You downloaded Splitwise for the trip with your friends. At first it works perfectly: you log the expenses, the app works out who owes what. Then, at some point, you notice you can only add three free expenses a day, that receipt scanning costs extra, and that converting currencies on the trip needs the Pro subscription. And even if you pay for it, the underlying problem is still there: someone has to front the money, and everyone still has to transfer their share to settle up.
If you're looking for a Splitwise alternative, that's probably exactly the point: you don't just want an app that keeps score better. You want to stop having to settle up at all.
To be fair: Splitwise and Tricount do what they were built to do well. They're easy to use, work on any phone, let you split expenses by different shares or exact amounts, and keep a clear history of who paid for what during a trip or while living together. For groups that just want a shared expense log, without linking anyone's bank account, they're still solid tools — which is exactly why millions of people use them.
The problem starts once the group gets bigger or the expenses more frequent. Every payment has to be entered by hand. Someone has to front the money every time — the Airbnb, dinner, the taxi. And eventually, whether it's after a weekend or after a month of living together, the moment always comes to "settle up": transfers, reminders, that message in the group chat nobody wants to send to ask for €6 back.
Splitwise and Tricount track expenses. They don't actually split them. And tracking expenses and splitting them are two different things: the first tells you how much you owe, the second actually gets you paid that amount without you having to do anything.
There's also a more practical issue reviews mention a lot: the app has gotten heavier over time. Ads for the Pro version on every open, daily limits on free expenses introduced in the last few years, an interface that's barely changed in years — several recent App Store reviews describe an app that "used to be great" but now feels bulkier than it should for something as simple as noting who paid for what.
With classic tracking, the work is still all on you: logging every expense, remembering to do it, fronting the money when it's your turn, and then chasing everyone else for transfers. On Splitwise's free plan, there are also real limits — a daily cap on expenses, no receipt scanning, no multi-currency conversion without the Pro subscription. Tricount is more generous with its free features, but the underlying mechanism is the same: you track it, then you settle up separately.
Cino was built to solve exactly this. Instead of tracking expenses and splitting them later, it splits them the moment they're paid.
Here's how it works: you create a group on Cino — with your partner, friends, or housemates — and everyone links their own debit card. When it's time to pay, one person just uses the shared Cino card: everyone's share is automatically charged from their own account, in real time. Nobody fronts the full amount, nobody has to log the expense by hand afterwards, and there's no transfer to make to settle up, because it's already settled the moment you pay.
You can split 50/50, by custom percentages (60/40, 70/30), or by exact amount, just like on Splitwise — except you don't have to do anything manually afterwards.
Cino works with practically any Italian bank: PostePay, Intesa Sanpaolo, Banca Sella, Revolut, ING, and many others. It costs 20 cents per transaction, up to a maximum of €5 a month: after around 25 transactions, everything else that month is free. No subscription, no account to open.
Card payments aren't the only kind of shared expense — sometimes it's cash, or something one of you already covered separately. That's exactly the gap Cino's new Tracking feature closes: log it in the app and it's split and recorded just like a card payment, so you get the same complete picture Splitwise and Tricount give you, without giving up the instant splitting that makes Cino different. Tracking is completely free, with no limits, for groups of up to 8 people.
Honestly, it depends what you're looking for.
If you just need a detailed expense log for a one-off trip, maybe with people who'll never want to link a shared payment app, Splitwise or Tricount are still sensible choices: they're free on the basic plan, widely known, and don't require linking any card.
If instead you split expenses regularly — with a partner, housemates, the group of friends you see every weekend — and you're tired of tracking, fronting money, and then chasing transfers, Cino removes that work at the root: it splits the expense the instant it's paid, not afterwards.
You don't have to pick just one app forever, either. Plenty of people use Cino for recurring expenses with a partner or housemates, and Splitwise or Tricount for the odd group trip with people who don't have Cino. What matters is using the right tool for the right situation — our guides on splitting travel expenses with friends and splitting expenses with a partner go into more detail.
What's the best free alternative to Splitwise?
Depends what you're after. If you just want to track expenses with no limits, Tricount is generous on its free plan. If you want to stop having to settle up afterwards, Cino costs 20 cents per transaction (max €5/month) but removes transfers and manual tallying completely.
How much does Splitwise Pro cost?
Splitwise Pro is a paid subscription that unlocks receipt scanning, unlimited expenses, and currency conversion. With Cino there's no subscription at all: you only pay 20 cents per transaction, up to a maximum of €5 a month.
Is Cino free?
Downloading and using Cino is free. Every transaction costs 20 cents, capped at €5 a month — after around 25 transactions, everything else that month is free. No fixed fee, no account to open.
Does Cino work with my bank?
Yes, with practically any Italian bank: PostePay, Intesa Sanpaolo, Banca Sella, Revolut, ING, and many others.
Can I use Cino and Splitwise together?
Sure. A lot of people use Cino for recurring expenses (partner, housemates) and a tracking app like Splitwise or Tricount for a one-off trip with people who don't have Cino.
Splitwise and Tricount do a good job tracking who owes what. But tracking expenses and splitting them are two different things, and if you're tired of the part that comes after the tracking — transfers included — Cino was built to remove exactly that.
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