How to split group trip expenses, step by step

Splitting costs on a group trip comes down to three numbers per person: what they paid, what their share was, and the difference between the two. Get those right and the transfers at the end follow. This page walks through the arithmetic first, then the steps in Trip Ledger, so you can check any result yourself with a pen and paper.

The math in one line

Each person's balance is what they paid minus their share. A positive balance means that person paid more than their share and should get money back. A negative balance means they paid less and should send money. Across the whole group, the balances always add up to zero.

Here is a worked example. Ana, Ben and Cal split everything evenly. Ana pays ¥12,000 for dinner and Ben pays ¥3,000 for a taxi, so the trip costs ¥15,000 and each share is ¥5,000.

• Ana paid ¥12,000, her share is ¥5,000, so her balance is +¥7,000.
• Ben paid ¥3,000, his share is ¥5,000, so his balance is −¥2,000.
• Cal paid nothing, his share is ¥5,000, so his balance is −¥5,000.

Two payments make everyone even: Ben sends Ana ¥2,000 and Cal sends Ana ¥5,000.

Set up the ledger before you leave

1. Open Trip Ledger and tap "Start a new ledger". Give it a name, such as "Tokyo long weekend", and enter the name you go by.
2. Add everyone on the trip. First names or nicknames are enough. You don't need email addresses or phone numbers.
3. Copy the private link and drop it into your group chat. Anyone who opens it can add expenses without creating an account.

Treat the link like a key. Anyone holding it can view and edit the ledger, so share it only with the people on the trip. You also get a separate admin link that can change settings and delete the ledger. Keep it to yourself.

Record each expense as it happens

Every entry needs four things: the amount, the currency, who paid, and how to divide it. Enter the amount in the currency you actually paid in. A hotel paid in yen goes in as yen; a deposit paid at home in dollars goes in as dollars.

Pick one of five ways to divide an expense:

• Split evenly: tick the people who took part and the cost is shared equally.
• Exact amounts: type each person's part. The parts must add up to the total.
• Percentages: useful when two families agree on a 60/40 split. The percentages must add up to 100.
• Shares: give each person a number of shares, for example 1 for each adult and 0.5 for a child.
• Evenly, with adjustments: set aside the extra (or smaller) amount for one person, then split the rest evenly. The total stays the same. Use it when, say, one person ordered an extra cocktail.

When an amount does not divide cleanly, Trip Ledger splits it to the cent and gives the leftover cent to one person, picked by a fixed rule that can land on a different person each time. $100 across three people becomes $33.34, $33.33 and $33.33, which still adds up to exactly $100.

Tips and service charges

Enter the total you actually paid, tip and service charge included. If only some people want to cover the tip, record the meal and the tip as two separate expenses and divide the tip among those people.

Two ways to pay each other back

By default the Balances tab uses "Fewest transfers": it pairs the people who paid more than their share with those who paid less, so the group makes as few payments as possible.

You can switch to "One person collects" and pick who collects. Everyone else deals only with that person: those with a negative balance send money to them, and they pay those with a positive balance. It can take a few more payments, but everyone except the collector deals with just one person.

More than one currency

Expenses in different currencies are kept apart. Balances and suggested transfers are listed one currency at a time, so on the same trip you might get yen back and still need to send dollars. Settle each currency separately. Taiwan dollars and Hong Kong dollars are settled in whole dollars. Anything smaller shows as a leftover and stays in the ledger.

After the transfers

Trip Ledger only records and calculates. It never sends, collects or holds money. Pay each other with your own bank or payment app, then come back and tap "Mark as paid" on that suggestion. The balances update right away, and once every currency reaches zero the screen says everyone is even.

If you delete an entry by mistake, restore it from the History tab. If two people edit the same entry at once, you are asked to compare both versions and keep one; nothing is overwritten silently.