Sharing with friends is a fantastic way to reduce living costs for individuals, however, when one of your friends is not putting in their two cents, your savings end up taking a beating.
Luckily, we are blessed with technology, allowing access to a few apps which can be downloaded to take the pain out of splitting the bills. A few of our favourites are;
Billr
This 99-cent app allows you to share costs and Itemize those costs, all in one app. If you have an iPhone and enjoy the company of your friends over a nice meal then this app will calculate what everyone owes for their own entrees, and split share items like appetizers and the vino (Wine).
Having access to an app that can split everyone’s own entrée and split the shared items means you don’t have to deal with certain friends, that choose to have a three-course meal (when you only eat a salad) because the table has decided to split the bill evenly down the middle across everyone.
The other benefit is that the app can even send a copy of the split bill to the rest of the group as a text or email, so that if you are ever out and someone says, “You owe me a drink because I paid for your lunch”. Well the bad news for them is that you now even have written proof.
Bank of Me
While we are on the topic of keeping track of what your friends owe you, sure sometimes you front your friends $20, in exchange for the “you get this one, and I’ll get the next one”. Well, now the 99 cent app allows you to have a record of all the favours, meals or drinks that your bestie has promised you.
Introducing the Bank of me, which allows you to keep a running balance of who owes you what, and even goes to the point where it integrates with your contacts to send receipts and reminders to your friends.
Now you can track how good of a friend you have by seeing if they do actually repay the favour.
Splitwise
Available for both Apple and Android, which allows for easy transfers. It is particularly ideal if you’re frequently sharing expenses with someone, like your roomie. Splitwise keep a running total of who woes who want – from anywhere from the last three grocery runs to the Friday night bevs at the local that your roomie sprung for.
When you are ready to settle your debts all that is required is a simple PayPal transfer.
Divvy
The perfect app to simply snap and split. You don’t even need to type, it is as simple as taking a photo of the bill, then dragging each item to the person who is paying for it, and ‘Bobs your uncle’! Divvy is only 99 cents to download.
Venmo
If you find yourself constantly being the one who organises group trips, or group birthday presents or group vacations with the plan of everyone paying you back later, but they can take too long. Then this free app is for you. This app will allow you to keep track all of what is owed, and by whom, and will allow you to send reminders to your friends about what’s owed, as well as lets you send money requests at any time.
These are just 5 top apps to keep a track on your expenses. Whether you are trying to save for a deposit or wanting to keep track of where your money goes. For 99 cents you can easily split bills, track what is owed to you, and even keep your friends modest by being able to track if they did actually pay for that lunch that they promised you.
Daniel Trotter
As a Mortgage Broker at Brisbane Home Loans, Daniel brings experience from both sides of the lending process. He began his career with a major Australian bank and progressed to Credit Officer, where he assessed and approved home loan applications and gained firsthand insight into how lenders evaluate borrowers. After working with several mortgage broking firms, Daniel brought that credit assessment expertise to Brisbane Home Loans, where he focuses on structuring applications correctly, navigating complex lending scenarios and giving clients the strongest opportunity for approval. His experience allows him to approach home lending with an understanding of what happens on the assessor's desk, not just what appears in a lender's product guide.
