Group travel budget calculator
Budget first, track second. Enter your estimated costs to get a per-person figure the group can agree on before anyone books.
Short answer
Set a per-head budget for each category (accommodation, food, transport, activities), multiply by the group size to get a target total, then track actual spend against it as the trip happens — the same ledger settles who owes who at the end.
People
Expenses
Balances
- Alex$375.00
- Sarah$15.00
- Mike$165.00
- Emma$195.00
+ gets money back · − owes money
💸 Settle up
Only 3 payments needed.
- EmmaAlex$195.00
- MikeAlex$165.00
- SarahAlex$15.00
Who paid what
- Alex$600.00
- Sarah$180.00
- Mike$60.00
Saved on this device. No account needed.
How it works
- 1Add the travellers.
- 2Enter estimated costs as expenses — accommodation, flights, food per day, activities.
- 3Read the total and each person's share.
- 4Replace estimates with real amounts once the trip starts.
Before a group trip, it helps to agree a rough per-person budget by category so nobody's surprised by the final bill. This isn't the same as splitting costs afterwards — it's setting expectations upfront.
Once the trip is underway, actual spending rarely matches the budget exactly, and that's fine: the budget is a planning tool, while the expense ledger (who paid what) is what actually gets settled.
Comparing planned vs actual by category also flags early if one area — usually food or activities — is running over, so the group can adjust before it becomes a bigger gap.
Worked examples with real numbers
Planning a 5-day trip for six people
Six friends agree a per-head budget before booking anything, then compare it to what they actually spent by the end of the trip.
| Budget vs actual (per head) | Amount |
|---|---|
| Accommodation (budgeted) | 150.00 |
| Accommodation (actual) | 140.00 |
| Food (budgeted) | 120.00 |
| Food (actual) | 145.00 |
| Activities (budgeted) | 80.00 |
| Activities (actual) | 65.00 |
| Total | 700.00 |
Total budgeted per head was 350, actual came to 350 as well — food ran 25 over but activities came in 15 under and accommodation 10 under, roughly cancelling out. Tracking by category caught the food overspend early rather than as a surprise at the end.
Turning the group budget into individual settlement
The same six-person trip: total actual spend across the group was 2100 (350×6), but three people fronted the big bookings.
| What was actually paid | Amount |
|---|---|
| Accommodation (6 people)Fen paid | 840.00 |
| Transport (6 people)Gia paid | 480.00 |
| Food and activities (6 people)Hal paid | 780.00 |
| Total | 2,100.00 |
| Person | Paid | Fair share | Balance |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fen | 840.00 | 350.00 | +490.00 |
| Gia | 480.00 | 350.00 | +130.00 |
| Hal | 780.00 | 350.00 | +430.00 |
| Ida | 0.00 | 350.00 | −350.00 |
| Jai | 0.00 | 350.00 | −350.00 |
| Kim | 0.00 | 350.00 | −350.00 |
- IdaFen350.00
- JaiFen140.00
- JaiHal210.00
- KimHal220.00
- KimGia130.00
Total spend 2100 split six ways is 350 each — matching the per-head budget exactly. Fen is owed 490, Hal 430 and Gia 130, so five transfers from the three who paid nothing upfront clear every balance.
From per-head budget to a group total
1. Category budget per head
agree a figure per category, e.g. food = 120
2. Group target for that category
per-head budget × group size
3. Total trip budget
sum of all category targets
4. Actual vs budget
actual spend per category − budgeted amount
5. Final settlement
same as any group expense: paid − fair share, netted to minimum transfers
Sample per-head budget by category (6-person, 5-day trip)
| Category | Budget per head | Actual per head | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Accommodation | 150 | 140 | -10 |
| Food | 120 | 145 | +25 |
| Activities | 80 | 65 | -15 |
| Total | 350 | 350 | 0 |
Illustrative figures for a 5-day group trip — set your own category budgets before booking.
Mistakes that cause arguments
Confusing the budget with the settlement
A budget is a target set in advance; the settlement is based on what was actually paid and by whom — don't split the budgeted figure instead of real spend.
Setting one lump budget instead of per category
A single trip-wide number hides which category is actually driving overspend.
Not revisiting the budget mid-trip
If food is already 20% over by day two, flag it early rather than discovering it in a final reconciliation.
Practical tips
- Agree category budgets per head before anyone books anything, so expectations are set early.
- Track actual spend against budget by category, not just as one running total.
- Use the budget for planning and the expense ledger for the real settlement — they answer different questions.
- Revisit the budget partway through a longer trip if one category is drifting.
Questions
- Can I keep budget and actuals apart?
- Use two groups — one for the plan, one for real spending.
- How much buffer should we add?
- Ten to fifteen percent is a common cushion for a group trip.
- Does it convert currencies?
- Choose one settlement currency and enter converted estimates.