Free template
Shared expenses spreadsheet template
One file for a trip, a flat or any group: write each expense, who paid and who it was for, and the Balances tab shows who gets money back and who owes. Opens in Excel, Google Sheets, Numbers and LibreOffice.
Excel file, 30 kB. No sign-up, no email.
How to use it
- Open the file. In Google Sheets: upload it to Google Drive and open it with Sheets, or use File → Import in a new sheet.
- In the Expenses tab, write the people’s names in the grey header cells — up to eight.
- Add one row per expense: the date, what it was, the amount and who paid (pick a name from the list).
- Under each name, put 1 if the expense was for that person and leave it empty if not. Put 2 for someone who counts double — a couple sharing one share, for example.
- The Balances tab shows what each person paid, their share and the balance: plus means they get money back, minus means they owe.
What the formulas do
For each expense, a hidden column divides the amount by the number of shares it was for. Each person’s share is the sum, over all rows, of that amount times their 1 (or 2) in the row. What they paid is the sum of the amounts where their name is in “Paid by”. The balance is paid minus share, and all the balances add up to zero.
The formulas are plain SUMIF and SUMPRODUCT, so they work the same in every spreadsheet app. Nothing is linked to anything online, and the file never phones home.
When a spreadsheet stops being enough
A sheet works while one person keeps it. On a trip it gets harder: everyone pays for something, receipts pile up on one phone, and the sheet is always a day behind. It also can’t tell you the fewest transfers to settle up, and it handles one currency at a time.
To turn the balances into the fewest transfers: the bill split calculator
Setting up the sheet yourself, and when to export from an app instead: tracking shared expenses in Excel or Google Sheets
Short answers
Is it really free?
Yes. Download it, change it, share it. No sign-up and no email address.
Does it work in Google Sheets?
Yes. Upload the .xlsx to Google Drive and open it with Google Sheets, or use File → Import in an open sheet. The formulas and the name list in “Paid by” carry over.
How many people and expenses does it hold?
Eight people and 200 expense rows. For more rows, insert them inside the table, not below its last row, so the formulas include them.
Can it handle different currencies?
Not on its own: convert each amount to one currency before you enter it. kisir does this for you — each expense keeps its own currency and the day’s exchange rate.
Rather not keep a spreadsheet?
kisir is the same idea without the upkeep: everyone in the group adds what they paid from their own phone, and the app keeps the balances and the fewest payments up to date. Free, no account, on iPhone and Android.
Get kisir