Moving In Together: How to Split Bills Fairly (UK)

When you move in together, splitting the bills is one of the first money conversations you have, and one of the easiest to get wrong. There are two common ways to split: 50/50, or in proportion to what each of you earns. Neither is automatically right. The best split is the one that leaves you both with a fair amount left over each month.

This guide shows both methods with a worked example, and covers the UK rules that change when you start sharing a home.

Step 1: List the shared bills

Start with every bill you will share. For most UK couples that means:

• rent or mortgage
• council tax
• gas and electricity
• water
• broadband
• TV licence
• contents insurance
• shared subscriptions

Personal bills, like your own phone contract or gym, usually stay personal. Agree which is which before you split anything.

Citizens Advice suggests gathering bank statements, payslips, and card statements or bills before working out a budget. Doing it together means you both see the full picture.

Step 2: Choose how to split

Option 1: 50/50

Each of you pays half of every shared bill. It is simple and feels fair when you earn similar amounts.

Option 2: In proportion to income

Each of you pays the same percentage of your pay towards shared bills. The higher earner pays more in pounds, but you both give up the same share of your income.

To work it out:

1. Add your two take-home pays together.
2. Divide each person’s pay by the total. That is their share.
3. Each person pays their share of every shared bill.

A worked example

Say one partner takes home £2,400 a month and the other £1,600, and shared bills come to £1,500.

	Partner A	Partner B
Take-home pay	£2,400	£1,600
Share of household income	60%	40%
50/50 split	£750	£750
Left after bills (50/50)	£1,650	£850
Split by income	£900	£600
Left after bills (by income)	£1,500	£1,000

With a 50/50 split, Partner B has £850 left and Partner A has nearly twice that. Splitting by income still leaves Partner A with more, but the gap is smaller, and both pay the same 37.5% of their pay towards bills.

There is no rule that says which you must use. Talk it through, pick one, and agree to look again if either of your incomes changes.

Step 3: Decide how the money moves

Three common set-ups:

1. A joint bills account. You each pay your share into it on payday, and every shared bill comes out of it. It is the easiest to keep track of. Our guide to a separate bills account shows how to work out the monthly amount.
2. One person pays, the other transfers. The bills come out of one account and the other person sends their share by standing order.
3. Split the bills between you. One pays rent, the other pays everything else, roughly matching your shares. Simple, but it drifts out of balance when prices change.

UK rules that change when you move in

Council tax

GOV.UK says “spouses and partners who live together are jointly responsible for paying the bill.” That means either of you can be asked to pay the whole amount, whatever you agree between you.

If one of you was living alone before, you may have been getting the 25% single person discount. GOV.UK says you get 25% off if you live on your own or everyone else in your home is disregarded. Once your partner moves in, that usually no longer applies, so tell your council. Our council tax guide explains who counts.

Energy and other bills in one name

Energy, broadband and water accounts are often in one person’s name. Ofgem notes that if you rent, your rental agreement or landlord can tell you who supplies the energy and who pays. Whoever is named on an account is the person the company deals with, so agree how the other person pays their share.

Step 4: Keep it visible

The split only feels fair if you can both see it. Keep one shared list of bills with the amount, the due date and who pays. Review it when a bill changes, when council tax changes in April, and whenever one of your incomes changes.

A bill tracker like Billo keeps every bill and due date in one list and reminds you 3 days before each bill and on the day, so neither of you has to be the one who remembers.

Summary

• 50/50 is simple; splitting by income is fairer when pay differs a lot.
• Work out each share from your two take-home pays.
• A joint bills account keeps everything in one place.
• Partners are jointly responsible for council tax, and the single person discount ends when you move in together.

Want the numbers for your own household? Try our free split bills by income calculator. It runs in your browser and nothing you type is saved or sent.