What does the InstantDrive mobile app do?

Last updated: 5 November 2026

Is the InstantDrive mobile app a native App Store or Play Store app?

No. The mobile app is a progressive web app, usually shortened to PWA. It runs in the phone browser engine, lives at m.instantdrive.app and can be added to the home screen, where it opens full screen without the browser address bar. Its manifest sets the display mode to standalone and the orientation to portrait, and it updates itself in the background when a new version is published.

There is nothing to download from the Apple App Store or Google Play today. Search results for "InstantDrive" in those stores are not this product. The practical consequences are that installation takes a few taps, updates need no action from you, and a few things a native app can do, such as push notifications, are not part of this app.

How do you install it on an iPhone or an Android phone?

Open m.instantdrive.app in the phone browser, sign in, and look for the install card at the bottom of the screen. It appears about a second after the app loads. You can dismiss it, and it stays hidden for the rest of that browser session.

Installing is optional. The same screens work in a normal browser tab. Installing gives you the home screen icon and the full-screen layout, which makes the camera-first receipt flow quicker to reach.

Why does the web address on a phone open the mobile app?

When you open app.instantdrive.app on a phone or tablet, the site sends you to m.instantdrive.app automatically. iPads count as tablets for this check, so they are redirected too. Two things are not redirected: guest share links, which must open on the main domain so the recipient can download the file, and visits where the address carries the desktop override (desktop=true).

On a laptop or desktop browser nothing changes. You see the full workspace at app.instantdrive.app. The two apps use the same account and the same company data, so a receipt scanned on the phone appears in the desktop employee expense screens.

Which screens does the mobile app have?

The app has two views that you switch with a pill at the top of the screen: Admin View and Staff View. The switch only changes which screens you see. Treat it as a layout choice and not as an access control.

The Inboxes screen shows a fixed example address. Take your real bills and expenses addresses from Dedicated Inboxes in the desktop app. The Vault screen has a WhatsApp share button, but the link it builds is not a working download link. Use the desktop Dispatcher or a guest link when you need to send a document to an outside party.

How does Face ID, Touch ID or fingerprint unlock work?

The mobile app uses passkeys, the browser standard also called WebAuthn. When you enrol, your phone creates a key pair that is tied to the InstantDrive site. The private key stays in the phone secure hardware. The server issues a fresh challenge for every unlock and checks the signature, so no fingerprint or face data is sent to InstantDrive. Your phone decides whether it is Face ID, Touch ID or a fingerprint reader.

Enrolment needs a password first. After a successful password sign-in on a device that supports passkeys, the lock screen offers Turn on Face ID / fingerprint. If you choose Not now, you can still use the app and are offered it again at the next password unlock. After enrolment the lock screen asks for your face or finger first and keeps a Use password instead option.

The web login on app.instantdrive.app has no passkey option. Passkeys are used only to unlock the mobile app. If the browser does not support them, the lock screen says so and falls back to email and password.

When does the app lock itself, and what about the mobile PIN?

The app locks whenever it moves to the background, for example when you switch to another app or turn off the screen. A link with lock=true in the address also opens it locked. Coming back shows the lock screen until you unlock.

The server has endpoints to store a hashed four-digit PIN and to verify it, but the current mobile screens do not offer PIN entry, so the lock screen does not ask for one. Unlocking is by passkey or by password.

Sessions are the normal sign-in session of 24 hours. There is no refresh token, so after a day the password is needed again even if the passkey is enrolled.

How does snap-to-upload work for receipts?

Open Snap Upload, take a photo of the receipt or choose a file, and the app sends it to the receipt scanning service. The service reads the merchant, total, 5 percent VAT, currency and a spend category, names the file by the usual naming rules and stores it in the employee folder under the Employees vault. A claim number is created and the claim goes to the manager.

If the image is not a receipt, for example a selfie, the app warns you instead of creating a claim. If the receipt is in a foreign currency, the claim asks for a card statement and the Attach CC Proof button lets you add it. A rejected claim shows the reason and a Re-snap Receipt button.

The 100 MB limit applies to the image. If the scan request fails, the screen can fall back to sample values. Always compare the merchant, amount and VAT on the screen with the paper receipt before you submit.

How do approvals on the go work?

Manager Approvals lists claims under Awaiting Approval and Ready for Payout. Approve marks the claim approved with your user and the time. Reject asks for a reason and offers preset reasons. An approve-all button approves every submitted or audited claim in the company in one tap, so use it only after you have looked at the list, because it does not check any flags first.

A payout button records the payment and the journal entry. No bank or payment service is connected, so no money moves. Your finance team still makes the actual transfer and the record only shows that it was done.

What does a worked example look like?

Al Noor Trading is a fictional company with an owner, a finance lead and six sales staff. The owner installs the app on an iPhone and signs in with her password. The lock screen offers Face ID, she accepts, and from then on the app opens with a glance.

On a client visit, a salesperson buys fuel for AED 210, opens Snap Upload and photographs the receipt. The app shows the merchant, AED 210 and the VAT amount. He checks them against the paper, submits, and the claim lands in the finance lead queue. Between meetings she opens Manager Approvals, reads the claim, taps Approve and moves on. At month end the owner opens Admin Radar, sees a trade licence in the under 30 days group, runs the sweep and gets a to-do item that the team can pick up on the desktop.

What are the limits of the mobile app?

It needs a network connection. There is no offline queue for scans, and the Cockpit and Radar screens show seeded sample figures when their data cannot load. The interface is in English only. It is not listed in an app store, has no push notifications and no home screen widgets.

The Vault screen is lighter than the desktop one. Guest links, the Dispatcher, dossiers, the finance desk beyond approvals, and the owner tools are desktop features. The app does not replace a document scanner for multi-page contracts, and the phone camera quality decides how well a receipt is read.

What does InstantDrive not do on mobile, and what should you do next?

The mobile app is not a native store app, does not offer web-login passkeys, does not show a PIN screen and does not move money. It does not verify a document with any government system and does not send reminders by itself.

To start, open m.instantdrive.app on your phone, sign in with your password, add it to the home screen and turn on Face ID or fingerprint unlock. Test it with one real receipt before you roll it out to staff. The pricing page lists the plans and the contact page covers questions about rollout.