SplitJapan
Never end a Japan trip with
“wait… who owes who how much?”
Free · no signup · no app. One person tracks, everyone opens a link.
Each person picks their home currency — everyone sees
their own share in their own money.
How it works
- One of you pays the table. Japanese restaurants often won't split bills — so don't fight it. One person covers it.
- Log it in 15 seconds. Amount in yen, who paid, who shares. Rates lock at entry, so nobody argues about conversion later.
- Everyone opens one link. No accounts, no installs. Each person sees their balance in their own currency.
- Settle once, at the end. "Emma pays Ben ¥9,230" — the minimum number of transfers, not forty IOUs.
Your data lives in this browser and in the link itself — there are no SplitJapan servers to crash or lose it.
New to Japan-trip money? Read Money in Japan: The Complete Guide — cash, cards, Suica, tax-free, tipping, all in one page.
Questions people ask before starting
Is SplitJapan free, and is there a catch?
Free, with no account, no install, no trial and no paid tier. There is nothing to upgrade to. The site carries no display ads; it exists because the same person writes the Japan money guides here, and some of those link to things worth booking.
Do my friends need to sign up or install anything?
No. One person starts the trip and shares a link; everyone else opens it in a browser and picks which traveller they are. There is no account to create, so there is nobody to chase for a password on the last night of the trip.
Where is my trip data stored?
In your own browser, and inside the share link itself. Nothing is uploaded — there are no SplitJapan servers holding your trip, which also means nobody can reset it for you if you clear your browser data and lose the link. Keep the link.
Does it work offline, underground on the subway?
Yes. Logging expenses works with no signal, because the maths happens in your browser. The only thing that needs data is fetching a fresh exchange rate — and rates are locked at the moment you enter an expense, so an offline entry simply uses the last rate it had.
What exchange rate does it use when we settle up?
The rate at the moment each expense was entered, locked to that expense. This is the part that causes arguments in other tools: if you convert everything at the rate on the last day, whoever paid early is quietly subsidising everyone. Locking per expense means the yen amount and each person's home-currency share both stay true.
How does it decide who pays whom?
It calculates the minimum number of transfers that clears every balance — one line like “Emma pays Ben ¥9,230” instead of forty small IOUs between six people. You settle once, at the end, in each person's own currency.
Does it handle Japanese tax-free purchases?
Yes, as a tracker: mark a purchase as tax-free and it keeps a running total per person, which matters because Japan's ¥5,000 minimum is per store, per day, pre-tax — and from 1 November 2026 the refund is claimed when you leave the country rather than discounted in store. The arithmetic behind the refund is in the refund guide.
More money questions, answered: the answers index · the numbers, with sources