Split bill calculator
Split an itemised bill fairly: assign items to people, share some between everyone, add service and VAT in proportion, and see who pays whom.
Who owes what
Splitting a bill equally is unfair when one person had a steak and another a salad. List the people at the table, then each item with its price and who shared it: one name for a dish one person ate, several names for a shared plate, or leave it empty for something everyone shared, like bread or a jug of water. Each item is divided equally between the people named on it.
Service charge and VAT are then split in proportion to what each person ordered: someone whose items came to 30% of the subtotal pays 30% of the service and VAT. With the example bill (subtotal 305, 10% service = 30.50, 5% VAT on items plus service = 16.78, total 352.28), Ali’s share of the mixed grill, hummus and drinks is 83 before charges and 95.87 after. Turn off “VAT on the service charge” if your receipt charges VAT on the items only.
Finally, the “who pays whom” table tells everyone how much to send to the person who paid. Amounts are worked in whole cents, and any odd cent is assigned so that the shares add up exactly to the total on the receipt. Names are matched without regard to capitals, so “sara” and “Sara” are the same person.
How to use it
- Type everyone’s names, separated by commas, and the name of the person who paid.
- Add each item with its price and the names of the people who shared it; leave “Shared by” empty for items everyone shared.
- Enter the service charge and VAT percentages from the receipt (0 if they are already included in the prices).
- Read each person’s total and the “who pays whom” list, then copy it into your group chat.
Frequently asked questions
How are shared dishes split?
Equally between the people named on the item. A mixed grill of 120 shared by Ali and Omar puts 60 on each; an item with no names is split between everyone at the table.
Why is the service charge not split equally?
Because it is charged as a percentage of what was ordered, the fair split is in the same proportion: whoever ordered more pays more of the service charge and VAT. If you prefer to split charges equally, add them as an item with an empty “Shared by”.
Is VAT charged on the service charge?
In the UAE and Saudi Arabia a service charge is part of the taxable value, so VAT is normally calculated on the items plus the service charge, which is the default here. Some receipts in other countries apply tax to the items only; switch the option off to match.
What happens if I misspell a name?
Names that are not in the people list are ignored and the result lists them so you can fix the spelling. If none of the names on an item are recognised, that item is split between everyone and the result says so.
Does it work for trips and shared houses too?
Yes, for any single bill paid by one person: groceries, a taxi, a holiday rental. For several bills paid by different people, run it once per bill and net the amounts.
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