AliaroHow to split household expenses without arguments (couples and roommates)
Money is one of the biggest sources of tension at home, and not always because of the amount: often it's simply not knowing who paid for what. A simple, transparent system fixes almost all of it.
Three ways to split expenses
Equal split (50/50)
Each person pays half of shared costs. It's the simplest model and works well when incomes are similar.
Proportional to income
If one person earns 60% of the household income, they cover 60% of shared costs. Many couples find this the fairest model when salaries differ.
Joint account + personal spending
Both put a fixed amount each month into a joint account that pays for the household. Personal spending comes out of each person's own account. It cuts down on day-to-day calculations, but the contribution needs reviewing now and then.
There's no right model: what matters is that you chose it together and that you can both see where things stand at any time.
Which expenses to track
- Fixed: rent or mortgage, electricity, water, gas, internet, insurance.
- Variable: groceries, pharmacy, cleaning products.
- Occasional: a new sofa, repairs, joint gifts, holidays.
Log each expense as it happens: who paid, how much and what category. At the end of the month you'll see where the money goes and can adjust.
How to settle up
- Add up what each person paid during the period.
- Work out what each person should have paid under your model.
- The difference is what one owes the other.
- Settle with a bank transfer or payment app and start again from zero.
Settling once a month is most common; doing it often stops awkward amounts from building up.
Expenses with roommates
- Agree from day one what's shared (cleaning supplies, toilet paper, internet) and what isn't.
- One person can pay each bill, but the record has to be visible to everyone.
- When someone moves out, settle everything before they leave.
How Aliaro does it
Aliaro includes household finances, shared with your group:
- Expenses and income by category
- Who paid and who owes whom
- Search by name or amount
- Stats and PDF archive (Premium)
