delivery, and other necessary paperwork without needing to find a physical scanner or fax machine.

• Drivers can quickly transmit scanned documents to dispatchers, brokers, or back-office support. This rapid information transfer can speed up the billing and payment processes and improve overall operational efficiency.

• The app is designed to produce high-quality scans even in less-than-ideal conditions. It can enhance the readability of documents, which is crucial for maintaining accurate records.

• Instead of waiting until the end of a trip to submit paperwork, drivers can send documents immediately after loading or unloading, saving time and reducing the risk of losing or damaging paper documents.

Cons

• Some reviewers have noted that scanning quality varies greatly.

• Occasional issues with autofocus.

• Users are unable to lighten or darken images to enhance clarity.

• Internet connectivity is required to upload and store documents.

Price

• Drive Axle app is generally free to download, with optional premium features available for an additional cost.

3. Doxie Go SE—handheld scanner, best for portability

If you're after a portable scanner that you can keep in the cabin of your truck on long hauls, then the Doxie GO SE Portable Document Scanner is worth a look.

This scanner requires no power outlet to scan, so long as the battery is charged. An SD card allows you to store scanned documents; a USB cable means you can port your documents into your computer. Or if you have wifi, you can send them to your destination straight from the scanner.

At 12.2" x 2.25" and 1.2 pounds, this scanner can be placed in a nook or other compartment and won't take up too much space.

Take note: Some reviewers mentioned that occasionally, documents come out slightly crooked, so be careful when lining up the document for scanning.

Pros

• No computer is needed, as memory is included.

• Rechargeable battery.

• Takes less than 10 seconds per page to scan.

• Very lightweight and portable.

• Sends scans to Dropbox, OneNote, Evernote, iCloud Drive, and more.

• Uses OCR technology to create searchable PDFs.

• Friendly and helpful customer service.

Cons

• Not the best option for scanning multi-page documents.

• If you don't place the document precisely, the scan becomes crooked.

• Only scans in JPEG.

Price

• Battery Sheetfed - $189

• Battery Sheetfed + WiFi - $239

4. Trimble—dedicated in-cab scanner best for fleets

Trimble is a solution designed to help truck drivers and fleets reduce the paperwork they need to handle and improve document management efficiency. The system allows drivers to scan documents right from the cab of their truck using a mobile device.

By scanning documents in the cab, drivers can transmit them instantly to their fleet's back office, which can help them get paid faster and improve overall operational efficiency, leading to further cost savings.

Pros

• Eliminates the need for physical storage of documents and reduces the clutter of paper in the cab.

• Drivers can scan and send documents immediately, reducing delays in processing and potentially speeding up the billing cycle.

• Digital scanning can reduce errors associated with manual entry and lost paperwork.

• Easy-to-use features that can be customized to suit the needs of different fleets and drivers.

Cons

• Requires drivers to have a compatible mobile device and may depend on the device's and software's reliability.

• Some drivers may need time to adapt to the new system and become comfortable with digital document management.

• Document scanning and transmission depend on cellular or Wi-Fi connectivity, which might only be consistently available in some areas.

Price

• Pricing for such systems typically varies based on the fleet size, the features needed, and the level of customization required. For accurate pricing information, interested parties should contact Trimble Transportation directly or request a quote through their official website or sales representatives.

Frequently asked questions

Where can truckers scan their documents?

Truckers can scan their documents at various truck stop locations, including PILOT, LOVE's, Bosselman's, Town Pump, and other independent locations equipped with scanning services.

What options do truckers have for in-cab document scanning?

Truckers may use portable scanners connected to laptops, mobile options, or document scanning services for in-cab document scanning.

Can document scanning help streamline a trucking business?

Implementing a digital document management system not only simplifies creating and storing documents but also allows trucking businesses to easily send key documents such as invoices and proof of delivery to clients.

In closing

Selecting a suitable document scanner can significantly simplify paperwork management during long hauls, making it a critical piece of equipment for professional drivers.

The convenience offered by these tools not only streamlines document management for individual drivers but also improves the operational workflow for trucking companies. 

Tomoko Matsuoka is managing editor for Shoeboxed, MailMate, and other online resource libraries. She covers small business tips, organization hacks, and productivity tools and software.

About Shoeboxed!

Shoeboxed is a receipt scanning service with receipt management software that supports multiple methods for receipt capture: send, scan, upload, forward, and more!

You can stuff your receipts into one of our Magic Envelopes (prepaid postage within the US). Use our receipt tracker + receipt scanner app (iPhone, iPad and Android) to snap a picture while on the go. Auto-import receipts from Gmail. Or forward a receipt to your designated Shoeboxed email address.

Turn your receipts into data and deductibles with our expense reports that include IRS-accepted receipt images.

Join over 1 million businesses scanning & organizing receipts, creating expense reports and more—with Shoeboxed.

Try Shoeboxed today!