Personal Finance · head to head
Splitwise vs Expense Manager
The short version
- Each has a real cost: Splitwise the free tier limits how many expenses can be added in a day and shows adverts; Expense Manager the Internet Archive's capture from 23 January 2022 shows expensemanagerapp.com already redirecting to a Dan.com 'domain name is for sale' listing rather than a product page, confirming the app's original domain has been abandoned and offered for resale.
- They diverge on capability: Splitwise covers Group management, Expense Manager covers Shared expenses.
Where they differ
Only the attributes on which Splitwise and Expense Manager actually diverge.
| Attribute | Splitwise | Expense Manager |
|---|---|---|
| Platforms | Web, IOS, Android | IOS, Android |
Identical on both: starting price (Free), pricing model (freemium), free tier (Yes), user rating (Not yet rated), category (Personal Finance), founded (2011).
What each one covers
Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.
Only in Splitwise
- Group management
- Settlement tracking
- Venmo
- PayPal
- Web support
Only in Expense Manager
- Shared expenses
- Budgeting
- Cloud backup
Both cover
- Bill splitting
- Expense tracking
- IOS support
- Android support
What people use each for
The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.
Splitwise
- Splitting shared household bills between flatmatesnot Expense Manager
- Tracking who owes what on a group tripnot Expense Manager
- Settling up across currencies on the Pro plannot Expense Manager
- Recording IOUs between friends over timenot Expense Manager
Expense Manager
- Budget Managementnot Splitwise
- Expense Trackingnot Splitwise
- Investment Trackingnot Splitwise
Where each one falls short
Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.
Splitwise
- The free tier limits how many expenses can be added in a day and shows adverts
- Transaction import works in the United States only
- Currency conversion, receipt scanning, charts and expense search are all Pro features
- The Pro price is not shown on the product page
Expense Manager
- The Internet Archive's capture from 23 January 2022 shows expensemanagerapp.com already redirecting to a Dan.com 'domain name is for sale' listing rather than a product page, confirming the app's original domain has been abandoned and offered for resale.
Pricing, plan by plan
Splitwise
Free- FreeFree
- Bill splitting
- Group tracking
- Mobile app
- Splitwise Pro$4.99/month
- Receipt scanning
- Advanced analytics
- No ads
Expense Manager
Free- FreeFree
- Expense tracking
- Shared expenses
- Pro$2.99/month
- Budget tracking
- Analytics
- CSV export
Which should you pick?
Choose Splitwise if
- You need group management.
- You want to start without paying.
- You work on Web, IOS, Android.
- You also want settlement tracking.
Choose Expense Manager if
- You need shared expenses.
- You want to start without paying.
- You work on IOS, Android.
- You also want budgeting.
Questions people ask
- Is Splitwise or Expense Manager better?
- Neither clearly leads. Splitwise starts at Free and Expense Manager at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
- Which is cheaper, Splitwise or Expense Manager?
- Splitwise starts at Free and Expense Manager at Free.
- Does Splitwise or Expense Manager run on more platforms?
- Splitwise runs on Web, IOS, Android. Expense Manager runs on IOS, Android.
- Can I use Splitwise for free?
- Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.
- What is Splitwise best used for?
- Splitwise is most often used for splitting shared household bills between flatmates, tracking who owes what on a group trip, settling up across currencies on the pro plan, recording ious between friends over time. Of those, splitting shared household bills between flatmates and tracking who owes what on a group trip are not what Expense Manager is typically brought in for.
- What can Splitwise do that Expense Manager cannot?
- Splitwise covers Group management, Settlement tracking, Venmo, PayPal. Expense Manager covers Shared expenses, Budgeting, Cloud backup. Both handle Bill splitting, Expense tracking, IOS support, Android support.