There’s nothing worse than having a relaxing night out with your friends, only to have everyone tense up once the check hits the table. Take the stress out of divying up the bill with Divyit, an iPhone app developed by DC Software Arts.

What is it and what does it do

Main Functionality

Divyit lets you break down the cost of utilities, restaurant bills, rent, and more among a large group of people. You can split things evenly, or unevenly. When you’re done inputting expenses, just turn the iPhone sideways to see the simplest number of payments owed by each user.

Pros

• Ability to add participant photos (perfect for recalling people who you don’t know well in a large group)
• Email participants a detailed list of what they owe
• Easy to see at a glance which people were involved in the split, and who still needs to pay up
• Just one touch marks a person as having paid
• Easy to navigate, create new Divys, and input vital details

Cons

• This free version only allows 7 expenses a month. You need to upgrade to add unlimited expenses. This costs $1.99.
• Not all services are available if you don’t let the app access your current location
• Limited variety of icons to assign to each Divy

Discussion

I never had an off-campus apartment in college, and I think part of the reason why was money. Splitting utilities and rent always seemed like pulling teeth, and I can remember how stressed out my friends who had apartments were when one of their roomies failed to cough up the dough. I have one particularly vivid memory of seeing a friend’s fridge, covered with utility bills, sticky notes on how much everyone owed, and tons of passive-aggressive notes to the deadbeat roommates.

If only my college friends had Divyit, they might have gotten along better. Based on my experience with this app, I’m willing to bet that it will save more than a few roommate friendships. It’s super easy to set up all your recurring expenses, and takes just a few seconds to email each payer with info about how much they owe, and for which bills.

It’s annoying that the free version only lets you have seven Divys, but that’s actually more than most people need each month. Even if you’re splitting rent, electric, gas, phone, and TV/Internet, you still have some wiggle room. Still, if you need more Divy space, you can upgrade via in-app purchase: $1.99 gets you unlimited Divys.

Conclusion and download link

Bottom line: if you live with roommates, you need this app. It’s speedy, easy to navigate, and bound to help you keep better track of your finances. It’s great for splitting monthly utility bills without headaches, and if you have leftover spots in your free version, you can use one of the seven open slots to split checks from birthday parties or party shopping. If you’re the responsible one in the household, you need this app to help you keep everyone in line.

Price: Free (can pay $1.99 for in-app upgrade)

Version reviewed: 1.0.0

Requires iPhone/iPad/iPod Touch, iOS 5.1 or later

Download size: 32.2 MB

Divyit on Apple App Store