# How to split rent based on income, with the math

Canonical URL: https://www.evenoutapp.com/guides/how-to-split-rent-based-on-income
Updated: 2026-10-06

Multiply the total rent by your income, then divide by everyone's income added together. On $2,700 of rent with incomes of $6,000, $4,000 and $2,000, the three pay $1,350, $900 and $450, which is 22.5% of each person's income. Use the same kind of income for everyone, and redo the sum whenever pay changes.

Key points:
- Your rent is the total rent times your income, divided by everyone's income. Everyone then pays the same percentage of their own income.
- On $2,700 with incomes of $6,000, $4,000 and $2,000, the shares are $1,350, $900 and $450, which is 22.5% of each income.
- Use one basis for every income: all before deductions or all after, and all monthly or all yearly.
- A half equal, half by income blend gives $1,125, $900 and $675 on the same rent, with smaller dollar gaps.
- Redo the sum when anyone's pay changes for good, when the rent changes and when someone moves in or out.

## How do you split rent based on income?

Give each person a share of the rent that matches their share of the household's income. The formula is short: your rent is the total rent times your income, divided by everyone's income added together.

Say the rent is $2,700 and three roommates earn $6,000, $4,000 and $2,000 a month.

1. **Add the incomes.** $6,000 + $4,000 + $2,000 = $12,000.
2. **Work out each person's share.** $6,000 ÷ $12,000 is one half, $4,000 ÷ $12,000 is one third, and $2,000 ÷ $12,000 is one sixth.
3. **Multiply the rent by each share.** $2,700 ÷ 2 = $1,350. $2,700 ÷ 3 = $900. $2,700 ÷ 6 = $450.

You can test the result. Divide each payment by that person's income: $1,350 ÷ $6,000, $900 ÷ $4,000 and $450 ÷ $2,000 are all 22.5%. Everyone pays the same percentage of their income, which is the whole point of the method. An equal split of $900 each would take 15% of the first person's income and 45% of the third's.

## Which income should you use?

Use the same kind of number for every person. Pay before deductions and pay after deductions both work, as long as nobody mixes them, and all figures should cover the same period, all monthly or all yearly.

The mix is where the sum goes wrong. Say two roommates split $2,000. One enters $6,000 before deductions and the other enters $2,400, the amount they take home after deductions. The first pays $2,000 × 6,000 ÷ 8,400 = $1,428.57. If both had entered pay before deductions ($6,000 and $3,000), the first would pay $1,333.33. The mismatch cost the first person an extra $95.24 a month.

If someone's pay varies, use an average over a period you agree on. Six months of pay of $3,800, $4,400, $4,100, $4,600, $3,900 and $3,800 adds up to $24,600, so the monthly figure is $24,600 ÷ 6 = $4,100.

## How can you do it without anyone showing a pay slip?

Let one person do the sum. Each roommate sends their monthly figure privately to that person, or to a friend outside the household, who works out the shares and posts only the rent amounts. Nobody has to hand over a pay slip or say what they earn out loud.

The amounts still show how the incomes compare. In the example, $1,350 is half the rent, so that person earns as much as the other two together. Talk about that before you start, and agree that the figures are taken on trust. If the group is not comfortable with it, [splitting rent by room size](https://www.evenoutapp.com/guides/how-to-split-rent-by-room-size) needs no income at all.

## What is the half equal, half by income option?

Some households split part of the rent equally and only the rest by income. The dollar gaps stay smaller, and the lower earner still gets some relief.

On $2,700, half is $1,350, which is $450 each when split equally. The other $1,350 goes by income: $675, $450 and $225. Together that is $1,125, $900 and $675.

The more of the rent that goes by income, the closer the percentages of income and the wider the dollar gaps. The table shows each payment and, in brackets, the share of that person's income.

| Method | $6,000 earner | $4,000 earner | $2,000 earner |
|---|---|---|---|
| Equal | $900 (15%) | $900 (22.5%) | $900 (45%) |
| Half equal, half by income | $1,125 (18.8%) | $900 (22.5%) | $675 (33.8%) |
| All by income | $1,350 (22.5%) | $900 (22.5%) | $450 (22.5%) |

## When should you redo the sum?

Redo it whenever an input changes.

- **Someone's pay changes for good.** Agree in advance how long a change has to last before it counts, such as two months.
- **The rent changes.** The shares stay the same. If the rent rises to $2,880, the three pay $1,440, $960 and $480.
- **A roommate joins or leaves.** The total income changes, so every share changes.

A fixed review date, such as the lease renewal, saves arguing about it at other times.

## What about rooms and couples?

Income says what each person can carry. It says nothing about the room. If one bedroom is far bigger than the others, read [how much more the master bedroom should pay](https://www.evenoutapp.com/guides/how-much-more-should-the-master-bedroom-pay) and add that premium before or after the income sum, as long as the group agrees which. A couple sharing a bedroom is another case: their incomes go in together as one entry, and [how to split rent with a couple](https://www.evenoutapp.com/guides/how-to-split-rent-with-a-couple) shows the other ways to count them.

## How do you set it up in EvenOut?

Add the rent as one expense in a Household group. Type the amount, set "Paid by" to whoever pays the landlord, then open the split chip and choose "Percent". Type each person's percent and EvenOut shows each person's dollar share under their name. A pill reads "N% left to assign" until the total shows "Adds up to 100%".

One half, one third and one sixth are not round percents, so for this rent use "Exact amounts" and type $1,350, $900 and $450. The pill reads "All assigned" when they match the total. "Shares" also works: type 3, 2 and 1, and the split comes to 6 shares at $450 a share. Percent is easiest when your numbers are round, such as 50, 30 and 20.

Under "Photo, repeat, pending or note", choose Repeat, then Monthly. EvenOut adds each later month as a normal expense with the same payer and split. Setting up a repeat needs a connection, and it has no end date, so it runs until you stop it. When incomes change, open "Repeating expenses" from the group menu, choose "Stop repeating" (expenses already added stay), and add the rent again with the new split.

## What should you do next?

Agree the income basis, pick one person to do the sum, and write the amounts and a review date where everyone can see them. The [rent split calculator by income](https://www.evenoutapp.com/tools/rent-split-calculator-by-income) does the arithmetic and can include an equal part. [How to split rent fairly](https://www.evenoutapp.com/guides/how-to-split-rent-fairly) compares this method with the others on one apartment.

## Frequently asked questions

### What if a roommate has no income, such as a student?

Agree a flat amount they can pay, take it off the rent, and split the rest by income. On $2,700, a student paying $500 leaves $2,200. Two earners on $6,000 and $4,000 then pay 60% and 40% of that: $1,320 and $880. The three amounts add up to $2,700.

### Should utilities follow the same income split?

That is a choice, and either way works once it is written down. On $180 of bills, an equal split is $60 each. Using the income shares from the example gives $90, $60 and $30. Some households keep bills equal, since electricity use does not depend on pay, and use income only for rent.

### When is splitting by income not worth the trouble?

When incomes are close. On $2,700 with incomes of $4,100, $4,000 and $3,900, the income shares are $922.50, $900 and $877.50, never more than $22.50 from an equal $900. An equal split is simpler to explain and almost the same.