Fade out

Why receipts fade

Real receipts don’t fade in four seconds. But most of them do fade.

Most till receipts are printed on thermal paper: there is no ink at all, just a coating that darkens when the printer heats it. Heat, sunlight, friction and some plastics and oils keep working on that coating after you walk away, so the print slowly fades and the paper can turn blank. A receipt that spends the summer in a hot car or the bottom of a bag fades much faster than one kept cool and flat. Our other game, Before It Fades, covers how long thermal receipts last and how to slow it down.

That matters because the IRS generally expects you to keep records that support the income and deductions on your return, and to keep them for at least three years after you file, longer in some cases. A receipt nobody can read doesn’t help much. Here’s how long to keep receipts, rule by rule.

How to keep receipts readable

1. Snap it the day you get it. A clear photo taken at the counter is the copy that never fades. That is the whole game: get each one out before it goes blank.
2. Add a few words about why. The receipt shows what you bought, never what it was for. “Printer paper, Hale project” takes five seconds now.
3. Keep the paper cool, dark and flat if you keep it at all. Not in the car, not against plastic sleeves, not folded into a wallet.
4. Keep everything in one place, by month. Month matches your bank and card statements, so gaps are easy to spot. The full routine is in how to keep track of receipts all year.

Not sure which receipts you actually need? Start with do you need receipts for taxes, which checks eight common myths against IRS guidance.

This is general record-keeping information, not tax advice. Your tax professional can tell you what your situation needs.

How to play Fade Out

• A round receipt bounces inside a turning ring that has one gap. Its print fades over 4 seconds, and the circle around it counts down.
• Get it through the gap before the print is gone and it’s saved. If the ink runs out first, it freezes where it is, blank, and stays in the way of the next one.
• In Play, you get ten receipts. Tap where you want the receipt to go, or press Space to aim it at where the gap is about to be. You get two nudges per receipt.
• In Watch, nobody helps: receipts keep fading until one finds its own way out. How many fade first is different every time.
• Every bounce plays the next note of The Entertainer.

Questions

How many receipts can you usually save?

In our test runs, receipts left completely alone got out about 2 or 3 times in 10. Players who aimed their nudges at the gap saved around 5 or 6. Ten out of ten happens, but not often.

Do receipts really fade that fast?

No. The 4 seconds is the game. Real thermal receipts fade over months or years, faster with heat, light and friction. The ending is the same, though: a blank slip that can’t back anything up.

What is the song?

The Entertainer, a piano rag by Scott Joplin from 1902, which is in the public domain. Every bounce plays the next note.

Once I’ve snapped a receipt, do I still need the paper?

In general, the IRS accepts records kept electronically as long as the copies are accurate, complete and readable. Revenue Procedure 97-22 sets out the standards. If a specific receipt matters a lot, ask your tax professional before you throw away the original.

Does ReceiptNest help with this?

Yes. Snap a paper receipt or forward an email receipt, add a quick note, and ReceiptNest organizes it by month. Export a PDF or CSV for your accountant at tax time. See how the receipt organizer works.

Are there other games?

Yes: Snap vs Pile, The Pile, Escape the Year, Shoebox Sort, Guess the Charge and Before It Fades. All free, no signup.

Sources and credits

• IRS, How long should I keep records?
• IRS, What kind of records should I keep?
• IRS, Revenue Procedure 97-22, electronic storage of records
• Music: The Entertainer by Scott Joplin, 1902 (public domain). Sounds rendered with the MuseScore General soundfont (MIT license).