Shared Expenses Spreadsheet: an Excel and Google Sheets Template

A spreadsheet is the honest first tool for shared expenses. It's free, it's transparent, and everyone understands it. Below is a template you can rebuild in Excel or Google Sheets in a couple of minutes, plus the exact formulas — and an honest note about where the approach starts to hurt.

The template structure

Create a sheet with four columns:

The formulas that do the work

Say there are three people. Add a small summary block:

• Total = SUM(Amount column) — here 6000.
• Share per person = Total / 3 = 2000.
• Anna paid = SUMIF(WhoPaid, "Anna", Amount) = 4800.
• Anna's balance = paid − share = 4800 − 2000 = +2800 (she is owed).

Repeat SUMIF for each person. Positive balance means the group owes them; negative means they owe the group. The balances always sum to zero — a handy sanity check.

Where the spreadsheet starts to hurt

• Unequal splits. The moment one expense is shared by only two of five people, a single SUMIF stops working and you need helper columns per person.
• Simplifying transfers. Balances tell you who's up and who's down, but not the minimal set of payments. Turning "+2800, −1200, −1600" into concrete transfers is manual — here's the algorithm.
• Multiple editors. Everyone adding rows from their phones is how formulas get overwritten and totals silently break.

When to switch to an app

The rule of thumb: a spreadsheet is great for 2–3 people and a single trip. Beyond that, a tool that does the SUMIF and the debt-simplification for you saves the arguments. DeliBabki is essentially this spreadsheet with the formulas built in — you add expenses, it shows balances and the minimal transfers, and everyone edits the same group from their phone without breaking anything.

Frequently asked questions

How do I calculate who owes whom in Excel?

Paid minus fair share per person; positive is owed, negative owes. Balances sum to zero.

Spreadsheet or app?

Spreadsheet for small one-offs; app once splits get unequal or many people edit.