How Expenses are Split

🍰 How Expenses Are Split

Slug: /guides/introduction/expense-splitting
Learn how Disteven automatically and fairly splits shared expenses using equal shares — and how this keeps things simple and transparent for everyone.

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🧾 One Simple Rule: Equal Share

Disteven currently uses the Equal Share model for all expenses. This means:

Everyone involved in an expense pays an equal portion of the total amount.

This keeps the system fair, fast, and easy to understand.

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Example
Emma pays $80 for dinner with her 3 friends (4 people total).

Disteven splits the bill equally:

• Emma owes: $20

• Friend A owes: $20

• Friend B owes: $20

• Friend C owes: $20

Since Emma paid the full amount, the others owe her their share.

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🧮 How It Works Under the Hood

Disteven calculates:

1. Who paid the expense

2. How many people are splitting it

3. Equal share per person = Total / Number of people

4. Updates everyone's balance accordingly

No need to worry about rounding, percentages, or manual math — it's all handled for you.

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🧑‍🤝‍🧑 Who Gets Included in the Split?

By default, Disteven includes:

• The payer

• All members you select during expense creation

You can uncheck people who weren’t part of a specific expense to avoid splitting it with them.

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How to Split an Expense

1. Click “Add Expense” in a group or friend screen

2. Enter details (title, amount, date, etc.)

3. Select who was involved

4. Disteven splits the amount equally between selected members

5. Click Save

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🤝 Why Equal Split Only?

Keeping it simple has big benefits:

• ✅ Speed: Add and split an expense in seconds

• ✅ Clarity: Everyone understands how much they owe

• ✅ Fairness: Great for casual settings like friends, trips, or house shares

🎯 Planning to add custom split types in the future?
Track progress on our roadmap and share your feedback!

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📌 Summary

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Want to learn how balances are calculated after splitting?
👉 Check out Understanding Balances and Settlements