Work out the tip, add it to the bill, and divide the result between the people at the table — evenly, or by what each person actually ordered. It is arithmetic anyone can do, and nobody wants to do standing up in a restaurant with a card machine waiting.
The shares always add up
Most split calculators divide the total, round the answer, and show it. €100 between three becomes €33.33 each — which is €99.99, a cent short of what the restaurant is owed.
That cent has to come from somewhere, so this says where. One share is €33.34 and the other two are €33.33, and the tool tells you how many people are covering the difference. Every amount on screen is a whole number of cents and they sum to the total exactly.
Underneath, nothing is ever held as a fraction. Money in floating point is how a bill quietly stops balancing: 0.1 plus 0.2 is not 0.3 in any language that follows the standard. Everything here is integer arithmetic on cents.
Rounding, the way people actually tip
Almost nobody hands over €52.03. In Germany and much of Europe the tip is not a percentage at all — you round up to something convenient and say the number out loud as you pay.
- Round the total up — €47.30 becomes €53.00, and the tool tells you that works out at 12.1%. This is the common case, which is why it is one click rather than something to compute backwards.
- Round each share up — everyone at the table pays a whole amount, so nobody is counting out coins. The tip is whatever that adds up to.
- None — the exact percentage, for places where a precise tip on the card is the norm.
When the table did not order the same thing
One person had a starter and three courses, another had a salad, and splitting evenly means the salad is subsidising the steak. Switch to splitting by order, enter what each person’s own items came to, and the tip is shared in proportion to what each of them ran up.
The leftover cents from that proportion are handed to whoever the rounding shortchanged most — the largest-remainder method — so the shares still add up to the tip exactly and nobody is systematically paying an extra cent every time.
What is customary where
Tipping norms vary more than almost any other everyday convention, and the number is genuinely different rather than a matter of generosity.
- United States and Canada — 15% to 20% in a restaurant is the expectation, and service staff are frequently paid on the assumption that it will arrive.
- Germany, Austria and Switzerland — service is included. Rounding up, or roughly 5% to 10%, is normal and generous.
- United Kingdom and Ireland — 10% to 12.5%, and often already added as a service charge, which you should check before adding a second one.
- Japan — tipping is not customary and can be awkward for the person receiving it.
Built for standing up
This is a tool used one-handed, in a noisy room, with a card reader being held out. So the inputs open a numeric keypad rather than the full keyboard, the buttons are large enough to hit without looking, and the answer sits above the settings rather than below them, where it would be pushed off a phone screen.
The currency setting changes how amounts are formatted and nothing else. No exchange rate is applied anywhere — this tool does no conversion, and one that quietly invented a rate would be worse than useless.
FAQ
How much should I tip?
It depends entirely on where you are. 15–20% is expected in the United States; in Germany and Switzerland, rounding up or about 5–10% is normal because service is included; in Japan, tipping is not customary at all. Check whether a service charge has already been added before adding anything on top.
How do I split a bill that does not divide evenly?
Someone has to pay the extra cent. This tool assigns it rather than hiding it: the shares it shows add up to the total exactly, and it says how many people are paying the higher amount. That is the difference between a split that balances and one that leaves the table a cent short.
Should I tip on the pre-tax or post-tax total?
On the pre-tax amount, strictly speaking, and on the post-tax total in practice for most people — the difference is small and the convention is loose. Enter whichever figure you intend to tip on; the tool does the arithmetic either way.
Can I split a bill where everyone ordered something different?
Yes — switch to splitting by order and enter each person’s own subtotal. The tip is divided in proportion to what each person ordered, which is the fair reading of "we each pay for what we had".
Does this convert between currencies?
No. The currency setting only changes formatting — the symbol and where the decimal separator goes. Applying an exchange rate would mean fetching one, which would mean sending your bill somewhere, and a stale rate quietly applied is worse than no rate at all.