Always a problem: splitting up expenses into groups. Whether it is a flat-sharing community, travelling with friends or simply the go out with friends where everyone pays for each time. WeeShare's accounting system has been developed to meet all these needs. Accounting and cost sharing can quickly become complicated, which is why in this article we want to discuss how our expense splitter simplifies complicated processes.
In our first version in 2012, sharing costs was already a central function in WeeShare. In our case, a car we shared with each other, we always had costs that we didn't want to share with every invoice and complicated back and forth transactions, but an accounting that records all the costs and if necessary, settle them with a single settlement. We tested different approaches, optimized the process and finally published an expense splitter system that includes all possibilities of group expenses and is as easy to use as possible. We have briefly summarized the most important features.
Balance
The most important aspect of an accounting, the balance sheet, is always kept in the foreground at WeeShare. It shows how much money the user owes to others. It is irrelevant to whom it is owed, as this is automatically passed on at the end to those who have a positive balance sheet.
Adding expenses
It's very simple. Everyone who has made an expense for the group will enter the full amount. If the currency differs from the Group currency, you can click on the currency icon (green) and select one of the daily updated foreign currencies or enter an exchange rate manually. The amount is converted when saved and saved in the group currency. With «Involves» you can select who is affected by this expense (including you). Optionally you can add some info and photos to this expense so the others know what this expediture was for. Click on «Create» to save the expense.
Expense options
Different options are available for each expense. If it is a future expense, you can adjust the date accordingly. The expenditure is then automatically added at the selected time. Further you can repeat this expenditure in the future and WeeShare will add it periodically and automatically. With «Saved» you can mark this expenditure, if this has given you an advantage by sharing. The total of all marked expenses will then be displayed in your profile under «My Performance». So you can see how much you have already saved by sharing costs.
Dynamic user groups
Another important feature is the ability to add and remove users without causing accounting problems, as well as allocating costs to individuals in a group. WeeShare lets you easily determine who is involved in an expediture and leaves other users untouched.
Offline expenditure
Although overpriced roaming has already been regulated in many countries, it is still a major problem, especially when you are travelling abroad. WeeShare works optimally without the Internet, you can capture costs and with the next WiFi spot, the expenses are automatically distributed to the others in the group.
Overview
If you are traveling, many expenses are incurred quickly and you lose the overview. For this purpose, each expense is anchored in the chat so that a clear chronological view of all expenses and their effects is available. In this way, you always keep track of changes in your balance sheet.
Linking expenses
Since WeeShare is not only designed to share costs, but mainly to share things, WeeShare can automatically include costs of bookings and routes in the balance sheet. In addition, expenses can be linked according to routes and or booking times, so that the people who use the item most intensively also contribute most to the costs.
Balance sheet adjustment
Last but not least, who now owes whom? For this purpose, you can always have our suggestion for balancing your balance sheet displayed at any time. When expenses are shared, you basically have a pot. Some have paid more, some have paid less. Your record at the end also looks promising.
As I said, this is just a suggestion! You can also equalize by transferring your minus balance to any user with a plus balance.
Share expenses and costs with WeeShare
The use of our cost divider is versatile, easy to use and yet accurate and detailed. The application possibilities are unlimited. If you want to reset the costs if necessary, you can do this in the settings with one click. The expediture is reset and archived so that it is still available. In the full version of WeeShare you will also find graphical statistics about the development of your accounting. In spite of this diversity, we are planning further functions for our accounting system. We will provide you with further balance sheets overviews of all your items, will build in a currency converter, the possibility to manually distribute group expenses and much more. Whether you share a car, boat, plane, apartment, shared accommodation, shared expenses, holiday expenses, society expenses or other costs - WeeShare organizes your accounting.
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Hi, I am setting up Weeshare for my car sharing group. There is a thing regarding Expenses that I find very counterintuitive: Imagine a participant, John, makes costs, e.g. he tanks fuel. Because I, the owner, am charging all costs including fuel in the price per kilometre, the participant should receive the full amount of this spenditure. So he books the expense, and at Involves he only selects me, Arthur, the owner of the car. I now correctly appear in the screen, with the right amount, and a red triangle down, meaning: I will have to pay this amount. All is fine. But when I go back to the screen for this expense, it says "Payment To" Arthur. That would suggest Arthur would RECEIVE the money. It is not booked that way, it's just the text Payment To that is very confusing, or simply wrong.
Thanks for pointing this out. Most important that everything is calculated as expected. Regarding the confusing text, we will look into the topic on the next release.