Track shared expenses with your partner

Set up a shared Dongip account with your partner to keep joint bills transparent, track who paid what, and settle up without the awkward math.

Money friction in relationships rarely comes from how much you spend — it comes from surprise. When one partner sees a charge the other didn’t expect, or a recurring subscription silently doubles, things get tense. A shared Dongip account keeps you both looking at the same numbers in real time, so there’s nothing to argue about after the fact.

1. Create a shared account

   Open Dongip and tap Accounts → New Account → Shared. Give it a name you’ll both recognize — “Our Bills,” “Apartment,” or just your names works fine.

   Once the account is created, tap Invite and enter your partner’s email address. They’ll get a link to join. As soon as they accept, you’re both looking at the same live ledger.

2. Decide what goes in the shared account

   Before you start logging expenses, agree on what counts as joint and what stays personal. Write your list in the account description so you both have a reference.

   Common joint expenses:

   • Rent or mortgage, utilities, internet
   • Groceries and household supplies
   • Shared subscriptions (streaming, cloud storage)
   • Dining out together, travel, shared pet costs

   Common personal expenses:

   • Hobbies, individual clothing, personal subscriptions
   • Gifts for friends, meals or coffee alone

   If you’re unsure, a useful rule of thumb: if both of you benefit, it’s joint.

3. Connect your banks

   For each partner, go to Settings → Bank Sync and connect your bank account through Plaid. Dongip pulls transactions automatically in read-only mode — it never moves money, just imports.

   Once connected, transactions that belong in the shared account will appear for you to confirm. Tap to assign them to the shared account and Dongip calculates the split instantly.

4. Understand the who-owes-whom ledger

   Every time one partner pays for something shared, Dongip records who paid and adjusts the running balance. You can see at a glance:

   • The total spent together this month
   • Who is owed money and how much
   • A line-by-line log of every shared transaction

   There’s no manual math. When it’s time to settle up, Dongip shows you exactly one number: the net amount one partner owes the other.

5. Run a monthly money date

   Once a month, sit down together with the shared account open — 15 minutes is enough. Work through three questions:

   1. Is anything in the shared account that should be personal, or vice versa?
   2. Are there any subscriptions neither of you is actively using?
   3. Are you on pace with your category budgets for groceries, dining, and fun?

   Settle the open balance while you’re at it. Starting each month at zero prevents balances from building into something emotionally charged.

Shared vs. personal: quick reference

Joint: rent, utilities, groceries, shared subscriptions, date nights, travel together

Personal: individual hobbies, personal subscriptions, clothes, gifts for friends

Three money models

Fully joint — all expenses from one pool. Simplest, works when lifestyles align.

Proportional — each contributes based on income. Fair when incomes differ.

Yours / mine / ours — personal accounts plus one shared account. Most common.

Set a standing 15-minute calendar event once a month for your money date. Couples who review together regularly report far fewer money arguments than those who only talk about finances when something goes wrong.

What if my partner doesn't want to track spending?

Automate as much as possible. When bank sync is connected, transactions flow in without either of you typing anything. Your partner only needs to show up for the monthly review — 15 minutes, not a daily habit.

How do we handle a large individual purchase?

Agree on a threshold — say, $200 — above which you discuss before buying. Below that threshold, each partner has full autonomy within their personal account. Put the rule in writing once; it avoids negotiating case by case.

Should we combine finances completely?

There’s no single right answer. Fully joint, proportional, and yours/mine/ours all work well in practice. The key is picking one model explicitly rather than drifting into an undefined middle, and tracking against it consistently.

What about subscriptions on different cards?

Subscriptions charged to separate cards won’t automatically appear in the shared account. The cleanest fix is to put all shared subscriptions on one card and connect that card to the shared account. Dongip’s subscription radar will then flag any new recurring charges the moment they appear.

Dongip uses Plaid for bank sync, which is read-only. Neither you nor Dongip can move or modify money in your bank account through the connection.