How to split a bill on Venmo

Venmo has three built-in ways to split a bill. All of them start from a total, so they work best when everyone pays the same. Here's each one, and what to do when people ordered different things.

1. Request from several people at once

Best for: splitting a dinner evenly right after you paid.

1. Tap Pay/Request.
2. Pick the first person, then tap the plus icon next to their name to add everyone else, and tap Next.
3. Enter the total. Venmo divides it evenly between everyone you added and you.
4. Change any one person's amount if they owe more or less, add a note, and tap Request.

Each person gets their own request, which stays pending until they pay. You can send a reminder from your transactions feed.

2. Split a purchase you already made

Best for: something you paid for with your Venmo debit card.

1. Go to the Me tab and open Transactions.
2. Open the purchase and tap Split.
3. Choose who to include. You're included by default and can remove yourself.
4. Add a tip or surcharge if you need to, adjust anyone's amount, add a note, and send the requests.

3. Use Venmo Groups for ongoing costs

Best for: trips, roommates, and anything with lots of expenses over time.

Create a group from the Me tab, then add each expense as it happens. Venmo works out who owes whom with the fewest payments, and anyone can settle up whenever they want. You can customize each person's share of an expense or leave someone out of it. A group can have up to 30 members.

The problem: Venmo splits totals, not receipts

All three methods start from a single number. That's fine when everyone ordered about the same, but most dinners aren't like that. One person has a salad, another has the steak and two cocktails, and splitting the total evenly means the salad pays for the steak.

To split fairly in Venmo you have to do the math yourself: add up each person's items, work out their share of the tax and tip, then type every amount into the request by hand. Our split the bill calculator does that math for free, or you can let an app do the whole thing.

The fast way: split the receipt, then send Venmo links

Pareto starts from the receipt instead of the total:

1. Scan the receipt. Pareto reads every item, the tax and the tip from a photo.
2. Tap each dish onto the person who ordered it. Shared plates can be split between any group of people.
3. Send everyone their link. Each person gets a Venmo link for their exact share, with tax and tip divided in proportion to what they ordered. They tap it and pay in Venmo; they don't need Pareto.

With Pareto Pro you can also see who has paid and who still owes you, so you're not scrolling through Venmo trying to remember.

Which way should you use?

Venmo's menus change between app versions. The steps above follow Venmo's help center: sending and requesting money, splitting purchases and Venmo Groups. Pareto isn't affiliated with Venmo.

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