Check Splitting Calculator to Figure Out What You Owe Seconds

woman paying contactless using credit card in sidewalk cafe

You’ve gone out to dinner with friends and maybe shared a few appetizers. Now it’s time to split the check, but no one wants to do a complicated math equation to figure out how much each person owes. A split check calculator solves your problem! This handy tool will give you the figures you need in seconds so you can get back to your conversation!

Split the Check Using This Simple Widget

To figure out how much each person owes, the calculator widget factors in your desired percentage tip for the check and the number of people who will be paying. To use the widget to split a check amount, complete the following steps:

1. In the first field, enter the dollar amount of the check.
2. Fill in the tip percentage you want to add to your check. Note the default tip is 15%, but you can overwrite this with your desired percentage.
3. Enter the number of people who will split the check. The default number of people is two, but you can overwrite this with the number of people in your group.
4. Decide whether you would like the widget to round up the amount owed by each person to the next whole dollar. This feature is selected automatically. Uncheck the box if you do not wish to round up.
5. Click the “Calculate” button to display the following results:
   • The total tip amount
   • The tip per person
   • The check total, including the tip
   • The amount to be paid per person

To delete the results and start over, click the “Clear all fields” button at the bottom of the widget.

Manual Calculation

If you want to double check our work, you can take a few steps to do the check splitting calculation by hand.

As an example, let’s say your dinner bill is $100, to be split between you and one friend, and you want to add a 15% tip.

1. To calculate the total tip amount to add to the check: Divide the desired tip percentage by 100% and multiply that result by the check amount.
   • 15%/100% = 0.15
   • 0.15 x $100 = $15
2. To calculate the tip per person: Divide the total tip amount by the number of people in the group.
   • $15/2 = $7.50
3. To calculate the check total: Add the total tip amount to the original check amount to get the total amount to be paid.
   • $15 + $100 = $115
4. To calculate the amount to be paid by each person: Divide the check total (including tip) by the number of people in the group.
   • $115/2 = $57.50
5. To round up the amount per person to the next whole dollar:
   • Each person would pay $58, instead of $57.50.
   • The total amount to be paid would be $58 x 2 = $116, instead of $115.
   • The effective tip per person would be: $116 – $100 = $16; $16/2 = $8, instead of $7.50.

When Would a Split Check Calculator Be Needed?

To the surprise of many patrons, many restaurants limit the number of bills they hand out at each table and others won’t allow groups to split up the bill at all. This is normally noted in the fine print at the bottom of your menu. This makes a split check calculator extremely handy!

Thankfully, no matter if everyone is paying in cash or if your friends are paying you back on Cash App or Venmo, you can easily determine what everyone owes in a matter of seconds.

Standard Tipping Practices

Man signing bill

Did you know that under the federal Fair Labor Standards Act, a restaurant only has to pay their servers a minimum wage of $2.13 per hour? While some states require a higher minimum, there are 18 states that pay this miniscule rate.

Why is this wage so incredibly low? Because there is an expectation that all patrons will tip and that this money will compensate for the low base salary. In other words, it is customary to tip when you are provide a service.

How Much to Tip

According to The Emily Post Institute, these are the base tip amounts for different services:

These are the minimum tip rates, but many restaurant and bar workers note that 25% is the new 20%, and 18% is the new minimum. Thus, plan to tip with your meal, and if you had exceptional service, consider tipping a bit more.

Also, take the time to consider your party and your order. For those who are dining with a large group or with small, and less than well-behaved, children, tipping a bit extra may be a good idea. These situations put more stress on your server than a table of four adults. In terms of your order, did you select an item right off the menu or did you ask for the kitchen staff to make lot of changes and substitutions? This is another reason to consider a slightly larger tip.

When to Skip the Tip

If you walk up to the to-go window and take your order to your car, tipping is not necessary. There is also no need to tip if the restaurant adds gratuity to your bill. This is their way of guaranteeing that their staff gets an affordable salary and removes the need for customers to add an extra tip.

Need to Know

Some restaurants pool their tips so that they can divide them equally between the entire staff. If you didn’t have great service, skipping out on the tip is doing a disservice to the other employees who were working hard to give you a good dining experience. In this situation, it is best to leave a small tip and speak with a manager so that they can appropriately address the problem.

Convenient Calculation

In any situation where you need to split a check, our check split calculator widget is convenient and can be accessed from any electronic device. Just enter the required numbers and then get back to the fun of your evening!