Split the Bill

How to split a bill fairly

There are three sensible ways to split a bill. Which one is fair depends on how differently people ordered, and how much the group cares about a few dollars either way.

1. Split evenly

Add the tip to the bill and divide by the number of people. It’s the fastest method and the right one when everyone ordered roughly the same, or when the group simply prefers not to count. For a $150 bill with an 18% tip on the pre-tax amount of $138, the tip is $24.84, the total is $174.84, and four people pay $43.71 each.

The catch is that even splits favour whoever ordered the most. If one person had water and a salad while others had three courses and wine, an even split asks them to subsidise everyone else. In that case, use one of the methods below.

When it doesn’t divide exactly

Splits often leave a cent or two over: $100 between three people is $33.33 each with a cent left. A good calculator gives the leftover cents to specific people ($33.34, $33.33, $33.33) so the total is exact, rather than quietly rounding and leaving the table a cent short. If you’d prefer round numbers, round each share up to the next dollar and let the extra go to the tip.

2. Split by custom amounts or percentages

Sometimes the split is agreed in advance: one couple covers 60% because they ordered the expensive bottle, or someone’s birthday meal is shared by everyone else. Enter each person’s share of the bill before tip, as either an amount or a percentage. The tip is then split in the same proportions, so someone covering 60% of the food also covers 60% of the tip.

The calculator shows how much of the bill is still unassigned as you type, so you know when the shares add up. If they don’t, it tells you how far off you are rather than guessing.

3. Split by item

This is the fairest method when orders differ a lot. Each person pays for what they had, plus their fair part of the tax and tip:

  1. List the items. Type them in, or scan the receipt (see below).
  2. Add the people at the table.
  3. Tick who had each item. A dish one person ate goes to them. A shared starter or bottle is ticked for everyone who shared it and split evenly among them.
  4. Add tax and choose a tip. Both are spread in proportion to each person’s food total, so someone whose items came to 40% of the food pays 40% of the tax and 40% of the tip.

A worked example

Three friends spend $90 on food: Cara’s items come to $45, Dev’s to $27 and Eli’s to $18, including their shares of a pizza they split. Tax is $7.20 and they leave 20% before tax ($18). Cara’s share of the food is 50%, so she pays $45 + $3.60 tax + $9 tip = $57.60. Dev, at 30%, pays $27 + $2.16 + $5.40 = $34.56. Eli, at 20%, pays $18 + $1.44 + $3.60 = $23.04. That adds up to exactly $115.20.

Why proportional tax and tip?

Splitting tax and tip evenly while splitting food by item sounds simpler, but it quietly charges the lightest eater more. Tax is charged on what you order, and tips are a percentage of the food, so sharing both in proportion to what each person ordered matches how they were calculated in the first place.

Using receipt scanning

Typing in a long receipt is tedious, so the calculator can read it for you:

  • Take a picture opens your phone’s camera. Upload a photo lets you choose one you’ve already taken.
  • Lay the receipt flat, in good light, with the whole thing in frame. Printed receipts read much better than handwritten ones.
  • You’ll be asked what currency the receipt is in (it’s usually detected from the symbols) and which currency to show shares in.
  • Check the table. Fix any misread prices, delete lines that aren’t items (like loyalty points), and add anything that was missed. Items whose price couldn’t be read are highlighted.
  • If the items plus tax don’t match the receipt total, the difference is shown, with one-tap options to add it as an item or to use the items total instead.
  • If the receipt already includes a service charge or gratuity, you’ll get a warning so you don’t tip twice.

The photo is processed entirely on your device. It is never uploaded, and it’s discarded as soon as the text has been read.

Settling up

Once the split looks right, Copy summary gives you a plain-text breakdown per person to paste into a group chat. Share link creates a link that opens the same split on someone else’s phone. If you’re abroad, set “Show shares in” to your home currency to see what each person owes at today’s reference rate.

Not sure how much to tip in the first place? See the tipping guide, or go straight to the calculator.