Split a bill by what each person ordered
Add each line from the receipt, tick who shared it, and the totals come out per person. Tax and tip follow what people ordered rather than being divided by heads.
Who is at the table
What was ordered
- You₹510.00 + ₹25.50₹535.50
- Rahul₹260.00 + ₹13.00₹273.00
- Aman₹170.00 + ₹8.50₹178.50
Tax and tip are shared in proportion to what each person ordered, not split evenly.
Why tax and tip should not be split evenly
If the bill is itemised and the service charge is not, the itemising is half undone: the person who had a soup pays the same service charge as the person who had the fish. Spreading it in proportion to what each person ordered keeps the whole bill consistent, and it is what this calculator does.
It matters more than it sounds on an Indian restaurant bill, where GST and service charge together can be a fifth of the total.
Shared plates
A dish in the middle of the table is one line shared by everyone who ate from it — tick two people or five, and it divides among exactly those. A new line starts shared by everybody, because that is the common case and unticking is faster than ticking.
The division uses the same integer rule as the rest of the app, so a plate that does not divide cleanly still adds back to its exact price.
When to stop itemising
Itemising one restaurant bill is worth the two minutes. Itemising every bill on a four-day trip is not — it is thirty receipts, and the differences mostly cancel out. For that, record each expense against whoever paid and let the balances net out at the end, which is what a Splitly group does.
The rule of thumb: itemise when one person's share would be obviously unfair otherwise. Otherwise use the even split.
One receipt is a calculator. A week of them is a ledger — everyone adds what they paid as it happens, and the balances stay current on their own.
Frequently asked questions
- How do you split a bill when everyone ordered different things?
- Total each person's own items, then share anything ordered for the table among the people who ate it. Add tax and tip in proportion to each person's subtotal rather than dividing them equally, or the itemising is partly undone.
- Should the tip be split evenly or by what each person ordered?
- By what each person ordered, if the bill itself is being split that way. A tip is a percentage of what was consumed, so splitting it evenly charges the lightest eater the same as the heaviest.
- How do you split a shared starter?
- As its own line, divided among the people who actually ate it. That is more accurate than adding it to the total and dividing by everyone, which charges the person who did not touch it.
- Is this calculator free?
- Yes, and there is no signup. It runs entirely in your browser and nothing you type is sent anywhere.