Recipe
Track a loan between friends — without the awkward chase
Lent $200 to a friend? Set the installment plan once, mark each payment as it lands, see exactly what's left. Both sides can update the record — no "did I pay you back yet?" texts.
Last reviewed: January 2026
Lending money to a friend is a social tax: half the time you forget to write it down, half the time you remember but don't want to be the person who keeps a spreadsheet. The result is the awkward "hey, did I ever pay you back the $200?" text three months later. Split The Bill's loan tracker exists because nobody wants to be that person. Set the installment plan once, both sides can mark payments, the running balance is always visible. This guide covers setup, recording payments, and the polite ways to nudge.
Step-by-step
- 1
Open Loans and create the loan
On `/loans`, click New loan. Pick the friend from your group peers (or enter a name + email if they're new). Fill in the amount, currency, optional date, and an optional reason ("Concert ticket May 10"). You decide whether YOU lent THEM or they lent YOU — the direction flips the balance.
The loan record is private by default — only the two of you see it. If you want a shared audit trail, attach it to an existing group later.
- 2
Set the installment plan
Lent $200, paying $50/month over 4 months? Click Set installments → choose the count and due-date cadence. The app generates the rows automatically.
No installments? Skip this step — the loan is treated as one lump sum, pay-when-you-can. Either side can mark it paid in full later.
- 3
Mark each payment as it lands
When your friend Venmos you $50, open the loan, tap the next installment, hit Mark paid. The balance updates instantly.
Important: both sides can mark installments paid. The debtor can flip the row to "Paid" when they send the money; the lender can flip it back if it didn't arrive (rare but possible). This is by design — friends trust each other; the app is a record, not a court.
- 4
Watch the running balance
The loan detail page shows the principal, what's been paid, and what's left in real time. Bookmark `/loans/<id>` if you want a single URL to glance at.
The loan also appears on your dashboard until the balance hits zero — no need to remember it exists.
- 5
Settle the last payment and close
When the final installment is marked paid, the loan auto-marks Settled and stops showing on the dashboard. The record stays in `/loans` as an archive (filterable by Settled/Active).
If you forgive part of the loan — say, your friend paid back $150 of $200 and you're calling it square — open the loan, Forgive remaining, write a one-line reason. The record stays honest; the balance reflects the forgiveness.
When to use a loan vs. a manual debt
Loans are for tracked, multi-payment debt — installments, defined cadence, mutual update. Manual debts (added inside a group) are for one-off "I covered your share of the bill, you owe me $42" entries that get settled in a single payment.
Rule of thumb: if it'll be paid back in one transaction, use a manual debt. If it'll be 2+ payments over weeks or months, use a loan.
The "polite nudge" question
Apps that bug your friend every Sunday with "you owe me $50" emails will get uninstalled. Split The Bill doesn't auto-pester. Reminder emails are opt-in — the lender can manually trigger a "hey, friendly reminder" from the loan page, and only when the installment is overdue.
The tone of the reminder is also yours — there's no template that says "You are LATE." The button just sends the loan link.
What if my friend doesn't want to install the app?
They don't have to. Create the loan with their name + email; they get a one-time link to view their side of the loan without an account. They can mark payments from the link too. The record stays in your account; they just see the read+update surface.
This is the same flow used by the group-share feature — described in detail in `/use-cases/split-with-someone-not-on-the-app`.
Frequently asked questions
Is loan tracking free?▾
Yes — loans are on the free tier with no installment-count limit. The free tier's only meaningful cap is on receipt-photo OCR (10 per 30 days), which loans don't use.
Can the borrower see the loan?▾
If they have an account, yes — the loan shows in their `/loans` too, with the direction flipped. If they don't have an account, they see it via the one-time link the lender shared.
What if we agreed on a different amount than what's in the app?▾
Either side can edit the loan principal or any installment. The change goes into an audit trail — both sides see "Amount changed from $200 to $180 by Alice on May 10" — so disputes are visible, not hidden.
Does the app send automatic reminders?▾
No, only manual ones the lender triggers. We avoid auto-pestering — apps that nag friends are the apps friends uninstall.
Can I split a loan three ways?▾
A loan is two-party by design (lender + borrower). To split a single payment between three friends, use a group expense instead — `/use-cases/split-a-restaurant-bill` walks through the pattern.
What if the loan is in a different currency than my account?▾
Loans carry their own currency — you can have a USD loan, an EUR loan, and an RSD loan all separately on `/loans`. The dashboard converts each to your display currency if you've set one.
How is this different from Venmo's "request money"?▾
Venmo is one-shot — request, paid, done. A loan is a persistent record with installments, partial-payment tracking, and a mutual audit trail. Use Venmo to MOVE the money; use this to TRACK it.
Free tier covers most recipes. Pro is 100 receipts every 30 days + private invite links.
