How to Split Expenses As a Couple
Determine what expenses qualify as shared.Sometimes it is easy to identify a shared expense., Split expenses evenly.By splitting every expense evenly, you and your partner have a form of equality in the relationship., Split your expenses according...
Step-by-Step Guide
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Step 1: Determine what expenses qualify as shared.Sometimes it is easy to identify a shared expense.
For instance, heating, water, and electricity are house-wide expenses and you will both, presumably, enjoy their use in approximately equal amounts.
But it might be harder to justify sharing other expenses.
If you have TV service at your home, for instance, but only one of you watches TV, it makes little sense to split that particular expense.
Talk to your partner about which expenditures they believe should be considered shared and which should be considered individual expenses. -
Step 2: Split expenses evenly.By splitting every expense evenly
This is probably the most logical way to split expenses for couples who have equal or roughly equal incomes.
There are many ways to split expenses 50/50.
You might choose to split each expense as it comes in.
Alternately, you might reconcile receipts at the end of each month and pay your partner whatever is “owed.” Talk to your partner about which method works best for you.
You don’t need to split everything perfectly evenly.
Creating a spreadsheet to track expenses, or otherwise accounting for every penny spent between you can reduce your relationship to a purely economic exchange that takes the romance out of it.
Even if you split household bills, it’s still okay to treat your significant other to dinner or a date when you go out.
For instance, you might take turns paying for dinner.
Even if your dinners don’t total the exact same amount each time you go out to eat, over time, you’ll each probably end paying about the same amount.
This qualifies as a form of splitting costs evenly. , In other words, equality is achieved through each person in the relationship paying expenses according to their ability.
For example, suppose you earn $3,000 per month and your partner earns $2,000 each month.
In this case, you should pay for 60% of the expenses, since your income is 60% of the total household income (the figure you get when you combine the incomes of you and your partner).
Talk carefully with your partner to make sure that there are no hidden issues before going forward with this method.
In some cases, your partner may feel as though they are contributing too much or too little if this method is used. , In this method, one person will pay for the majority of household expenses.This is the natural choice to make when one person in the relationship has way more income than the other person.
However, if both you and your partner make a lot of money, either of you could choose to take on an expense-splitting arrangement like this.
A fair arrangement doesn’t necessarily need to divide all expenses perfectly.
For instance, one of you could take the internet bill while the other takes the power bill.
Divide things up according to whichever scheme suits your situation. , Domestic work – cleaning, cooking, and doing the laundry – is crucial to keeping a household going.
It makes little sense for one person to both complete all these tasks and also provide financial stability for you as a couple.
Think about splitting the total amount of work that each of you do as a couple rather than thinking of splitting expenses along purely financial lines. -
Step 3: you and your partner have a form of equality in the relationship.
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Step 4: Split your expenses according to income.This expense-splitting technique calls for the person with the higher income paying for a larger share of the household expenses.
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Step 5: Share expenses unevenly.
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Step 6: Be willing to trade time and money.If you work and your partner doesn’t or if your partner works but you do not
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Step 7: there are other ways you can come to a fair arrangement by thinking about the work (as well as the money) it takes to run a household.
Detailed Guide
For instance, heating, water, and electricity are house-wide expenses and you will both, presumably, enjoy their use in approximately equal amounts.
But it might be harder to justify sharing other expenses.
If you have TV service at your home, for instance, but only one of you watches TV, it makes little sense to split that particular expense.
Talk to your partner about which expenditures they believe should be considered shared and which should be considered individual expenses.
This is probably the most logical way to split expenses for couples who have equal or roughly equal incomes.
There are many ways to split expenses 50/50.
You might choose to split each expense as it comes in.
Alternately, you might reconcile receipts at the end of each month and pay your partner whatever is “owed.” Talk to your partner about which method works best for you.
You don’t need to split everything perfectly evenly.
Creating a spreadsheet to track expenses, or otherwise accounting for every penny spent between you can reduce your relationship to a purely economic exchange that takes the romance out of it.
Even if you split household bills, it’s still okay to treat your significant other to dinner or a date when you go out.
For instance, you might take turns paying for dinner.
Even if your dinners don’t total the exact same amount each time you go out to eat, over time, you’ll each probably end paying about the same amount.
This qualifies as a form of splitting costs evenly. , In other words, equality is achieved through each person in the relationship paying expenses according to their ability.
For example, suppose you earn $3,000 per month and your partner earns $2,000 each month.
In this case, you should pay for 60% of the expenses, since your income is 60% of the total household income (the figure you get when you combine the incomes of you and your partner).
Talk carefully with your partner to make sure that there are no hidden issues before going forward with this method.
In some cases, your partner may feel as though they are contributing too much or too little if this method is used. , In this method, one person will pay for the majority of household expenses.This is the natural choice to make when one person in the relationship has way more income than the other person.
However, if both you and your partner make a lot of money, either of you could choose to take on an expense-splitting arrangement like this.
A fair arrangement doesn’t necessarily need to divide all expenses perfectly.
For instance, one of you could take the internet bill while the other takes the power bill.
Divide things up according to whichever scheme suits your situation. , Domestic work – cleaning, cooking, and doing the laundry – is crucial to keeping a household going.
It makes little sense for one person to both complete all these tasks and also provide financial stability for you as a couple.
Think about splitting the total amount of work that each of you do as a couple rather than thinking of splitting expenses along purely financial lines.
About the Author
William Coleman
Specializes in breaking down complex cooking topics into simple steps.
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