6 Great Apps for Painlessly Splitting Rent and Other Expenses

This article originally appeared on the Springs "You're Home Blog."

When you're splitting expenses with your roommates, does it seem as though someone always gets shortchanged? Now you can ditch the guesswork and divvy up rent and other expenses, like utilities, fair and square – no matter how good (or bad) your math skills are! Here’s a list of some the best expense-sharing apps on the market. Combine one with a bill-paying app, and cash never even has to pass through your hands.

Apps don't come much simpler than Splitwise. Input expenses and bills with one click and Splitwise divides them based on whatever percentage you choose. Add your roommates by phone number or email and the app keeps a running total, sending notifications and reminders as needed. Can't agree on the splits? Use the app’s Fairness Calculators for an objective solution.

HomeSlice takes the classic whiteboard format and creates a virtual version. In addition to splitting general expenses, HomeSlice allows you to track supplies so one of you can pick them up as needed and add them to the shared totals. The app even maintains a schedule for general chores like cleaning the bathroom and taking out the garbage.

RentShare lets you set the amount each roommate owes for rent, then each person pays his or her share of the rent to the landlord electronically using a credit or debit card or checking account deduction. You can also set up autopay and get notifications when rent is due or when one of your roommates hasn't paid. Add other common expenses such as cable or electric and RentShare will send invoices to the others.

Are you trying to come up with a fair way to divide the rent? Spliddit, which actually began as an academic project, takes your input and applies an algorithm to come up with an equitable split. You can also use Spliddit to portion household chores into equal workloads.

Co-founder Nick Katz was inspired to create Splittable by his own frustration over financial squabbles with roommates. Instead of micromanaging each expense, Splittable keeps a running total of who paid what and figures out who should pay the next one. The All Squared Meter shows you everyone's current standing at a glance.

The list wouldn't be complete without current favorite Venmo. This app takes expense sharing to the next level by allowing you and your roommates to send and receive payments among yourselves. You can keep money in your Venmo account or link a credit card, debit card or checking account.

For maximum efficiency, pair one of these expense-sharing apps with bill-paying apps PayPal, Square Cash or Google Wallet.

Have you discovered another app for tracking and sharing expenses? Let us know in the comments!