Real Agent Cases

Enter retail-arbitrage receipts into a spreadsheet with Claude Cowork

Posted
by Zach Alt (@ZachAltmyer)
Last checked
Method:
How we verify

Evidence: Described by posterThe person describes what happened in words, without screenshots or video.

Outcome

Claude Cowork weekly processes a folder of RA receipts into a spreadsheet with buy cost, store and item; the poster still double-checks but says admin time is way down.

Agent

Claude Cowork

Prompt Recreated prompt

The source didn't share its exact prompt, so we wrote this from what it describes.

Here's a task I'd like your help with. Read it all the way through before you start.

Goal: Every week, go through my folder of receipts and enter each one into my spreadsheet.

Check with me first: Which columns do I track, beyond buy cost, store and item?

What I'll give you:
- The folder where I save my receipts
- My spreadsheet and the columns I use

Rules:
- Read each new receipt and enter the buy cost, store, item and any other columns.
- Don't enter the same receipt twice.
- If a receipt is hard to read, flag it and ask me instead of guessing.
- Don't change existing rows.

Output: The updated spreadsheet plus a short list of any receipts that need checking.

You'll know it worked when: the week's receipts appear in the spreadsheet and I only need to spot-check them.

Works best when: I still double-check the entries.

Try this in:

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Optional stronger version

Our rewrite with extra checks. The poster didn't test it.

Here's a task I'd like your help with. Read it all the way through before you start.

Goal: Each week, enter new receipts from my folder into my arbitrage spreadsheet without duplicates.

Quick check first: tell me if anything below is missing or unclear.

Inputs (fill in or confirm):
- Receipts folder
- Spreadsheet and its columns (buy cost, store, item, date, SKU, quantity)
- How I mark a receipt as processed

Rules:
- Only process receipts not already logged; match on store, date and total.
- Enter one row per item, splitting multi-item receipts.
- Keep tax and discounts in their own columns so unit cost is correct.
- Mark processed receipts (rename or move) only after the rows are saved.

If you get stuck: If a receipt is blurry or a total doesn't add up, put it in a 'check' list instead of guessing. If a login, CAPTCHA or two-step code appears, stop and ask me to handle it; never guess or store passwords.

Verify before you finish: Check the week's receipt totals equal the sum of the new rows.

Output: Rows added, receipts processed and a 'needs review' list.

Done when: every new receipt is in the sheet once, with correct totals.

Source

https://x.com/ZachAltmyer/status/2033904740359147632

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