Bill Splitter Calculator
Split restaurant bills fairly. Use simple mode for even splits or item-by-item mode to assign dishes to each person. Tax and tip are distributed proportionally.
1. Add People
2. Add Items
| Item | Price | Assigned To |
|---|
3. Tax & Tip
How the Bill Splitter Works
Splitting a restaurant bill should be simple, not a source of table-wide tension. This bill splitter calculator offers two modes. Simple split divides the total evenly among everyone, adding tax and tip automatically. Item-by-item split lets you assign each dish to the people who actually ate it, then distributes tax and tip proportionally based on each person's subtotal. The result is a fair, transparent breakdown that everyone can agree on.
When to Use Item-by-Item Splitting
Even splitting works great when everyone ordered similarly priced items. But if one person had a salad while another ordered lobster, splitting evenly is not fair. Item-by-item mode solves this by tracking exactly who ordered what. Shared items like appetizers, desserts, or bottles of wine can be assigned to multiple people and the cost splits equally among them. Tax and tip scale with each person's subtotal, so the person who spent more pays a proportionally larger share of extras.
Understanding Tax and Tip Distribution
In both modes, tax is calculated as a percentage of the subtotal and added on top. Tip is also calculated on the subtotal before tax, which is the standard recommended by etiquette experts. In itemized mode, each person's share of tax and tip is proportional to their food cost. If your subtotal is 40 percent of the total food bill, you pay 40 percent of the tax and 40 percent of the tip. This proportional method is widely considered the fairest approach for uneven orders.
Tips for Fair Bill Splitting
Discuss splitting before ordering so everyone knows the plan. If someone is on a tight budget, let them opt out of shared appetizers. For large groups, consider adding 18 to 20 percent tip automatically since servers work harder for big parties. Use the copy or share button to send everyone their exact amount, avoiding confusion later. Remember that the goal is fairness and friendship, not penny-perfect accounting. When in doubt, round up slightly rather than fighting over cents.