# Split bill with discount calculator

Canonical URL: https://www.evenoutapp.com/tools/split-bill-with-discount-calculator
Updated: 2026-10-06

Enter each person's own items, the discount, the tax rate and the tip. The discount is shared out by each person's own items, tax is charged on the discounted amount, and a switch sets whether the tip is figured before or after the discount. In the example, $20 off a $120 check gives $52.80, $39.60, $26.40 and $13.20.

Key points:
- A flat discount follows what each person ordered: $20 off a $120 check takes $8 off a $48 order and $2 off a $12 order, not $5 off each.
- Tax is charged on the discounted amount. 8% of $100 is $8.00, while 8% of the full $120 would be $9.60.
- A 20% tip on the price before the discount is $24.00, and on the price after it is $20.00. The tip base switch applies one rule to everyone.
- Leftover cents are handed out one at a time, so the totals add up to the check exactly.

## When to use this calculator

Use it when the check has a coupon, a happy hour deal or a percent off the whole bill, and people ordered different amounts. When everyone ordered about the same, the [split bill calculator with tax, tip and discount](https://www.evenoutapp.com/tools/split-bill-with-tax-and-tip-calculator) divides the total equally and is faster. This one has no box for shared dishes, so add each person's share of them to their own items first, or use the [split bill by item calculator](https://www.evenoutapp.com/tools/split-bill-by-item-calculator), which has one.

## How the discount is shared

Each person's discount is the same fraction of the discount as their items are of the food.

1. **Add up the items.** Each person types what they ordered at full price. The sum is the check before any discount.
2. **Take off the discount.** A percent discount is that percent of the sum. A fixed discount is the dollar amount, never more than the sum.
3. **Share it by items.** A person's discount is the discount times their items divided by the sum. Someone who ordered a quarter of the food gets a quarter of the discount.
4. **Charge tax on what is left.** Tax is the rate times the amount after the discount, shared by each person's after discount amount.
5. **Add the tip.** The tip base switch sets whether the tip percent is figured on the price before the discount or after it, and the tip is shared by that same base.
6. **Round to the cent.** Leftover cents go out one at a time, so the totals add up to the check.

## Worked example: $20 off a $120 check

Say four people ordered $48, $36, $24 and $12 at full price, and a coupon takes $20 off the whole check. Tax is 8% and the tip is 20% on the price before the discount. These are the numbers the calculator opens with.

Each discount follows the items: $20 × $48 ÷ $120 = $8, and the others get $6, $4 and $2. That leaves $100 to tax. Tax at 8% is $8.00, and a 20% tip on the full $120 is $24.00, so the check is $100 + $8 + $24 = $132.00.

| Person | Own items | Discount | Pays |
|---|---|---|---|
| Person 1 | $48.00 | $8.00 | $52.80 |
| Person 2 | $36.00 | $6.00 | $39.60 |
| Person 3 | $24.00 | $4.00 | $26.40 |
| Person 4 | $12.00 | $2.00 | $13.20 |

Each total is the items, minus the discount, plus a share of the tax and tip. Person 1's $52.80 is $48.00 minus $8.00, plus $3.20 of tax and $9.60 of tip. The four totals add up to $132.00.

## Three mistakes and what each costs

- **Dividing a fixed discount by headcount.** $20 ÷ 4 is $5 off each person, which is 42% off the $12 order and about 10% off the $48 order. Person 1 would pay $56.04 and Person 4 $9.96, which is $3.24 more and $3.24 less than the $52.80 and $13.20 above.
- **Taxing the wrong amount.** This calculator charges tax on the discounted amount, so 8% of $100 is $8.00. Tax on the full $120 is $9.60, which is $1.60 more for the table. To see which amount your receipt used, divide the printed tax by the rate: $8.00 ÷ 0.08 is $100, the discounted amount.
- **Mixing tip bases.** Say one person figures a 20% tip on the $120 menu price and another figures it on the $100 on the check. That is $24.00 against $20.00 for the same table, and the $4.00 gap is the tip rate times the discount. Set the base once, 0 for the price before the discount or 1 for the price after, so the whole table uses one rule. With the base at 1, the example check is $128.00.

## Percent off versus a fixed amount

A percent discount takes the same percent off everyone's items, so it lands on each person in proportion to their items without any extra rule. With 15% off the example, the discount is $18.00 and the totals become $53.66, $40.25, $26.83 and $13.42, which add up to $134.16. A fixed amount is where the sharing method matters, because a flat dollar figure has to be divided by something, and here it is divided by items. For more on splitting by what people ordered, see [how to split a bill unevenly](https://www.evenoutapp.com/guides/split-bill-unevenly).

## Recording the totals

Once the table agrees, EvenOut can hold the numbers. Add the check as one expense, choose "Exact amounts" and type each person's total. The status pill reads "All assigned" when the amounts add up to the expense total. Whether to tip before or after tax is covered in [the tip on pre-tax or post-tax guide](https://www.evenoutapp.com/guides/tip-on-pre-tax-or-post-tax), and sharing by size of order has a name, the [proportional split](https://www.evenoutapp.com/glossary/proportional-split).

## Frequently asked questions

### How do I enter a coupon that is a percent with a cap, like 20% off up to $15?

Work out the percent first. 20% of a $120 check is $24, which is over the cap, so the coupon is worth $15: enter 1 as the discount type and 15 as the value. On a $60 check, 20% is $12, under the cap, so you could enter 0 as the type and 20 as the value.

### What if the receipt taxes the full price, not the discounted amount?

Divide the printed tax by the discounted subtotal and type that as the tax rate. If the receipt shows $9.60 of tax and the discounted subtotal is $100, type 9.6. The totals then match the receipt.

### What if one dish was comped for a single person?

Take it off that person's items before typing them in. A free $9 dessert on Person 2's plate means entering $27 instead of $36. Use the discount boxes only for a discount that applies to the whole check.

### How do I enter an automatic service charge?

Type the charge as the tip percent and set the tip base to the price the restaurant used. A flat charge of $18 on a $120 check is 18 ÷ 120 = 15%, so type 15. If you also leave a tip on top, add the two dollar amounts and divide by the same base.